Final answer:
Parental care in species where males are involved can be similar to, overlapping with, or distinct from the roles of females. Birds often exhibit shared parental tasks between males and females, including territory defense, incubation, and chick feeding. In mammalian species, while maternal care is more common, some species do have males that actively contribute to sheltering, feeding, and protecting the young.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the animal kingdom, parental care varies greatly among species, particularly regarding the role of males in caring for offspring. In the context of species where the male is involved with the life of his offspring, we see a range of parental behaviors. Specifically, in most species of birds and mammals, there is an expected level of male involvement, which can be same as or distinct from the mother's role.
For birds, it is common for both parents to share tasks such as defense of territory and nest site, incubation, and the feeding of chicks. This shared responsibility can be seen as the roles overlapping. Certain bird species, like the killdeer, even exhibit behaviors where both parents contribute to protecting their young from predators. In many mammalian species, parental care tends to focus more on mothers providing care, but there are cases where fathers are also highly involved, for example in humans and certain primates, providing shelter, food, and protection to their young.
However, not all species follow this trend of shared parental care. In species with sexual dimorphism or where the females are the more dominant sex, the role of the male may be less about care and more focused on courtship or attracting mates with colorful plumage. Nevertheless, in some cases where males expend less energy on attracting mates, they have more energy to devote to care for offspring. Life history strategies among species also dictate how energy is allocated for growth, maintenance, and reproduction, influencing the level of parental care provided.