1
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Boughman JW, Brand JA, Brooks RC, Bonduriansky R, Wong BBM. Sexual selection and speciation in the Anthropocene. Trends Ecol Evol 2024; 39:654-665. [PMID: 38503640 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2024.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Revised: 02/08/2024] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 03/21/2024]
Abstract
Anthropogenic change threatens global biodiversity by causing severe ecological disturbance and extinction. Here, we consider the effects of anthropogenic change on one process that generates biodiversity. Sexual selection (a potent evolutionary force and driver of speciation) is highly sensitive to the environment and, thus, vulnerable to anthropogenic ecological change. Anthropogenic alterations to sexual display and mate preference can make it harder to distinguish between conspecific and heterospecific mates or can weaken divergence via sexual selection, leading to higher rates of hybridization and biodiversity loss. Occasionally, anthropogenically altered sexual selection can abet diversification, but this appears less likely than biodiversity loss. In our rapidly changing world, a full understanding of sexual selection and speciation requires a global change perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janette W Boughman
- Department of Integrative Biology & Evolution, Ecology and Behavior Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
| | - Jack A Brand
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia; Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Environmental Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Västerbotten, SE-907 36, Sweden
| | - Robert C Brooks
- Evolution & Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Russell Bonduriansky
- Evolution & Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Bob B M Wong
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3800, Australia
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2
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Moore MP, Nalley SE, Hamadah D. An evolutionary innovation for mating facilitates ecological niche expansion and buffers species against climate change. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2313371121. [PMID: 38408245 PMCID: PMC10927580 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2313371121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2023] [Accepted: 01/12/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024] Open
Abstract
One of the drivers of life's diversification has been the emergence of "evolutionary innovations": The evolution of traits that grant access to underused ecological niches. Since ecological interactions can occur separately from mating, mating-related traits have not traditionally been considered factors in niche evolution. However, in order to persist in their environment, animals need to successfully mate just as much as they need to survive. Innovations that facilitate mating activity may therefore be an overlooked determinant of species' ecological limits. Here, we show that species' historical niches and responses to contemporary climate change are shaped by an innovation involved in mating-a waxy, ultra-violet-reflective pruinescence produced by male dragonflies. Physiological experiments in two species demonstrate that pruinescence reduces heating and water loss. Phylogenetic analyses show that pruinescence is gained after taxa begin adopting a thermohydrically stressful mating behavior. Further comparative analyses reveal that pruinose species are more likely to breed in exposed, open-canopy microhabitats. Biogeographic analyses uncover that pruinose species occupy warmer and drier regions in North America. Citizen-science observations of Pachydiplax longipennis suggest that the extent of pruinescence can be optimized to match the local conditions. Finally, temporal analyses indicate that pruinose species have been buffered against contemporary climate change. Overall, these historical and contemporary patterns show that successful mating can shape species' niche limits in the same way as growth and survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael P. Moore
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO80217
- Living Earth Collaborative, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63130
| | - Sarah E. Nalley
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO80217
| | - Dalal Hamadah
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO80217
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3
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Anderson AP, Falk JJ. Cross-sexual Transfer Revisited. Integr Comp Biol 2023; 63:936-945. [PMID: 37147027 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icad021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2023] [Revised: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 05/01/2023] [Indexed: 05/07/2023] Open
Abstract
In her influential book "Developmental Plasticity and Evolution," Mary Jane West-Eberhard introduced the concept of cross-sexual transfer, where traits expressed in one sex in an ancestral species become expressed in the other sex. Despite its potential ubiquity, we find that cross-sexual transfer has been under-studied and under-cited in the literature, with only a few experimental papers that have invoked the concept. Here, we aim to reintroduce cross-sexual transfer as a powerful framework for explaining sex variation and highlight its relevance in current studies on the evolution of sexual heteromorphism (different means or modes in trait values between the sexes). We discuss several exemplary studies of cross-sexual transfer that have been published in the past two decades, further building on West-Eberhard's extensive review. We emphasize two scenarios as potential avenues of study, within-sex polymorphic and sex-role reversed species, and discuss the evolutionary and adaptive implications. Lastly, we propose future questions to expand our understanding of cross-sexual transfer, from nonhormonal mechanisms to the identification of broad taxonomic patterns. As evolutionary biologists increasingly recognize the nonbinary and often continuous nature of sexual heteromorphism, the cross-sexual framework has important utility for generating novel insights and perspectives on the evolution of sexual phenotypes across diverse taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jay Jinsing Falk
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
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4
