Université de Fribourg

Feral Pigeons (Columba livia) prefer genetically similar mates despite Inbreeding depression

Jacob, Gwenaël ; Prévot, Anne-Caroline ; Baudry, Emmanuelle

In: PLOS ONE, 2016, vol. 11, no. 9, p. e0162451

Avoidance of mating between related individuals is usually considered adaptive because it decreases the probability of inbreeding depression in offspring. However, mating between related partners can be adaptive if outbreeding depression is stronger than inbreeding depression or if females gain inclusive fitness benefits by mating with close kin. In the present study, we used microsatellite...

Université de Fribourg

The geographic scale of genetic differentiation in the feral pigeon (Columba livia): implications for management

Jacob, Gwenaël ; Prévot-Julliard, Anne-Caroline ; Baudry, Emmanuelle

In: Biological Invasions, 2015, vol. 17, no. 1, p. 23–29

Understanding the genetic connectivity among populations of spreading and problematic species is important to determine the spatial scale at which management actions need to be conducted. The feral pigeon (Columba livia) is considered to be a pest or an invasive species in many cities around the world, leading to frequent attempts to control its populations. In the present study, we used...

Université de Fribourg

Factors affecting male and female reproductive success in a chipmunk (Tamias sibiricus) with a scramble competition mating system

Marmet, Julie ; Pisanu, Benoît ; Chapuis, Jean-Louis ; Jacob, Gwenaël ; Baudry, Emmanuelle

In: Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 2012, p. -

While sexual selection in mammals with female defense systems has historically received considerable attention, much less is known about the factors affecting reproductive success in mammalian species with scramble competition mating systems. Using mark–recapture techniques and DNA microsatellite loci to assign parentage, we examined the mating system and factors affecting the variation of the...