Doctoral Dissertation Research: Examining causes and consequences of variation in male reproductive success in wild primates

在非人类灵长类动物中，可以观察到一系列与雄性成功繁殖后代有关的雄性行为。本博士论文研究项目考察了野生狒狒（灵长类动物）不同雄性策略（攻击性与亲和性）的生殖回报。该研究结果为雄性生殖策略的进化提供了有价值的见解，并将加深对长寿灵长类物种中雄性-雌性社会关系的适应性意义的理解。在进行拟议的研究时，这位博士生将继续与来自代表性不足的社区的K-12学生合作，培养对科学和研究的热情，并在当地小学发表关于灵长类动物行为和进化的演讲。此外，在她的论文研究过程中，博士生将继续在实验室培训本科生，并指导来自灵长类动物学中代表性不足的群体的女性。本研究探讨了不同的雄性行为策略如何影响狒狒的繁殖成功。雄性狒狒通过成为一个由多只雌性狒狒及其后代组成的家庭的统治领袖来获得繁殖机会。因此，雄性的繁殖是群体中可育雌性的数量与他保持统治地位的时间（任期长度）相结合的函数。该项目将使用长期数据（收集超过13年），结合详细的行为、激素和来自个别已知的雄性领袖的父权数据，来评估哪些因素有助于雄性繁殖成功。首先，研究人员将通过对项目中所有领导雄性和婴儿进行基因分型来确定父系关系，以此来衡量生殖成功率。其次，他们将量化可能影响狒狒繁殖成功的身体特征。这些包括：i)体型（通过激光摄影测量测量），ii)胸部贴片发红（通过将狒狒胸部贴片的照片与标准颜色检查图进行比较来测量），以及iii)使用从单个雄性领袖收集的粪便样本来测量睾丸激素水平（通过生物素标记的酶免疫测定法测量）。第三，研究人员将通过行为观察和记录杀婴行为来量化雄性和雌性的社会关系，从而评估雄性为提高繁殖成功率所采用的社会策略。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

In nonhuman primates a range of male behaviors are observed that relate to male success in siring offspring. This doctoral dissertation research project examines reproductive payoffs of different male strategies (aggressive versus affiliative) in wild geladas (primates). Results from this study provide valuable insights about the evolution of male reproductive strategies and will enhance understanding about the adaptive significance of male-female social bonds in a long-lived primate species. While conducting the proposed research, the doctoral student will continue to work with K-12 students from underrepresented communities to foster excitement about science and research and give talks about primate behavior and evolution at local elementary schools. Additionally, the doctoral student will continue training undergraduate students in the laboratory throughout her dissertation research and mentor women from groups underrepresented in primatology.This research investigates how different male behavioral strategies affect reproductive success in geladas. Male geladas gain reproductive opportunities by becoming the dominant leader over a family of multiple females and their offspring. Male reproduction is thus a function of the number of fertile females in the group combined with how long he remains the dominant leader (tenure length). The proposed project will use long term data (collected over 13 years) in combination with detailed behavioral, hormonal, and paternity data from individually known leader males to assess which factors contribute to male reproductive success. First, the investigators will measure reproductive success by assigning paternity through genotyping all leader males and infants in the project. Second, they will quantify physical attributes that could affect reproductive success in geladas. These include: i) body size (measured through laser photogrammetry), ii) chest patch redness (measured by comparing photos of gelada chest patch against a standard color checker chart), and iii) testosterone levels using fecal samples collected from individual leader males (measured through a biotin labelled enzyme-immunoassay). Third, the investigators will assess what social strategies males employ to increase reproductive success by quantifying male-female social relationships through behavioral observations and recording the occurrence of infanticide.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.