Why do some animals mate with one partner rather than many? Here, I investigate factors
related to (i) spatial constraints (habitat limitation, mate availability),(ii) time constraints …

Papers on sexual selection often highlight the incredible diversity of sexually selected traits
across animals. Yet, few studies have tried to explain why this diversity evolved. Animals use …

This article is part of a Special Issue “Chemosignals and Reproduction”. Chemical cues
were probably the first cues ever used to communicate and are still ubiquitous among living …

Many animals are known to preferentially mate with partners that are dissimilar at the major
histocompatibility complex (MHC) in order to maximize the antigen binding repertoire (or …

Abstract Background The Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) is the most important
genetic marker to study patterns of adaptive genetic variation determining pathogen …

Highlights•Song sparrow preen oil chemical dissimilarity is correlated with MHC genetic
distance.•Birds spent more time with preen oil from MHC-dissimilar potential mates.•Birds …

Birds are a wonderfully diverse and accessible clade with an exceptional range of ecologies
and behaviors, making the study of the avian major histocompatibility complex (MHC) of …

Recent advancements in sequencing technology have resulted in rapid progress in the
study of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) in non-model avian species. Here, we …

Animals are known to select mates to maximize the genetic diversity of their offspring in
order to achieve immunity against a broader range of pathogens. Although several bird …

To increase fitness, a wide range of vertebrates preferentially mate with partners that are
dissimilar at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) or that have high MHC diversity …