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ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Individual Quality and Extra‐Pair Paternity in the Blue Tit: Sexy Males Bear the Costs

Elisa P. Badás

E-mail address: e.perez@leeds.ac.uk

Department of Evolutionary Ecology, National Museum of Natural Sciences, CSIC, Jose Gutierrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain

School of Biology, The Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT Leeds, UK

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Amaia Autor

Department of Evolutionary Ecology, National Museum of Natural Sciences, CSIC, Jose Gutierrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain

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Javier Martínez

Department of Biomedicine and Biotechnology (Area of Parasitology), University of Alcalá de Henares, Autovia A2, 28805 Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain

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Juan Rivero‐de Aguilar

Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity, Department of Ecological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, University of Chile, Las Palmeras 3425, Santiago, Chile

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Santiago Merino

Department of Evolutionary Ecology, National Museum of Natural Sciences, CSIC, Jose Gutierrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain

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First published: 16 January 2020

Abstract

Adaptive explanations for the evolution of extra‐pair paternity (EPP) suggest that females seek extra‐pair copulations with high quality males. Still, the link between ornamentation, individual quality, and paternity remains unclear. Moreover, honest signaling is essential when explaining EPP because it is needed for sexual selection to occur; yet, it is understudied in multiple ornaments. Because blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) show variable color expression in several plumage patches, we tested: (i) over two seasons, whether males in better condition, more ornamented and less infected by blood parasites gain EPP and have higher reproductive success, and (ii) over three seasons, whether mating patterns affect color change. Males with more saturated yellow feathers, brighter tails, and in better condition had higher reproductive success in one of the seasons. Contrary to expectation, in another season, males that gained EPP were parasitized by blood parasites, suggesting increased vector exposure during extra‐pair copulations. Our results for two seasons show that males siring more extra‐pair young were older and grew brighter cheek or tail feathers for the following season. Despite the increased mating costs, in socially monogamous avian systems, high quality males incur in EPP without compromising traits that may be under sexual selection.

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