Dispersal in Kin Coalition Throughout the Non-Breeding Season to Facilitate Fine-Scale Genetic Structure in the Breeding Season: Evidence From a Small Passerine

作者：Wang, Chen; Lu, Xin^*

来源：Ethology, 2014, 120(10): 1003-1012.

DOI：10.1111/eth.12273

• dispersal
• family dynamics
• fine-scale genetic structure
• kin selection
• Parus humilis
• relatedness

Evidence shows that social cooperation among kin may evolve even in birds with extensive dispersal. In such cases, maintaining kinship during dispersal is essential to the subsequent expression of kin cooperation. This hypothesis has not been examined for most bird species. We addressed it in the ground tit (Parus humilis), a passerine where kin frequently interact in terms of cooperative polygamy and extra-pair mating despite fast annual turnover of the breeding population. Pedigree and genotype data showed that while groups varied in composition throughout the non-breeding season due to continual individual emigration and immigration, they always contained kin coalitions consisting of either local or immigrant individuals of different age and sexes. The first-order kin coalitions, according to the information from local individuals, stemmed from single-family lineages (siblings and their parents), and the lower-order ones from neighbouring, related family lineages that merged after fledging. It was probable that immigrants had formed kin coalitions in similar ways before dispersing. Groups broke up in the breeding season. Pairing between unrelated individuals from different coalitions within a group was more likely, whereas related individuals from the same coalition tended to nest near each other. The resulting fine-scale population genetic structure is expected to facilitate breeding interactions among kin. Our findings give clues to understanding the evolution of social cooperation in relation to dispersal.

• 出版日期2014-10
• 单位武汉大学