Confidence of Paternity and Male Parental Care

Abstract

We present a theoretical framework in order to understand how the relationship between male parental care and paternity is dependent on the relationship between male parental care and offspring recruitment. When there is an S-shaped relationship between offspring recruitment and the parental care of a single male, we predict a threshold relationship between male parental care and paternity. Tree swallows, monogamous dunnocks, and red-winged black-birds may follow this pattern. Alternatively, when there is a concave-down relationship between offspring recruitment and male parental care, we predict a continuous (gradual) decline in male parental care in response to decreasing paternity. Studies of noisy miners and polyandrous dunnocks suggest this pattern. Our model illustrates that the relationship between male parental care and paternity is more complex than assumed previously. A predicted adjustment of male parental care in response to paternity must be examined in relation to the effect of male parental care on offspring recruitment and the effect of alternative activities on male fitness