Multiple hypotheses have been proposed to explain female mate choice and some of the mechanisms underlying these choices. Females prairie voles display social and mating preferences for males with longer avpr1a microsatellite alleles, which provide more paternal care and exhibit less interest in novel females compared to males with shorter avpr1a microsatellite alleles. The cues females use to differentiate among males with different avpr1a genotypes are unknown, so the objective of our study was to determine if females can discriminate among males with different avpr1a genotypes using only male olfactory cues. In a laboratory choice test, females simultaneously presented with soiled bedding from a male with short versus long avpr1a microsatellite alleles showed no significant difference in the total time spent investigating each type of bedding. Nor did a greater number of females spend more time investigating soiled bedding from males with short versus long avpr1a microsatellite alleles. These findings were not influenced by female estrous status or their own avpr1a genotype. Our results suggest olfactory cues alone are insufficient to explain a female's ability to discriminate between males with different avpr1a genotypes and future research should focus on different cues or a combination of cues.

中文翻译：

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来自具有不同 avpr1a 基因型的雄性的嗅觉线索是否会影响草原田鼠、Microtus ochrogaster 的雌性配偶选择？

已经提出了多种假设来解释女性配偶选择以及这些选择背后的一些机制。与具有较短 avpr1a 微卫星等位基因的雄性相比，雌性草原田鼠对具有较长 avpr1a 微卫星等位基因的雄性表现出社会和交配偏好，这提供了更多的父爱，对新雌性的兴趣较少。雌性用于区分具有不同 avpr1a 基因型的雄性的线索是未知的，因此我们研究的目的是确定雌性是否可以仅使用雄性嗅觉线索来区分具有不同 avpr1a 基因型的雄性。在实验室选择测试中，雌性同时呈现来自具有短与长 avpr1a 微卫星等位基因的雄性的脏床上用品，在调查每种类型的床上用品所花费的总时间上没有显着差异。也没有更多的女性花更多的时间研究来自具有短与长 avpr1a 微卫星等位基因的男性的脏床上用品。这些发现不受女性发情状态或她们自己的 avpr1a 基因型的影响。我们的结果表明，单独的嗅觉线索不足以解释女性区分具有不同 avpr1a 基因型的男性的能力，未来的研究应该关注不同的线索或线索的组合。