Patterns of male reproductive success in a highly promiscuous whale species: the endangered North Atlantic right whale

Parentage analyses of baleen whales are rare, and although mating systems have been hypothesized for some species, little data on realized male reproductive success are available and the patterns of male reproductive success have remained elusive for most species. Here we combine over 20 years of ph...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Molecular ecology 2007-12, Vol.16 (24), p.5277-5293
Main Authors: FRASIER, T. R., HAMILTON, P. K., BROWN, M. W., CONGER, L. A., KNOWLTON, A. R., MARX, M. K., SLAY, C. K., KRAUS, S. D., WHITE, B. N.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aging - physiology
Animal reproduction
Animals
Atlantic Ocean
Ecology
Endangered & extinct species
endangered species
Extinction, Biological
Female
Genetics
Male
Males
Marine biology
mating systems
Molecular biology
paternity
polygyny
Population Density
Reproduction - physiology
reproductive success
right whale
Sexual Behavior, Animal - physiology
Time Factors
Whales & whaling
Whales - classification
Whales - physiology
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Summary:Parentage analyses of baleen whales are rare, and although mating systems have been hypothesized for some species, little data on realized male reproductive success are available and the patterns of male reproductive success have remained elusive for most species. Here we combine over 20 years of photo‐identification data with high‐resolution genetic data for the majority of individual North Atlantic right whales to assess paternity in this endangered species. There was significant skew in male reproductive success compared to what would be expected if mating was random (P 
ISSN:0962-1083
1365-294X
DOI:10.1111/j.1365-294X.2007.03570.x