Effects of Experimental Manipulation of Testosterone Levels on Parental Investment and Breeding Success in Male House Sparrows
- 1 July 1987
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Ornithology
- Vol. 104 (3), 462-469
- https://doi.org/10.2307/4087545
Abstract
Breeding male House Sparrows (Passer domesticus) were implanted with testosterone (T), the antiandrogen flutamide (F), or an empty capsule as a control (C). Parental feeding rates by C-treated males were high until nestlings reached 10 days of age, then declined significantly. This is the typical temporal pattern of parental behavior for free-living males. In contrast, F-treated males fed young at a high rate throughout the nestling stage, while T-treated males fed young much less frequently and were more involved in male-male competition during this period of time. There was a significant decrease in the breeding success of T-treated males resulting from increased starvation of their nestlings. Despite lowered levels of testosterone, F-treated males were able to maintain control of their nest boxes and exhibited normal sexual behavior. During the subsequent brood, breeding success of T-treated males again was reduced by nestling starvation. Our results demonstrate that high levels of testosterone inhibit the expression of parental care in male House Sparrows. Moreover, they suggest that the typical pattern of testosterone levels in males (high when mate guarding and low when feeding young) represents an optimal compromise between allocation of effort to male-male competition vs. parental care.This publication has 19 references indexed in Scilit:
- Behavioral and endocrine correlates of multiple brooding in the semicolonial house sparrow Passer domesticus II. FemalesHormones and Behavior, 1986
- Behavioral and endocrine correlates of multiple brooding in the semicolonial house sparrow Passer domesticus I. MalesHormones and Behavior, 1986
- Effect of flutamide (an antiandrogen) and diethylstilbestrol on the reproductive behavior of Japanese quailPhysiology & Behavior, 1986
- Testosterone and Aggressive Behaviour during the Reproductive Cycle of Male BirdsProceedings in Life Sciences, 1985
- Environmental and endocrine control of reproduction in the song sparrow, Melospiza melodiaGeneral and Comparative Endocrinology, 1984
- Environmental and endocrine control of reproduction in the song sparrow, Melospiza melodiaGeneral and Comparative Endocrinology, 1984
- Effects of long-acting testosterone treatment on freeliving pied flycatchers, Ficedula hypoleuca, during the breeding periodAnimal Behaviour, 1980
- The Annual Cycle of Plasma irLH and Steroid Hormones in Feral Populations of the White-crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia leucophrys gambeliiBiology of Reproduction, 1978
- Seasonal Variation in Reproductive Output of House Sparrows: The Determination of Clutch SizeEcology, 1978
- Biological aspects of antiandrogensJournal of Steroid Biochemistry, 1975