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Testosterone influences basal metabolic rate in male house sparrows: a new cost of dominance signalling?
journal contribution
posted on 2001-07-07, 00:00 authored by Kate BuchananKate Buchanan, M R Evans, A R Goldsmith, D M Bryant, L V RoweSexually selected signals of individual dominance have profound effects on access to resources, mate choice and gene flow. However, why such signals should honestly reflect individual quality is poorly understood. Many such signals are known to develop under the influence of testosterone. We conducted an experiment in male house sparrows in which testosterone was manipulated independently during two periods: before the onset of the breeding season and prior to the autumn moult. We then measured the effects of these manipulations on basal metabolic rate and on the size of the chest bib, a sexually selected signal. The results demonstrate that testosterone simultaneously affects both signal development and basal metabolic rate in the house sparrow (Passer domesticus). This evidence, therefore, supports a novel conclusion: that testosterone-dependent signals act as honest indicators of male quality possibly because only high-quality individuals can sustain the energetic costs associated with signal development.
History
Journal
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: biological sciencesVolume
268Issue
1474Pagination
1337 - 1344Publisher
Royal Society of LondonLocation
London, Eng.Publisher DOI
ISSN
0962-8452Language
engPublication classification
C1.1 Refereed article in a scholarly journalCopyright notice
2001, The Royal SocietyUsage metrics
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No categories selectedKeywords
AnimalsBehavior, AnimalenergeticsMalePasser domesticusSignal TransductionsignallingSongbirdsTestosteroneScience & TechnologyLife Sciences & BiomedicineBiologyEcologyEvolutionary BiologyLife Sciences & Biomedicine - Other TopicsEnvironmental Sciences & EcologyBADGE SIZEPASSER-DOMESTICUSSTRESSEXPENDITUREBIRDS
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