A Deakin University study has found that the idea of daddy’s girls and mummy’s boys is alive and well in the animal kingdom.
The study of 42 red-capped plovers at Point Cook Coastal Park found that fathers spent more time caring for their daughters while mothers were more attentive to their sons.
Lead researcher Daniel Lees said the findings were unique in terms of what was previously known about avian parental care.
“Red-capped plovers divide the tasks of raising their chicks between both parents,” Mr Lees said.
“But what we noticed in our study is that there’s some inequality in the division of care between parents depending on whether they have daughters or sons.”
Researchers are stumped as to why the parents favoured offspring of the opposite sex.
