Speelman, F.J.D. orcid.org/0000-0002-4768-6359, Burke, T. orcid.org/0000-0003-3848-1244, Komdeur, J. et al. (2 more authors) (2024) Causes and consequences of divorce in a long‐lived socially monogamous bird. Ecology Letters, 27 (12). e14471. ISSN 1461-023X
Abstract
In socially monogamous species, sexual selection not only depends on initial mate choice but also mate switching. To date, studies lack assessment of (1) differences between passive (widowhood) and active (divorce) mate switching, (2) longer term fitness consequences (beyond the season post-divorce) and (3) how age masks reproductive costs and benefits of divorce. We investigated causes and short- and long-term consequences of mate switching and their age dependence using longitudinal data on Seychelles warblers (Acrocephalus sechellensis). Young and old males, but not females, divorced most frequently. Divorce propensity declined with pair-bond duration and reproductive success in both sexes, but mate switching did not incur short-term costs. Divorcees did not gain short- or long-term fitness benefits compared to non-divorcees. Rather, female early-life divorcees that lost their breeding position had lower survival than females that never divorced. Divorce is likely a strategy to escape poor-quality partnerships, but not all divorcees benefit from divorcing.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2024 The Author(s). Ecology Letters published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
Keywords: | Acrocephalus sechellensis; age; mate fidelity; mate switching; partnerships; reproductive success; sex specific; Seychelles warbler; social monogamy; widowing |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > School of Biosciences (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 15 Jan 2025 16:38 |
Last Modified: | 15 Jan 2025 16:38 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Wiley |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1111/ele.14471 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:221368 |