Okay, but is bird monogamy just PR?

E1. Birds “mate for life”… or do they? In this episode, host Dr. Scott Taylor and Dr. Carrie Branch, Assistant Professor at Western University, pull back the curtain on avian relationships and sort out what’s romance, what’s strategy, and what’s just really good PR.

In this episode, you’ll hear about:

• The difference between social and genetic monogamy in birds
• Why “monogamous” birds engage in extra-pair copulations (a.k.a. extra-curricular behavior)
• How males try to avoid cuckoldry with mate-guarding and other tactics
• Whether birds “cheat” in secret or right out in the open
• How researchers use DNA and multiple-paternity tests to see who really fathered which chicks

If you enjoy this one, follow Okay, But… Birds and share it with a friend who still thinks swans are relationship goals.