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Healthy Horse Moms Play More With Sons

Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News

Mothers in overall poor condition, however, invested more time and resources in their daughters according to the study, which has been accepted for publication in the journal Animal Behavior.

Cameron explained that while males in general breed more, not all male horses will turn out to be busy breeders, whereas almost all female horses that reach adulthood will breed at least once.

"Therefore, if you have a lot of extra resources and can turn your son into a highly competitive male, he will leave you more grand-offspring," she said. "Alternatively, if you have few resources to invest, a son would be unlikely to ever breed, whereas your daughter would probably breed, thereby leaving you more grand-offspring."

She added that horse fathers might affect the process to some degree, as they occasionally groom and play with their foals, but the bulk of the parental care falls on mothers.

The process results in a domino effect that influences the rest of the horse's life. A horse that receives more care from its mother tends to play more. Since playtime appears to enhance both physical and mental health, playful individuals tend to grow into healthier adults, which then start the process all over again.

The health of the mother may even predict if she will give birth to a son or a daughter in the first place.

A separate study on 740 first-time pregnant human moms led by the University of Exeter's Fiona Mathews found that mothers who ate a high-energy diet at the time of conception produced sons more often than moms who took in less nutrition before conceiving.

"Here we have evidence of a 'natural' mechanism that means that women appear to be already controlling the sex of their offspring by their diet," Mathews said. "This research may help to explain why in developed countries, where many young women choose to have low-calorie diets, the proportion of boys born is falling."

While genetics also help to determine an individual's sex, health, playfulness and more, the two studies reveal how mothers can play a major role in controlling the destinies of their children.

Related Links:

New Zealand's Wild Horses

Animal Planet

Mammal Research Institute at the University of Pretoria