Peromyscus: effect of early pairing on reproduction.
Sibling mating in prairie deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus bairdi) results in poor reproductive performance. Siblings experimentally paired before puberty exhibit delayed reproduction when adult. A behavioral mechanism is involved in this reproductive delay, since prepubertal familiarity also delays reproduction in nonsibling pairs. Such a reproductive delay may act to reduce inbreeding depression and regulate population growth.
D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D007178:Inbreeding; D008297:Male; D012098:Reproduction; D012377:Rodentia / Q000502:physiology*; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal; D012801:Sibling Relations