Factors affecting low resident male siring success in one-male groups of blue monkeys

Abstract

In species that live in one-male/multi-female groups, resident males have more access to females than do bachelor males and should have a within-group reproductive advantage. We used a genetic analysis of 13 microsatellite loci to assign paternity to 111 offspring born over 10 years in 8 groups of wild blue monkeys. Resident males sired a maximum of 61% of the offspring conceived in their groups, indicating that despite their greater access to females, residents lost a substantial number of offspring to outsiders. A resident was less likely to sire an offspring when multiple females were in conceptive estrus, suggesting that it is difficult to monitor many fertile females simultaneously. Moreover, multiple estrous females likely attract competitor males, whose presence also decreased the probability that a resident sired an offspring. The negative effect of intruders on resident siring success may occur because females prefer competitors or because an increase in the number of intruders increases the challenge of effective mate guarding by a resident, leading him to miss rare mating opportunities. Tenure length did not affect resident siring success. Identifying the factors affecting patterns of paternity within species will help us to better understand the considerable variation in resident male siring success that occurs in one-male groups.