Date of Award
2012
Publication Type
Master Thesis
Degree Name
M.Sc.
Department
Biological Sciences
Keywords
Biological sciences, Antioxidant capacity, Honest signal, Oxidative damage, Oxidative stress, Snow bunting, Song
Supervisor
Oliver P. Love
Supervisor
Daniel J. Mennill
Rights
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Abstract
Sexual selection has led to the evolution of elaborate signals which enhance mate attraction and reproductive success. Often there is marked variation in signal quality between individuals yet little is known about the physiological mechanisms underlying this variation. Bird song is a signal used to attract mates and repel rivals and can vary between individuals in both content and performance. Oxidative stress is a potential mechanism that may affect song content and performance, explaining some of the inter-individual variation in signal quality. I investigated the relationship between song, oxidative status, and reproduction in the Snow Bunting ( Plectrophenax nivalis ) and found support for the Oxidation Handicap Hypothesis. Birds that sang at a higher rate had higher levels of reactive oxygen metabolites, but also had higher anti-oxidant capacities. Therefore, the ability to avoid oxidative stress is reliably indicated via song performance and reactive oxygen species may be the handicap ensuring signal honesty.
Recommended Citation
Baldo, Sarah, "Song as an honest indicator of oxidative damage and anti-oxidant capacity: Exploring the relationships between signal quality, oxidative status, and reproduction in the Snow Bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis)" (2012). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 4791.
https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd/4791