What evidence is there that mating and parental behavior can be under genetic influence?

Answer 1

Evidence that mating and parental behavior can be under genetic influence is seen with voles. Male prairie voles help their mates care for young. Unmated male prairie voles show little aggression toward other prairie voles, while a mated male becomes intensely aggressive toward any strange male or female prairie voles but remain nonaggressive toward his mate. Emory researchers found significant differences between the distribution of V1a receptors in the brains of monogamous prairie voles and their distribution in promiscuous montane voles. Researchers inserted the prairie vole V1a receptor into laboratory mice and the mice showed many of the same mating behaviors of monogamous male prairie voles.