London, August 04 (ANI): Biologists have indicated that male birds that indulge in more sexual displays to attract mates age faster.
Scientists at the University of Burgundy, France, looked at the male Houbara bustard, which has striking ornamental feathers that it displays while running around and "booming" to attract a female.
They found that the more "showy" males experienced earlier age-related declines in the quality of their sperm.
Lead researcher Brian Preston and his colleagues used 10-years-worth of data on the sexual behaviour and fertility of more than 1,700 North African Houbara bustards that were captive bred by conservationists in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates.
They measured how much time each male spent carrying out its elaborate display, and compared this to changes in its fertility that are associated with ageing.
By examining the birds' sperm, the researchers discovered that all males experienced a "dramatic decline" in their fertility as they aged.
"Over the age of six years they began to produce much smaller ejaculates with immobile and frequently abnormal sperm," the BBC quoted Preston as saying.
"But the key finding was that males that had invested most effort displaying to females in their earlier years experienced the onset of this age-related decline in fertility at a younger age.
"They effectively seem to 'burn themselves out' sooner," he added.
The finding is detailed in Ecology Letters. (ANI)
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