In some jacana species, males take care of the eggs and young, and females compete for territories and males aga one another. Female jacanas are significantly larger than males. Which of these statements would you predict to of this bird species?
1) Male jacana fitness is primarily limited by ability to take care of eggs and raise young.
2) Female jacana fitness is limited by the number of males with which a female mates.
3) Variation in reproductive success should be greater in male jacanas than in females.
4) Variation in reproductive success should be greater in female jacanas than in males.
5) Males and females have equal variation in reproductive success.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

1) Male jacana fitness is primarily limited by ability to take care of eggs and raise young. This is supported by the fact that in some jacana species, males are the primary caregivers of offspring. Therefore, their ability to take care of eggs and raise young is likely to be a major factor in their reproductive success.

2) Female jacana fitness is limited by the number of males with which a female mates. Since females compete for territories and males in some jacana species, their fitness is likely to be limited by the number of males with which they mate. This suggests that female jacanas may mate with multiple males in order to increase their fitness.

3) Variation in reproductive success should be greater in male jacanas than in females. Since males are the primary caregivers in some jacana species, their reproductive success may be more dependent on their ability to care for eggs and young than on their ability to compete for mates. This could lead to greater variation in reproductive success among males than among females.

4) Variation in reproductive success should be greater in female jacanas than in males. Since females compete for males in some jacana species, their reproductive success may be more dependent on their ability to compete for high-quality mates than on their ability to care for offspring. This could lead to greater variation in reproductive success among females than among males.

5) Males and females have equal variation in reproductive success. This is unlikely given the differences in reproductive strategies between males and females in some jacana species. Therefore, option 5 can be eliminated.

In Some Jacana Species, Males Take Care of the Eggs