The more the merrier: Promiscuity in mice is a matter of free choice
Friday, August 30, 2013 - 08:00
in Biology & Nature
(Phys.org) —In many species, females frequently mate with more than one male. Researchers at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna (Vetmeduni Vienna) aimed to find out why. In experiments on wild house mice, they discovered that females mate with multiple males when they have the opportunity to choose their mates freely. Sexual coercion by males could be ruled out as a factor. The results were published in the journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology.