On the Evolution of Mating Systems in Birds and Mammals

Abstract

Predictions from a theory assuming mate selection on the part of females, which maximizes reproductive success of individuals, are found to accord closely, though not completely, with known mating patterns. These predictions are that (1) polyandry should be rare, (2) polygyny should be more common among mammals than among birds, (3) polygyny should be more prevalent among precocial than among altricial birds, (4) conditions for polygyny should be met in marshes more regularly than among terrestrial environments, (5) polygyny should be more prevalent among species of early successional habitats, (6) polygyny should be more prevalent among species in which feeding areas are widespread but nesting sites are restricted, and (7) polygyny should evolve more readily among species in which clutch size is strongly influenced by factors other than the ability of the adults to provide food for the young. Most cases of polygyny in birds, a group in which monogamy is the most common mating pattern, can be explained on the basis of the model, and those cases not apparently fitting into the predictions are clearly indicated. Thus, there is no need at present to invoke more complicated and restrictive mechanisms to explain the mating patterns known to exist.