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Łukasiewicz A, Porwal N, Niśkiewicz M, Parrett JM, Radwan J. Sexually selected male weapon increases the risk of population extinction under environmental change: an experimental evidence. Evolution 2023; 77:2291-2300. [PMID: 37503764 DOI: 10.1093/evolut/qpad139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
Exaggerated sexually selected traits (SSTs), occurring more commonly in males, help individuals to increase reproductive success but are costly to produce and maintain. These costs on the one hand may improve population fitness by intensifying selection against maladapted males, but on the other hand, may increase the risk of extinction under environmental challenges. However, the impact of SSTs on extinction risk has not been investigated experimentally. We used replicate populations of a male-dimorphic mite, Rhizoglyphus robini, to test if the prevalence of a sexually selected weapon affected the risk of extinction under temperature increase (TI) (2°C per each of three consecutive generations). In two independent experiments that utilized either inbred lines or lines mass selected for or against the weapon to establish experimental replicate populations differing in the prevalence of the weapon, we found that populations with high weapon prevalence were more likely to go extinct. Extinctions occurred despite partial suppression of the weapon expression at increased temperature and were not explained by increased male mortality. Our results provide the first, to our knowledge, experimental evidence demonstrating the dramatic effect of elaborated sexual traits on the risk of extinction under environmental challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandra Łukasiewicz
- Evolutionary Biology Group, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
- Institute of Human Biology and Evolution, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
| | - Neelam Porwal
- Evolutionary Biology Group, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
| | - Małgorzata Niśkiewicz
- Evolutionary Biology Group, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
- Department of Behavioural Ecology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
| | - Jonathan M Parrett
- Evolutionary Biology Group, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
| | - Jacek Radwan
- Evolutionary Biology Group, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
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5
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Adeola F, Lailvaux S. Bite force, body size, and octopamine mediate mating interactions in the house cricket (Acheta domesticus). J Evol Biol 2023; 36:1494-1502. [PMID: 37737492 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.14226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Revised: 07/30/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/23/2023]
Abstract
Mating interactions are rife with conflict because the evolutionary interests of males and females seldom coincide. Intersexual conflict affects sexual selection, yet the proximate factors underlying male coercive ability and female resistance are poorly understood. Male combat outcomes are often influenced by bite force, with superior biters being more likely to achieve victory over poorer biters in a range of species, including crickets. If good performers also achieve mating success through sexual coercion, then bite force might play a role in intersexual conflict as well. We tested the capacity of bite force to influence mating interactions in house crickets both directly by measuring bite forces of males and females and by altering male bite capacity through neuropharmacological manipulation. In addition, the invertebrate neurotransmitter octopamine both mediates aggression and underlies motivation to bite in male house crickets. By blocking octopamine receptors through the application of an antagonist, epinastine, we tested the effects of reduced bite force on male mating success. Our results show that male bite capacity, in combination with body size, influences both the likelihood and the outcomes of mating interactions, whereas treatment of males with epinastine eliminates motivation to mate. Our results suggest a functional role for bite force in affecting both sexual conflict and sexual selection and expand our knowledge of the influence of biogenic amines on reproductive behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fadeke Adeola
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
| | - Simon Lailvaux
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
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6
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Mitchell C, Wylde Z, Del Castillo E, Rapkin J, House CM, Hunt J. Beauty or function? The opposing effects of natural and sexual selection on cuticular hydrocarbons in male black field crickets. J Evol Biol 2023; 36:1266-1281. [PMID: 37534753 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.14198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Revised: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/04/2023]
Abstract
Although many theoretical models of male sexual trait evolution assume that sexual selection is countered by natural selection, direct empirical tests of this assumption are relatively uncommon. Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) are known to play an important role not only in restricting evaporative water loss but also in sexual signalling in most terrestrial arthropods. Insects adjusting their CHC layer for optimal desiccation resistance is often thought to come at the expense of successful sexual attraction, suggesting that natural and sexual selection are in opposition for this trait. In this study, we sampled the CHCs of male black field crickets (Teleogryllus commodus) using solid-phase microextraction and then either measured their evaporative water loss or mating success. We then used multivariate selection analysis to quantify the strength and form of natural and sexual selection targeting male CHCs. Both natural and sexual selection imposed significant linear and stabilizing selection on male CHCs, although for very different combinations. Natural selection largely favoured an increase in the total abundance of CHCs, especially those with a longer chain length. In contrast, mating success peaked at a lower total abundance of CHCs and declined as CHC abundance increased. However, mating success did improve with an increase in a number of specific CHC components that also increased evaporative water loss. Importantly, this resulted in the combination of male CHCs favoured by natural selection and sexual selection being strongly opposing. Our findings suggest that the balance between natural and sexual selection is likely to play an important role in the evolution of male CHCs in T. commodus and may help explain why CHCs are so divergent across populations and species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Mitchell
