Abstract
HEWER1 has suggested that the secondary sex-ratio (that is, the sex-ratio at birth) of the grey seal is probably close to equality. Since this publication, considerably more data have been collected on the grey seal colony on the Fame Islands, Northumberland, by members of the Natural History Society of Northumberland, Durham and Newcastle upon Tyne. Of 1,433 calves which were tagged, sexed and aged between 1952 and 1959 inclusive, 731 were males and the remaining 702 females ; a result which does not differ significantly from a 1 : 1 sex-ratio and which confirms Hewer's findings.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on SpringerLink
- Instant access to the full article PDF.
USD 39.95
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Hewer, H. R., Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 128, 23 (1957).
Coulson, J. C., and Hickling, G., Trans. Nat. Hist. Soc. Northumberland, Durham and Newcastle upon Tyne, 13, 151 (1960).
Parkes, A. S., Brit. J. Exp. Biol., 1, 323 (1924).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
COULSON, J., HICKLING, G. Variation in the Secondary Sex-Ratio of the Grey Seal Halichoerus grypus (Fab.) during the Breeding Season. Nature 190, 281 (1961). https://doi.org/10.1038/190281a0
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/190281a0
This article is cited by
-
Sex bias or equal opportunity? Patterns of maternal investment in bison
Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology (1991)
-
Sons and daughters
Nature (1982)
-
Parental investment in male and female offspring in polygynous mammals
Nature (1981)
