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Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
agricultural and biological sciences
Early life expenditure in sexual competition is associated with increased reproductive senescence in male red deer
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, Volume 281, No. 1792, Article 20140792, Year 2014
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Description
The evolutionary theories of senescence predict that investment in reproduction in early life should come at the cost of reduced somatic maintenance, and thus earlier or more rapid senescence. There is now growing support for such trade-offs in wild vertebrates, but these exclusively come from females. Here, we test this prediction in male red deer (Cervus elaphus) using detailed longitudinal data collected over a 40-year field study. We show that males which had larger harems and thereby allocated more resources to reproduction during early adulthood experienced higher rates of senescence in both harem size and rut duration. Males that carried antlers with more points during early life did not show more pronounced declines in reproductive traits in later life. Overall, we demonstrate that sexual competition shapes male reproductive senescence in wild red deer populations and provide rare empirical support for the disposable soma theory of ageing in males of polygynous vertebrate species. © 2014 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.
Authors & Co-Authors
Lemaître, Jean François
France, Lyon
Université de Lyon
France, Paris
Cnrs Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Gaillard, Jean Michel
France, Lyon
Université de Lyon
France, Paris
Cnrs Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Pemberton, Josephine M.
United Kingdom, Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh
Clutton-Brock, Tim H.
United Kingdom, Cambridge
University of Cambridge
Nussey, Daniel H.
United Kingdom, Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh
Statistics
Citations: 52
Authors: 5
Affiliations: 4
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1098/rspb.2014.0792
ISSN:
09628452
Research Areas
Sexual And Reproductive Health
Study Design
Cohort Study
Participants Gender
Male
Female