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Zachariah Wylde
- School of Science, Western Sydney University, Hawkesbury Campus, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Enrique Del Castillo
- Department of Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering and Department of Statistics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - James Rapkin
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Clarissa M House
- School of Science, Western Sydney University, Hawkesbury Campus, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia
| | - John Hunt
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
- School of Science, Western Sydney University, Hawkesbury Campus, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia
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7
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Londoño-Nieto C, García-Roa R, Garcia-Co C, González P, Carazo P. Thermal phenotypic plasticity of pre- and post-copulatory male harm buffers sexual conflict in wild Drosophila melanogaster. eLife 2023; 12:e84759. [PMID: 37102499 PMCID: PMC10191624 DOI: 10.7554/elife.84759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Strong sexual selection frequently leads to sexual conflict and ensuing male harm, whereby males increase their reproductive success at the expense of harming females. Male harm is a widespread evolutionary phenomenon with a strong bearing on population viability. Thus, understanding how it unfolds in the wild is a current priority. Here, we sampled a wild Drosophila melanogaster population and studied male harm across the normal range of temperatures under which it reproduces optimally in nature by comparing female lifetime reproductive success and underlying male harm mechanisms under monogamy (i.e. low male competition/harm) vs. polyandry (i.e. high male competition/harm). While females had equal lifetime reproductive success across temperatures under monogamy, polyandry resulted in a maximum decrease of female fitness at 24°C (35%), reducing its impact at both 20°C (22%), and 28°C (10%). Furthermore, female fitness components and pre- (i.e. harassment) and post-copulatory (i.e. ejaculate toxicity) mechanisms of male harm were asymmetrically affected by temperature. At 20°C, male harassment of females was reduced, and polyandry accelerated female actuarial aging. In contrast, the effect of mating on female receptivity (a component of ejaculate toxicity) was affected at 28°C, where the mating costs for females decreased and polyandry mostly resulted in accelerated reproductive aging. We thus show that, across a natural thermal range, sexual conflict processes and their effects on female fitness components are plastic and complex. As a result, the net effect of male harm on overall population viability is likely to be lower than previously surmised. We discuss how such plasticity may affect selection, adaptation and, ultimately, evolutionary rescue under a warming climate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Londoño-Nieto
- Ethology Lab, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of ValenciaValenciaSpain
| | - Roberto García-Roa
- Ethology Lab, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of ValenciaValenciaSpain
- Department of Biology, Lund UniversityLundSweden
| | - Clara Garcia-Co
- Ethology Lab, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of ValenciaValenciaSpain
| | - Paula González
- Ethology Lab, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of ValenciaValenciaSpain
| | - Pau Carazo
- Ethology Lab, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of ValenciaValenciaSpain
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8
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Hausmann AE, Freire M, Alfthan SA, Kuo CY, Linares M, McMillan O, Pardo-Diaz C, Salazar C, Merrill RM. Does sexual conflict contribute to the evolution of novel warning patterns? J Evol Biol 2023; 36:563-578. [PMID: 36702779 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.14151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Revised: 11/18/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Why warning patterns are so diverse is an enduring evolutionary puzzle. Because predators associate particular patterns with unpleasant experiences, an individual's predation risk should decrease as the local density of its warning pattern increases, promoting pattern monomorphism. Distasteful Heliconius butterflies are known for their diversity of warning patterns. Here, we explore whether interlocus sexual conflict can contribute to their diversification. Male Heliconius use warning patterns as mating cues, but mated females may suffer costs if this leads to disturbance, favouring novel patterns. Using simulations, we show that under our model conditions drift alone is unlikely to cause pattern diversification, but that sexual conflict can assist such a process. We also find that genetic architecture influences the evolution of male preferences, which track changes in warning pattern due to sexual selection. When male attraction imposes costs on females, this affects the speed at which novel pattern alleles increase. In two experiments, females laid fewer eggs with males present. However, although males in one experiment showed less interest in females with manipulated patterns, we found no evidence that female colouration mitigates sex-specific costs. Overall, male attraction to conspecific warning patterns may impose an unrecognized cost on Heliconius females, but further work is required to determine this experimentally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander E Hausmann
- Division of Evolutionary Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany
| | - Marília Freire
- Division of Evolutionary Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany
| | - Sara A Alfthan
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama City, Panama
| | - Chi-Yun Kuo
- Division of Evolutionary Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama City, Panama
| | - Mauricio Linares
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Owen McMillan
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama City, Panama
| | - Carolina Pardo-Diaz
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Camilo Salazar
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Richard M Merrill
- Division of Evolutionary Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama City, Panama
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9
