Induced homosexual behaviour in male house finches (carpodacus mexicanus): The “prisoner effect”

K. J. McGraw; G. E. Hill

doi:10.1080/08927014.1999.9522837

Induced homosexual behaviour in male house finches (carpodacus mexicanus): The “prisoner effect”

K. J. McGraw, G. E. Hill

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

17 Scopus citations

Abstract

We observed homosexual behaviour within a captive flock of male house finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) that was physically isolated from females for the duration of a breeding season. Male-male begging, allofeeding and copulation attempts were linked to social dominance rank within the group, as subordinate males begged from, were fed by, and attempted to copulate with dominant males. Levels of circulating testosterone were not significantly related to inter-male behaviour. Along with the assertion of dominance, we presume that the regulation of sociosexual tension is another potential function of the male homosexual behaviour observed in this study.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	197-201
Number of pages	5
Journal	Ethology Ecology and Evolution
Volume	11
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/08927014.1999.9522837
State	Published - Apr 1 1999
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Aggression
Allofeeding
Carpodacus mexicanus
Copulatory behaviour
Homosexuality
House finch
Social dominance
Testosterone

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Animal Science and Zoology

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10.1080/08927014.1999.9522837

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title = "Induced homosexual behaviour in male house finches (carpodacus mexicanus): The “prisoner effect”",

abstract = "We observed homosexual behaviour within a captive flock of male house finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) that was physically isolated from females for the duration of a breeding season. Male-male begging, allofeeding and copulation attempts were linked to social dominance rank within the group, as subordinate males begged from, were fed by, and attempted to copulate with dominant males. Levels of circulating testosterone were not significantly related to inter-male behaviour. Along with the assertion of dominance, we presume that the regulation of sociosexual tension is another potential function of the male homosexual behaviour observed in this study.",

keywords = "Aggression, Allofeeding, Carpodacus mexicanus, Copulatory behaviour, Homosexuality, House finch, Social dominance, Testosterone",

author = "McGraw, {K. J.} and Hill, {G. E.}",

note = "Funding Information: We thank L.A. Phillips and S. Ducharme for their assistance with aviary work, A. Stoehr for collecting blood samples, J. Ott for running hormone assays, M. Mendon{\c c}a for use of lab resources, and P. Nolan for commenting on early versions of the manuscript. Support for this work was provided by the National Science Foundation (Grant #IBN9722171 to G.E. Hill) and by the College of Science and Mathematics, the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, and the Department of Zoology and Wildlife Science at Auburn University. Birds were obtained under a State of Alabama permit (no. 12) and federal permit (no. 784373) and the treatment of captive birds was approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee at Auburn University (PRN #0004-R-2011).",

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AB - We observed homosexual behaviour within a captive flock of male house finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) that was physically isolated from females for the duration of a breeding season. Male-male begging, allofeeding and copulation attempts were linked to social dominance rank within the group, as subordinate males begged from, were fed by, and attempted to copulate with dominant males. Levels of circulating testosterone were not significantly related to inter-male behaviour. Along with the assertion of dominance, we presume that the regulation of sociosexual tension is another potential function of the male homosexual behaviour observed in this study.

KW - Aggression

KW - Allofeeding

KW - Carpodacus mexicanus

KW - Copulatory behaviour

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KW - Social dominance

KW - Testosterone

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Induced homosexual behaviour in male house finches (carpodacus mexicanus): The “prisoner effect”

Abstract

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

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