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Exogenous testosterone increases female aggression in the European starling (Sturnus vulgaris)

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Abstract

In the European starling, Sturnus vulgaris, optimal mating systems differ between males and females. Males gain from polygyny, whereas monogamy increases female fitness. The cost of polygyny to females lead to intense female–female competition, and it has previously been shown that the intensity of female aggression during the pre-breeding period can predict the realised mating system. The physiological regulation of such female aggression in starlings is not yet known. This study examines the role of testosterone in mediating aggressive behaviours involved in intra-specific reproductive competition in female starlings. Testosterone levels were experimentally elevated with testosterone implants in females during the pre-laying period. To simulate a situation in which an additional female tried to mate with the focal female’s mate, a caged female was presented close to a nest-site to which the male could attract a secondary female. Testosterone was significantly related to several behaviours involved in female–female interactions. Females with testosterone implants spent significantly more time close to the caged female and produced more song bouts than control females. In contrast, male behaviour was unrelated to the experimental status of the mate. Females mated to males that attracted a secondary female were less aggressive towards the caged female than those that remained monogamously mated. The effect of exogenous testosterone in this study indicates that androgens may mediate social behaviours in female starlings during the breeding season.

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Acknowledgements

Kent Andersson provided excellent help during the cage experiment, and Martin Granbom, Michael Tobler, Måns Bruun and Henrik Smith assisted during field work. Michael Tobler and Henrik Smith provided useful comments on the manuscript. The study was financed by grants from the Swedish Research Council (VR) and Kungliga Fysiografiska Sällskapet. The methods adhere to the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals in Sweden (Djurskyddsmyndigheten) and were approved by the Malmö/Lund Animal Care Committee (Sweden).

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  1. Department of Animal Ecology, Ecology Building, Lund University, S-223 62, Lund, Sweden

    Maria I. Sandell

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  1. Maria I. Sandell
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Correspondence to Maria I. Sandell.

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Communicated by P. Heeb

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Sandell, M.I. Exogenous testosterone increases female aggression in the European starling (Sturnus vulgaris). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 62, 255–262 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-007-0460-9

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