Sexual Selection and Mutation Rates in Birds
Author Information
Author(s): A. P. Møller, J. J. Cuervo
Primary Institution: CNRS, UMR 7103, Laboratoire de Parasitologie Evolutive, Université Pierre et Marie Curie
Hypothesis
Does sexual selection influence the mutation rate of minisatellites in birds?
Conclusion
There is no clear relationship between minisatellite mutation rate and extra-pair copulation rate in birds, and previous findings may be due to data errors.
Supporting Evidence
- The study found numerous transcription errors in the original data.
- Including omitted species significantly weakened the correlation previously reported.
- The analysis showed that variation in mutation rates is largely due to differences among laboratories rather than species.
Takeaway
The study looked at whether birds that mate outside their pair bond have higher mutation rates, but it turns out that the data used to support this idea was flawed.
Methodology
The study reanalyzed data from 132 species to assess the relationship between mutation rates and extra-pair paternity, controlling for various confounding factors.
Potential Biases
There may be biases in data selection and transcription errors that could affect the results.
Limitations
The study's conclusions are based on potentially flawed data selection and transcription errors from previous analyses.
Participant Demographics
Bird species with varying rates of extra-pair paternity.
Statistical Information
P-Value
0.0090
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Want to read the original?
Access the complete publication on the publisher's website