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Heterozygosity–fitness correlations in blue tit nestlings (Cyanistis caeruleus) under contrasting rearing conditions

Evolutionary Ecology, ISSN: 0269-7653, Vol: 31, Issue: 5, Page: 803-814
2017
  • 10
    Citations
  • 0
    Usage
  • 44
    Captures
  • 0
    Mentions
  • 0
    Social Media
Metric Options:   Counts1 Year3 Year

Metrics Details

  • Citations
    10
    • Citation Indexes
      10
  • Captures
    44

Article Description

Understanding the relation between genetic variation and fitness remains a key question in evolutionary biology. Although heterozygosity has been reported to correlate with many fitness-related traits, the strength of the heterozygosity–fitness correlations (HFCs) is usually weak and it is still difficult to assess the generality of these associations in natural populations. It has been suggested that HFCs may become meaningful only under particular environmental conditions. Moreover, existing evidence suggests that HFCs may also differ between sexes. The aim of this study was to investigate correlations between heterozygosity in neutral markers (microsatellites) and fitness-related traits in a natural population of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus). Additionally, we tested whether sex and environmental conditions may influence the magnitude and direction of HFCs. We found a positive relationship between heterozygosity and body mass of 14 days post-hatching nestlings, but only among females. Our results suggest that the correlation between heterozygosity and nestling body mass observed among female offspring could be attributed to within-brood effects. We failed to find any evidence that environmental conditions as simulated by brood size manipulation affect HFCs.

Bibliographic Details

Aneta Arct; Joanna Sudyka; Edyta Podmokła; Szymon M. Drobniak; Mariusz Cichoń; Lars Gustafsson

Springer Science and Business Media LLC

Agricultural and Biological Sciences

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