The welfare of game birds destined for release into the wild: a balance between early life care and preparation for future natural hazards
Globally, over 110 million game birds are reared annually and released for recreational hunting. Game birds differ from other reared livestock because they experience two very distinct environments during their lives. Chicks are first reared in captivity for 6–12 weeks under managed, stable conditions and then released into the wild. A limited set of 13 […]
Signals in intra-sexual competition between ring-necked pheasant males
Many sexual ornaments are signals commonly used in both sexual selection contexts: mate choice and intra-sexual competition. Previous studies show that female choice in ring-necked pheasants,Phasianus colchicus, is influenced by features of some male ornaments. Experiments and correlational data were used in this study to investigate the role of male ornaments in male-male agonistic encounters. […]
Variation in female mate choice and mating success is affected by sex ratio experienced during early life
Females vary in their mate choice and consequent fitness outcomes. Individual differences may be explained by conditions experienced early in life. We tested whether the sex ratio at which young pheasants, Phasianus colchicus, were reared affected their adult sexual behaviour. Females reared in equal sex ratios discriminated strongly between males of differing attractiveness in choice […]