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© 1996 International Society for Behavioral Ecology

research-article

Birth-sex ratios and local resource competition in roe deer, Capreolus capreolus

A. J. Mark Hewisona,1 and J. M. Gaillardb

aDepartment of Biology, University of Southampton Southampton, SO9 STU, UK bUniversité Claude Bernard Lyon 1, URA CNRS 2055, 43 boulevard du 11 novembre 1918, 69622 Villeurbanne, France

A. J. M. Hewison is now at Institut de Recherche sur les Grands Mammifères, INRA, BR 27, Castanet-Tolosan Cedex, F 31326, France.

ABSTRACT

We investigated variation in the primary sex ratio within and between 14 populations of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in relation to maternal body condition. The sex ratio was increasingly male biased as average maternal body weight decreased. This relationship did not vary according to the population considered and was not affected by the litter size produced. This relationship was also apparent within populations. These results indicate that, where environmental conditions are limiting, roe does tend to produce male-biased litters. Dispersal is more common and occurs at an earlier age among male juveniles in this species, particularly as density increases and resources become increasingly scarce. Thus, we suggest that where females experience environmental stress, they tend to produce male kids to avoid potential future local resource competition posed by female offspring. [Behav Ecol 7: 461–464 (1996)]

Key words: local resource competition, maternal condition, roe deer, sex ratio.


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