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Leith NT, Fowler-Finn KD, Moore MP. Evolutionary interactions between thermal ecology and sexual selection. Ecol Lett 2022; 25:1919-1936. [PMID: 35831230 DOI: 10.1111/ele.14072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2022] [Revised: 04/21/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Thermal ecology and mate competition are both pervasive features of ecological adaptation. A surge of recent work has uncovered the diversity of ways in which temperature affects mating interactions and sexual selection. However, the potential for thermal biology and reproductive ecology to evolve together as organisms adapt to their thermal environment has been underappreciated. Here, we develop a series of hypotheses regarding (1) not only how thermal ecology affects mating system dynamics, but also how mating dynamics can generate selection on thermal traits; and (2) how the thermal consequences of mate competition favour the reciprocal co-adaptation of thermal biology and sexual traits. We discuss our hypotheses in the context of both pre-copulatory and post-copulatory processes. We also call for future work integrating experimental and phylogenetic comparative approaches to understand evolutionary feedbacks between thermal ecology and sexual selection. Overall, studying reciprocal feedbacks between thermal ecology and sexual selection may be necessary to understand how organisms have adapted to the environments of the past and could persist in the environments of the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah T Leith
- Department of Biology, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Kasey D Fowler-Finn
- Department of Biology, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.,Living Earth Collaborative, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Michael P Moore
- Department of Biology, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
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10
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Abstract
A well-known property of sexual selection combined with a cross-sex genetic correlation (rmf) is that it can facilitate a peak shift on the adaptive landscape. How do these diversifying effects of sexual selection + rmf balance with the constraints imposed by such sexual antagonism, to affect the macroevolution of sexual dimorphism? Here, I extend existing quantitative genetic models of evolution on complex adaptive landscapes. Beyond recovering classical predictions for the conditions promoting a peak shift, I show that when rmf is moderate to strong, relatively weak sexual selection is required to induce a peak shift in males only. Increasing the strength of sexual selection leads to a sexually concordant peak shift, suggesting that macroevolutionary rates of sexual dimorphism may be largely decoupled from the strength of within-population sexual selection. Accounting explicitly for demography further reveals that sex-specific peak shifts may be more likely to be successful than concordant shifts in the face of extinction, especially when natural selection is strong. An overarching conclusion is that macroevolutionary patterns of sexual dimorphism are unlikely to be readily explained by within-population estimates of selection or constraint alone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen P De Lisle
- Evolutionary Ecology Unit, Department of Biology, Lund University, Sölvegatan 37 223 62, Lund, Sweden
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11
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Gómez-Llano M, Scott E, Svensson EI. The importance of pre- and postcopulatory sexual selection promoting adaptation to increasing temperatures. Curr Zool 2021; 67:321-327. [PMID: 34616924 PMCID: PMC8488992 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoaa059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2020] [Accepted: 09/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Global temperatures are increasing rapidly affecting species globally. Understanding if and how different species can adapt fast enough to keep up with increasing temperatures is of vital importance. One mechanism that can accelerate adaptation and promote evolutionary rescue is sexual selection. Two different mechanisms by which sexual selection can facilitate adaptation are pre- and postcopulatory sexual selection. However, the relative effects of these different forms of sexual selection in promoting adaptation are unknown. Here, we present the results from an experimental study in which we exposed fruit flies Drosophila melanogaster to either no mate choice or 1 of 2 different sexual selection regimes (pre- and postcopulatory sexual selection) for 6 generations, under different thermal regimes. Populations showed evidence of thermal adaptation under precopulatory sexual selection, but this effect was not detected in the postcopulatory sexual selection and the no choice mating regime. We further demonstrate that sexual dimorphism decreased when flies evolved under increasing temperatures, consistent with recent theory predicting more sexually concordant selection under environmental stress. Our results suggest an important role for precopulatory sexual selection in promoting thermal adaptation and evolutionary rescue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miguel Gómez-Llano
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA
| | - Eve Scott
- Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester. Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.,Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
| | - Erik I Svensson
- Biology Department, Lund University, Evolutionary Ecology Unit, Lund, 223 62, Sweden
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12
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Bocedi G. Ecological sexual dimorphism is modulated by the spatial scale of intersexual resource competition. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:1810-1813. [PMID: 34346069 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
