In a study of gerbils with contrasting social and mating systems (group-living monogamous Mongolian gerbil Meriones unguiculatus, solitary nonterritorial promiscuous midday jird M. meridianus, and solitary territorial...In a study of gerbils with contrasting social and mating systems (group-living monogamous Mongolian gerbil Meriones unguiculatus, solitary nonterritorial promiscuous midday jird M. meridianus, and solitary territorial promiscuous pale gerbil Gerbillus perpallidus), we employed part ner pref ere nee tests (PPTs) to assess among-species variation in sociability and pair-bonding patterns and tested whether the nature of contact between individuals: direct contact (DC) versus nondirect contact (NDC) affected our results. We measured male pref ere nces as the time: 1) spe nt alone, 2) with familiar (partner), and 3) unfamiliar (stranger) female in the 3-chambered apparatus. Gerbil species differed strongly in sociability and male partner preferences. The time spent alone was a reliable indicator of species sociability indepe ndent of the nature of con tact, whereas the pattern and level of betwee n-species differe nces in male partner preferences depended on con tact type: DC PPTs, un like NDC-tests, discriminated well betwee n monogamous and promiscuous species. In the DC-tests, stranger-directed aggression and stranger avoidanee were observed both in the highly social monogamous M. unguiculatus and the solitary territorial promiscuous G. perpallidus, but not in the non territorial promiscuous M. meridianus. In M. unguiculatus, stranger avoidanee in the DC-tests increased the time spent with the partner, thus providing evidence of a partner preference that was not found in the NDC-tests, whereas in G. perpallidus, stran ger avoidance in creased the time spe nt alone. This first comparative experimental study of partner prefere nces in gerbils provides new in sights into the in terspecific variation in gerbil sociality and mating systems and sheds light on behavioral mechanisms un derlyi ng social fidelity and pair-b on ding.展开更多
文摘In a study of gerbils with contrasting social and mating systems (group-living monogamous Mongolian gerbil Meriones unguiculatus, solitary nonterritorial promiscuous midday jird M. meridianus, and solitary territorial promiscuous pale gerbil Gerbillus perpallidus), we employed part ner pref ere nee tests (PPTs) to assess among-species variation in sociability and pair-bonding patterns and tested whether the nature of contact between individuals: direct contact (DC) versus nondirect contact (NDC) affected our results. We measured male pref ere nces as the time: 1) spe nt alone, 2) with familiar (partner), and 3) unfamiliar (stranger) female in the 3-chambered apparatus. Gerbil species differed strongly in sociability and male partner preferences. The time spent alone was a reliable indicator of species sociability indepe ndent of the nature of con tact, whereas the pattern and level of betwee n-species differe nces in male partner preferences depended on con tact type: DC PPTs, un like NDC-tests, discriminated well betwee n monogamous and promiscuous species. In the DC-tests, stranger-directed aggression and stranger avoidanee were observed both in the highly social monogamous M. unguiculatus and the solitary territorial promiscuous G. perpallidus, but not in the non territorial promiscuous M. meridianus. In M. unguiculatus, stranger avoidanee in the DC-tests increased the time spent with the partner, thus providing evidence of a partner preference that was not found in the NDC-tests, whereas in G. perpallidus, stran ger avoidance in creased the time spe nt alone. This first comparative experimental study of partner prefere nces in gerbils provides new in sights into the in terspecific variation in gerbil sociality and mating systems and sheds light on behavioral mechanisms un derlyi ng social fidelity and pair-b on ding.
