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Résumé :
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Evolutionary theory predicts that variation in parental quality in sexually dimorphic species may lead to biased brood sex ratios, because of differences in the costs and benefits of raising male or female offspring with resource availability. We analysed the secondary brood sex ratio in Sparrowhawks, a raptor species showing extreme sexual dimorphism, with females being nearly twice the size of males. Brood sex ratios were analysed in relation to laying date, brood size and parental age, an indicator for parental quality. Female age did not affect brood size and offspring sex ratio, but yearling females started egg-laying later than older females. Broods of first-year males hatched later and produced fewer fledglings than those of older males. The brood sex ratio was balanced in older males, but male-biased in yearling males. Inter-annual variation in the seasonal sex ratio trends correlated with variation in the local age distribution of breeding males. Our finding, that females of first-year males produce relatively late and small broods of the cheaper sex, may be indicative of a relatively low paternal quality, since males provide most of the food for the female and the brood during the reproductive period. We propose that future theoretical models for seasonal trends in brood sex ratio in sexually dimorphic species should also consider variation in parental quality with breeding date.
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