Extreme Sequential Polyandry Insures Against Nest Failure In A Frog

Main Category: Biology / Biochemistry
Also Included In: Veterinary
Article Date: 10 Sep 2008 - 2:00 PDT

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Although there are clear advantages to males of having multiple mates (polygyny) the rationale for females mating with multiple males (polyandry) remains one of the most controversial issues in evolutionary biology.

Here we show in a wild population of Australian terrestrial toadlets that females partition their clutches between the nests of up to eight different males and that clutch partitioning substantially reduces the risk of nest failure.

This is an exciting result because it is not only the most extreme case of sequential polyandry yet discovered in a vertebrate but it is also a novel direct benefit of female promiscuity.

Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Proceedings B is the Royal Society's flagship biological research journal, dedicated to the rapid publication and broad dissemination of high-quality research papers, reviews and comment and reply papers. The scope of journal is diverse and is especially strong in organismal biology.

Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences