BEHAVIORAL-CORRELATES OF FEMALE SOCIAL-STATUS AND BIRTH MASS OF MALE AND FEMALE CALVES IN REINDEER

In polygyny, male breeding success depends more than female success on body size, and male blah mass may therefore be more strongly correlat ed with mother's social dominance status. hmong female reindeer, Rangi fer tarandus, the rate at which a female took over winter feeding crat ers from conspecifics depended on rank and the mass loss decreased wit h increasing lank. Birth mass of male calves depended on mother's soci al rank, but that of female calves did not. Male foetuses appeared to be more effective than females to utilize resources associated with mo ther's phenotypical superiority.