In Focus: Li, X-Y., & H. Kokko. (2021). Sexual dimorphism driven by intersexual resource competition: Why is it rare, and where to look for it? Journal of Animal Ecology, 00, 1-13. Ecological sexual dimorphism, that is differences between the sexes in traits that are naturally selected as opposed to sexually selected, is gaining increasing attention after having often been dismissed as the 'less-parsimonious' explanation for differences between sexes. One potential driver of ecological sexual dimorphism is intersexual resource competition, in a process analogous to ecological character displacement between species; yet, clear empirical examples are scarce. Li and Kokko present mathematical models that introduce novel pieces to the puzzle: the role of the scale of mating competition and the spatial variation in resource availability. They show that ecological sexual dimorphism evolves when local mating groups are small (e.g. monogamous pairs) and when different resources are homogeneously available across habitats. Counterintuitively, larger mating groups (e.g. polygyny), and consequently higher intralocus sexual conflict, lead to sexual monomorphism. Habitat heterogeneity also leads to overlapping niches, although it can sometimes drive polymorphism within sexes. This study highlights why the conditions for intrasexual resource competition to drive evolution of sexual dimorphism are stringent, even in the absence of genetic constraints or competing species. Crucially, it highlights the importance of considering the mating system and the spatial scale of resource competition for understanding the occurrence of ecological sexual dimorphism, showing a large potential for future work considering different aspects of species' life histories and spatial dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Greta Bocedi
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
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13
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Fear of sex: sexual conflict exposed as avoidance in a parthenogenetic invertebrate. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-021-03054-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Males and females often have divergent evolutionary interests, generating sexual conflicts. This is particularly true in organisms that exhibit facultative sexuality, whereby females are capable of reproducing without fitness costs of mating. Here, we provide the first documented evidence with quantitative tracking showing that sex interacts with social context to determine space-use of females, in a pattern resembling predator avoidance. To achieve this, we labelled Daphnia magna with fluorescent nanoparticles and utilized a 3-D tracking platform to record pairs of individuals swimming. The recordings comprised either same-sex or opposite-sex pairings. We found that females swam faster, deeper, more horizontally, and more linearly when exposed to males than when exposed to females. Simultaneously, we found that male behavior did not differ depending on swimming partner and, importantly, we observed no sexual dimorphism in swimming behaviors when swimming with the same sex. Our results suggest that the presence of males in a population has the potential to influence the distribution of individuals, similarly to known threats, such as predation. This highlights that sexual conflict has clear spatial consequences and should be considered in such ecological frameworks, like the Landscape of Fear (LOF) concept. In a broader context, the connection of the evolutionary and social concept of sexual conflict and the ecological concept of LOF may improve our understanding of population dynamics and the spatial and temporal distribution of individuals in natural ecosystems.
Significance statement
Despite the wealth of studies that detail how predators affect their prey’s spatial behaviors, studies on the role of sex and social context on spatial behavior are rare. Addressing this dearth of information, we studied the swimming behaviors of an organism that can reproduce with or without sex, when exposed to an individual of either the same or opposite sex. We found no difference between the sexes in swimming behaviors; however, we revealed that females avoided males by swimming deeper in the water column, reminiscent of the response to predation. Our results highlight that social conflict between the sexes strongly affects the demographics of a population and may therefore have a substantial role in the spatial ecology of organisms in the wild.
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14
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Liotta MN, Abbott JK, Morris MR, Rios‐Cardenas O. Antagonistic selection on body size and sword length in a wild population of the swordtail fish, Xiphophorus multilineatus: Potential for intralocus tactical conflict. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:3941-3955. [PMID: 33976786 PMCID: PMC8093718 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2020] [Revised: 01/08/2021] [Accepted: 01/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs) have provided valuable insights into how sexual selection and life history trade-offs can lead to variation within a sex. However, the possibility that tactics may constrain evolution through intralocus tactical conflict (IATC) is rarely considered. In addition, when IATC has been considered, the focus has often been on the genetic correlations between the ARTs, while evidence that the ARTs have different optima for associated traits and that at least one of the tactics is not at its optimum is often missing. Here, we investigate selection on three traits associated with the ARTs in the swordtail fish Xiphophorus multilineatus; body size, body shape, and the sexually selected trait for which these fishes were named, sword length (elongation of the caudal fin). All three traits are tactically dimorphic, with courter males being larger, deeper bodied and having longer swords, and the sneaker males being smaller, more fusiform and having shorter swords. Using measures of reproductive success in a wild population we calculated selection differentials, as well as linear and quadratic gradients. We demonstrated that the tactics have different optima and at least one of the tactics is not at its optimum for body size and sword length. Our results provide the first evidence of selection in the wild on the sword, an iconic trait for sexual selection. In addition, given the high probability that these traits are genetically correlated to some extent between the two tactics, our study suggests that IATC is constraining both body size and the sword from reaching their phenotypic optima. We discuss the importance of considering the role of IATC in the evolution of tactical dimorphism, how this conflict can be present despite tactical dimorphism, and how it is important to consider this conflict when explaining not only variation within a species but differences across species as well.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa N. Liotta
- Department of Biological SciencesThe Ohio Center for Ecological and Evolutionary StudiesOhio UniversityAthensOHUSA
| | | | - Molly R. Morris
- Department of Biological SciencesThe Ohio Center for Ecological and Evolutionary StudiesOhio UniversityAthensOHUSA
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15
