The Voyeur Biologist
RSSPosts tagged with "Mammalia"
Gene Involved in Sperm-To-Egg Binding Is Key to Fertility in Mammals
[Researchers] found that when the gene was ‘switched off’ in male mice, less than three per cent of females’ eggs were fertilised compared to more than 80 per cent in mice when the gene was left switched on.
It is the first time that a gene of this type has been linked to fertility.
(Source: fuckyeahgametes)
In choosing the best mate, animals frequently must consider both overall fitness and individual compatibility. A potential mate may objectively have more attractive qualities, but be poorly suited to an individual, thus nullifying the benefits of their good qualities.
Using ring-tailed lemurs as Duke University’s Lemur Center, scientists tested lemurs’ response to odor cues collected from other lemurs at different levels of quality and relatedness. Female lemurs can “sniff out” both relatedness and quality, and in certain circumstances may trade off overall quality for personal compatibility.
(Source: BBC)
Y-Chromosome Variation in Hominids: Intraspecific Variation Is Limited to the Polygamous Chimpanzee
High intraspecific variation in copy number and position of the DAZ and CDY genes is seen only in the chimpanzee. We hypothesize that this is best explained by sperm competition that results in the variant DAZ and CDY haplotypes detected in this species. In contrast, bonobos, gorillas and orangutans—species that are not subject to sperm competition—showed no intraspecific variation in DAZ and CDY suggesting that monoandry in gorillas, and preferential female mate choice in bonobos and orangutans, probably permitted the fixation of a single Y variant in each taxon. These data support the notion that the evolutionary history of a primate Y chromosome is not simply encrypted in its DNA sequences, but is also shaped by the social and behavioral circumstances under which the specific species has evolved.
Green Porno - Deer
Several wild goats standing together on the side of a rocky mountain.
Male chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra, a species of goat-antelope native to European mountains) vary their reproductive strategy by population. During the winter, in late November and December, males compete for female attention during the rut (mating season of mammals such as deer and goats), in which they fight each other, herd estrus and unmated females, and rub their antlers against other objects.
Some male chamois put in a great deal of energy at yonger ages and some, demonstrating the strategy of “terminal investment,” wait until they are much older. This varying of reproductive strategy may be in reaction to human hunting patterns thinning out certain age groups, and allows those males who wait to dominate the rut through size, age, and experience.
Goat Mating is Weird
Dolphins Team Up To Get the Girl
Male dolphins who formed an alliance of wingmen fathered more babies than those who worked the seas solo.
Hedgehog Mating Rituals - David Attenborough (Life of Mammals - BBC)
Seduce Me - Deer
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