We studied the effects of prior residence on contests for status within dominance hierarchies of captive male dark-eyed juncos (Junco hyemalis) to test predictions of a game-theory model of contest behaviour (Maynard Smith & Parker 1976; Hammerstein 1981). Several predictions of the model were supported. (1) Encounters between birdsnext term that were equally matched in size, age, experience, and prior residence were more aggressive than those involving residents and non-residents of equal size, age, and experience. (2) Residents usually dominated non-residents when the contestants were equally matched in size, age, and experience. (3) In a few cases, residents dominated non-residents that may have been slightly superior in other respects [...]