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Cally JG, Stuart-Fox D, Holman L, Dale J, Medina I. Male-biased sexual selection, but not sexual dichromatism, predicts speciation in birds. Evolution 2021; 75:931-944. [PMID: 33559135 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2019] [Accepted: 01/13/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Sexual selection is thought to shape phylogenetic diversity by affecting speciation or extinction rates. However, the net effect of sexual selection on diversification is hard to predict because many of the hypothesized effects on speciation or extinction have opposing signs and uncertain magnitudes. Theoretical work also suggests that the net effect of sexual selection on diversification should depend strongly on ecological factors, though this prediction has seldom been tested. Here, we test whether variation in sexual selection can predict speciation and extinction rates across passerine birds (up to 5812 species, covering most genera) and whether this relationship is mediated by environmental factors. Male-biased sexual selection, and specifically sexual size dimorphism, predicted two of the three measures of speciation rates that we examined. The link we observed between sexual selection and speciation was independent of environmental variability, though species with smaller ranges had higher speciation rates. There was no association between any proxies of sexual selection and extinction rate. Our findings support the view that male-biased sexual selection, as measured by frequent predictors of male-male competition, has shaped diversification in the largest radiation of birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin G Cally
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia
| | - Devi Stuart-Fox
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia
| | - Luke Holman
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia
| | - James Dale
- School of Natural and Computational Sciences, Massey University (Albany Campus), Auckland, 0632, New Zealand
| | - Iliana Medina
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia
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16
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Wilkins MR, Odom KJ, Benedict L, Safran RJ. Analysis of female song provides insight into the evolution of sex differences in a widely studied songbird. Anim Behav 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.07.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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17
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Tsuji K, Fukami T. Sexual Dimorphism and Species Diversity: from Clades to Sites. Trends Ecol Evol 2020; 35:105-114. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2019.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2019] [Revised: 08/23/2019] [Accepted: 09/10/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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18
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Willink B, Duryea MC, Svensson EI. Macroevolutionary Origin and Adaptive Function of a Polymorphic Female Signal Involved in Sexual Conflict. Am Nat 2019; 194:707-724. [DOI: 10.1086/705294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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19
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Gilbert AL, Brooks OL, Lattanzio MS. Multiple behavioral contexts of a melanized tail display in a desert lizard. Ethology 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12975] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anthony L. Gilbert
- Department of Biological Sciences Ohio University Athens Ohio
- Ohio Center for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies Athens Ohio
| | - Olivia L. Brooks
- Department of Biology John Carroll University University Heights Ohio
| | - Matthew S. Lattanzio
- Department of Organismal and Environmental Biology Christopher Newport University Newport News Virginia
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20
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Goedert D, Calsbeek R. Experimental Evidence That Metamorphosis Alleviates Genomic Conflict. Am Nat 2019; 194:356-366. [DOI: 10.1086/704183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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21
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De Lisle SP. Understanding the evolution of ecological sex differences: Integrating character displacement and the Darwin-Bateman paradigm. Evol Lett 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/evl3.134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Stephen P. De Lisle
- Evolutionary Ecology Unit, Department of Biology; Lund University; Lund 22362 Sweden
- Current address: Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut; Storrs Connecticut 06269
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22
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Runemark A, Eroukhmanoff F, Nava-Bolaños A, Hermansen JS, Meier JI. Hybridization, sex-specific genomic architecture and local adaptation. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2019; 373:rstb.2017.0419. [PMID: 30150218 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2017.0419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
While gene flow can reduce the potential for local adaptation, hybridization may conversely provide genetic variation that increases the potential for local adaptation. Hybridization may also affect adaptation through altering sexual dimorphism and sexual conflict, but this remains largely unstudied. Here, we discuss how hybridization may affect sexual dimorphism and conflict due to differential effects of hybridization on males and females, and then how this, in turn, may affect local adaptation. First, in species with heterochromatic sexes, the lower viability of the heterogametic sex in hybrids could shift the balance in sexual conflict. Second, sex-specific inheritance of the mitochondrial genome in hybrids may lead to cytonuclear mismatches, for example, in the form of 'mother's curse', with potential consequences for sex ratio and sex-specific expression. Third, sex-biased introgression and recombination may lead to sex-specific consequences of hybridization. Fourth, transgressive segregation of sexually antagonistic alleles could increase sexual dimorphism in hybrid populations. Sexual dimorphism can reduce sexual conflict and enhance intersexual niche partitioning, increasing the fitness of hybrids. Adaptive introgression of alleles reducing sexual conflict or enhancing intersexual niche partitioning may facilitate local adaptation, and could favour the colonization of novel habitats. We review these consequences of hybridization on sex differences and local adaptation, and discuss how their prevalence and importance could be tested empirically.This article is part of the theme issue 'Linking local adaptation with the evolution of sex differences'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Runemark
