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Research | Open Access

Brood sex ratio in the Yellow-bellied Prinia (Prinia flaviventris)

Zhifeng Ding1,†, Fang Ji1,†, Qiuli Huang2, Longwu Wang3, Aiwu Jiang4, Chunlan Zhang1, Yongjun Feng1, Yuan Tian1, Huijian Hu1( ), Wei Liang2 ( )
Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization, Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization, Guangdong Institute of Applied Biological Resources, Guangzhou 510260, China
Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Tropical Plant and Animal Ecology, College of Life Sciences, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
School of Life Sciences, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550001, China
College of Forestry, Guangxi University, Nanning 530004, China

†Zhifeng Ding and Fang Ji contributed equally to this work

Show Author Information

Abstract

Background

The adjustment of sex ratios in birds can occur at the egg and nestling stages. Previous studies showed that the sex ratio was affected by environmental factors and parental condition; it may result in seasonal and ecosystem differences.

Methods

In this study, the brood sex ratio of the Yellow-bellied Prinia (Prinia flaviventris) in the Nonggang area, Guangxi, southwestern China, was investigated during the breeding season from May to June in 2013 using PCR amplification from whole-genome DNA extracted from blood samples. A total of 31 nests of Yellow-bellied Prinia, including 132 brood fledglings and 31 pairs, were sampled.

Results

The results showed that the brood sex ratio of the Yellow-bellied Prinia was 1:1, and sex ratios of different nests were evenly distributed within the study area. No significant relationship was found between parental quality and nest characteristics with the brood sex ratio.

Conclusions

The present study indicated that no brood sex ratio bias in the Yellow-bellied Prinia highlighted the complexity of sex ratio adjustment in birds. In spite of our negative results, the lack of an association between brood sex ratio and parental quality and environmental factors in the Yellow-bellied Prinia provides valuable information on the adjustment of sex ratios in birds.

Keywords

Brood sex ratioParental qualityYellow-bellied PriniaPrinia flaviventrisSex ratio adjustment

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Avian Research
Volume 8 Issue 1,
January 2017
Article number: 15
DOI: 10.1186/s40657-017-0074-5
Cite this article:
Ding Z, Ji F, Huang Q, et al. Brood sex ratio in the Yellow-bellied Prinia (Prinia flaviventris). Avian Research, 2017, 8(1): 15. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40657-017-0074-5

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Received: 31 January 2017
Accepted: 22 June 2017
Published: 30 June 2017
© The Author(s) 2017.

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