Why do females of so many socially monogamous species regularly engage in matings
outside the pair bond? This question has puzzled behavioural ecologists for more than two …

Why do some animals mate with one partner rather than many? Here, I investigate factors
related to (i) spatial constraints (habitat limitation, mate availability),(ii) time constraints …

Research on mate choice has primarily focused on preferences for quality indicators,
assuming that all individuals show consensus about who is the most attractive. However, in …

Avian hatching failure is a widespread phenomenon, affecting around 10% of all eggs that
are laid and not lost to predation, damage, or desertion. Our understanding of hatching …

Variation in extra‐pair paternity (EPP) among individuals of the same population could result
from stochastic demography or from individual differences in mating strategies. Although the …

Our understanding of fundamental organismal biology has been disproportionately
influenced by studies of a relatively small number of 'model'species extensively studied in …

Parental investment in unrelated offspring seems maladaptive from an evolutionary
perspective, due to the costs of energy and resources that cannot be invested in related …

Inbreeding depression, or the reduction in fitness due to mating between close relatives, is a
key issue in biology today. Inbreeding negatively affects many fitness‐related traits …

Background The proteins of avian eggshell organic matrices are thought to control the
mineralization of the eggshell in the shell gland (uterus). Proteomic analysis of such …

Studies of mate choice typically assume that individuals prefer high quality mates and select
them based on condition-dependent indicator traits. In species with biparental care, mutual …