- Department of Biology, Lund University, 22362 Lund, Sweden
| | - Fabrice Eroukhmanoff
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, University of Oslo, 0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Angela Nava-Bolaños
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apdo. Postal 70-275, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510 Ciudad de México, México
| | - Jo S Hermansen
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, University of Oslo, 0316 Oslo, Norway
| | - Joana I Meier
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland.,Department of Fish Ecology and Evolution, EAWAG, 6047 Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
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23
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Castillo DM, Moyle LC. Conspecific sperm precedence is reinforced, but postcopulatory sexual selection weakened, in sympatric populations of Drosophila. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 286:20182535. [PMID: 30900533 PMCID: PMC6452082 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.2535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2018] [Accepted: 03/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Sexual selection can accelerate speciation by driving the evolution of reproductive isolation, but forces driving speciation could also reciprocally feedback on sexual selection. This might be particularly important in the context of 'reinforcement', where selection acts directly to increase prezygotic barriers to reduce the cost of heterospecific matings. Using assays of sperm competition within and between two sister species, we show a signature of reinforcement where these species interact: populations of Drosophila pseudoobscura that co-occur with sister species D. persimilis have an elevated ability to outcompete heterospecific sperm, consistent with selection for increased postcopulatory isolation. We also find these D. pseudoobscura populations have decreased sperm competitive ability against conspecifics, reducing the opportunity for sexual selection within these populations. Our findings demonstrate that direct selection to increase reproductive isolation against other species can compromise the efficacy of sexual selection within species, a collateral effect of reproductive traits responding to heterospecific interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dean M. Castillo
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, 1001 East Third Street, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, 526 Campus Road, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Leonie C. Moyle
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, 1001 East Third Street, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
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24
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García‐Roa R, Chirinos V, Carazo P. The ecology of sexual conflict: Temperature variation in the social environment can drastically modulate male harm to females. Funct Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Roberto García‐Roa
- Behaviour and Evolution Group, Ethology Lab, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology University of Valencia Valencia Spain
| | - Valeria Chirinos
- Behaviour and Evolution Group, Ethology Lab, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology University of Valencia Valencia Spain
| | - Pau Carazo
- Behaviour and Evolution Group, Ethology Lab, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology University of Valencia Valencia Spain
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25
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Gotanda KM, Pack A, LeBlond C, Hendry AP. Do replicates of independent guppy lineages evolve similarly in a predator-free laboratory environment? Ecol Evol 2019; 9:36-51. [PMID: 30680094 PMCID: PMC6342246 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.4585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2018] [Revised: 09/07/2018] [Accepted: 09/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The Trinidadian guppy is emblematic of parallel and convergent evolution, with repeated demonstrations that predation regime is a driver of adaptive trait evolution. A classic and foundational experiment in this system was conducted by John Endler 40 years ago, where male guppies placed into low-predation environments in the laboratory evolved increased color in a few generations. However, Endler's experiment did not employ the now typical design for a parallel/convergent evolution study, which would employ replicates of different ancestral lineages. We therefore implemented an experiment that seeded replicate mesocosms with small founding populations of guppies originating from high-predation populations of two very different lineages. The different mesocosms were maintained identically, and male guppy color was quantified every four months. After one year, we tested whether male color had increased, whether replicates within a lineage had parallel phenotypic trajectories, and whether the different lineages converged on a common phenotype. Results showed that male guppy color generally increased through time, primarily due to changes in melanic color, whereas the other colors showed inconsistent and highly variable trajectories. Most of the nonparallelism in phenotypic trajectories was among mesocosms containing different lineages. In addition to this mixture of parallelism and nonparallelism, convergence was not evident in that the variance in color among the mesocosms actually increased through time. We suggest that our results reflect the potential importance of high variation in female preference and stochastic processes such as drift and founder effects, both of which could be important in nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiyoko M. Gotanda
- Redpath Museum and Department of BiologyMcGill UniversityMontrealQuebecCanada
- Department of ZoologyUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeUK
| | - Amy Pack
- Redpath Museum and Department of BiologyMcGill UniversityMontrealQuebecCanada
- Global ProgramsHealth Standards OrganizationOttawaOntarioCanada
| | - Caroline LeBlond
- Redpath Museum and Department of BiologyMcGill UniversityMontrealQuebecCanada
| | - Andrew P. Hendry
- Redpath Museum and Department of BiologyMcGill UniversityMontrealQuebecCanada
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26
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik I. Svensson
