The correct terminology in ornithological circles is 'forced
copulation'.
Cheers,
Paul
On 20/05/2008, at 2:58 PM, Peter Shute wrote:
So what word/phrase would you use instead of rape?
-----Original Message-----
From:
On Behalf Of
Sent: Tuesday, 20 May 2008 2:27 PM
To: Merrilyn Serong
Cc:
Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Partners
Hi Merrilyn,
Your contribution to this little discussion tangent is deeply
appreciated.
I was getting ready to throw a rant into action about the total
undesirability of applying human legal concepts and designated crimes
such as rape to birds or other animals.
Being playful about human/bird connections is one thing, but it's
another entirely when the term "rape" is applied to animal behaviour
and
there are a range of very dangerous and dodgy implications that might
stem from such games.
For instance, what if some human idiot "out there" decides to rid the
world of wren "rapists" based on some half-baked bit of
anthropomorphism.
That's all we need. Let alone some human accused launching a defence
along the lines of "If ducks can't help but do it, I rest my case".
best wishes
Craig Williams
Hi Belinda and others,
It is obvious that if a male bird mates with lots of females, he is
more likely to produce a greater number of offspring than if he mates
with only one bird. If his male offspring inherit the behavioural
propensity to mate with lots of females, then the proportion of
multiple-mating males in the population will increase, and so it goes
on. Those that only mate with one female, will be relatively scarce.
If a female bird mates with several males, she will be more likely to
produce young with a wide variety of characteristics (sperm
competition aside). Depending on environmental conditions, this may
increase the number of offspring that survive to sexual maturity. If
the survivors inherit the propensity to mate with several partners,
then the chances of their offspring surviving will also increase,
etc.
On the other hand, if a female mates with only one male, even a
really
good quality one, if environmental conditions change, then the
offspring might not be well suited to the new conditions and may not
survive to maturity. However, if environmental conditions are
unchanging, then mating with the best (fittest for the current
conditions) available male will produce the greatest number of
surviving offspring.
Similarly, under certain circumstances, young will be more likely to
survive if they have more than one carer, i.e. both mother and father
(and sometimes older siblings as well). These survivors will inherit
the capacity to care for young in a socially stable partnership along
with whatever mating system was employed by their parents (single or
multiple partners).
It's all about inheritance and survival.
Cheers,
Merrilyn
Belinda Cassidy wrote:
Hi Kurtis, John, Rosemary, Storm, and everyone,
I must apologise for being so curt. I don't know whats got into me
today; anyway I didn't mean to put everyone off side. Its been an
emotional week for me and I guess I sprung a leak.
I think we all agree that the scientific evidence demonstrates that
some birds pair for life, and some do not. I don't even know why
this
is being hotly debated, but like I said, I have my suspicions as to
the reasons.
You're right though Kurtis, suspicions are not the same as
scientific
fact.
Cheers,
Bel
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Dr. Paul G. McDonald
Centre for the Integrative Study of Animal Behaviour
Macquarie University
Sydney, NSW 2109
Australia
Ph: +612 9850 9232 Fax: +612 9850 9231
http://galliform.bhs.mq.edu.au/~paul/
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