- Evolutionary Ecology Unit, Department of Biology Lund University Lund Sweden
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27
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Oke KB, Motivans E, Quinn TP, Hendry AP. Sexual dimorphism modifies habitat‐associated divergence: Evidence from beach and creek breeding sockeye salmon. J Evol Biol 2018; 32:227-242. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2018] [Revised: 11/17/2018] [Accepted: 11/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Krista B. Oke
- Department of Biology and Redpath Museum McGill University Montreal Quebec Canada
- College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences University of Alaska Fairbanks Juneau Alaska
| | - Elena Motivans
- Department of Biology and Redpath Museum McGill University Montreal Quebec Canada
- Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research Leipzig Germany
| | - Thomas P. Quinn
- School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences University of Washington Seattle Washington
| | - Andrew P. Hendry
- Department of Biology and Redpath Museum McGill University Montreal Quebec Canada
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28
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Start D, De Lisle S. Sexual dimorphism in a top predator ( Notophthalmus viridescens) drives aquatic prey community assembly. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:rspb.2018.1717. [PMID: 30404874 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2018] [Accepted: 10/15/2018] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Intraspecific variation can have important consequences for the structure and function of ecological communities, and serves to link community ecology to evolutionary processes. Differences between the sexes are an overwhelmingly common form of intraspecific variation, but its community-level consequences have never been experimentally investigated. Here, we manipulate the sex ratio of a sexually dimorphic predacious newt in aquatic mesocosms, then track their impact on prey communities. Female and male newts preferentially forage in the benthic and pelagic zones, respectively, causing corresponding reductions in prey abundances in those habitats. Sex ratio differences also explained a large proportion (33%) of differences in the composition of entire pond communities. Ultimately, we demonstrate the impact of known patterns of sexual dimorphism in a predator on its prey, uncovering overlooked links between evolutionary adaptation and the structure of contemporary communities. Given the extreme prevalence of sexual dimorphism, we argue that the independent evolution of the sexes will often have important consequences for ecological communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Denon Start
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
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29
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Perry JC, Rowe L. Sexual conflict in its ecological setting. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 373:20170418. [PMID: 30150217 PMCID: PMC6125725 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2017.0418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Sexual conflict can lead to rapid and continuous coevolution between females and males, without any inputs from varying ecology. Yet both the degree of conflict and selection on antagonistic traits are known to be sensitive to local ecological conditions. This leads to the longstanding question: to what extent does variation in ecological context drive sexually antagonistic coevolution? In water striders, there is much information about the impacts of ecological factors on conflict, and about patterns of antagonistic coevolution. However, the connection between the two is poorly understood. Here, we first review the multiple ways in which ecological context might affect the coevolutionary trajectory of the sexes. We then review ecological and coevolutionary patterns in water striders, and connections between them, in light of theory and new data. Our analysis suggests that ecological variation does impact observed patterns of antagonistic coevolution, but highlights significant uncertainty due to the multiple pathways by which ecological factors can influence conflict and its evolutionary outcome. To the extent that water striders are a reasonable reflection of other systems, this observation serves as both an opportunity and a warning: there is much to learn, but gaining insight may be a daunting process in many systems.This article is part of the theme issue 'Linking local adaptation with the evolution of sex differences'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer C Perry
- Edward Grey Institute, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3XZ, UK
- Jesus College, Oxford OX1 3DW, UK
| | - Locke Rowe
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Canada M5S 3B2
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30
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31
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Rosenthal GG. Evaluation and hedonic value in mate choice. Curr Zool 2018; 64:485-492. [PMID: 30108629 PMCID: PMC6084558 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoy054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2018] [Accepted: 06/27/2018] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Mating preferences can show extreme variation within and among individuals even when sensory inputs are conserved. This variation is a result of changes associated with evaluative mechanisms that assign positive, neutral, or negative hedonic value to stimuli—that is, label them as attractive, uninteresting, or unattractive. There is widespread behavioral evidence for differences in genes, environmental cues, or social experience leading to marked changes in the hedonic value of stimuli. Evaluation is accomplished through an array of mechanisms that are readily modifiable through genetic changes or environmental inputs, and that may often result in the rapid acquisition or loss of behavioral preferences. Reversals in preference arising from “flips” in hedonic value may be quite common. Incorporating such discontinuous changes into models of preference evolution may illuminate our understanding of processes like trait diversification, sexual conflict, and sympatric speciation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gil G Rosenthal
- Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.,Centro de Investigaciones Científicas de la Huastecas "Aguazarca", Università degli Studi di Torino, Italy
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32
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Hochberg ME, Marquet PA, Boyd R, Wagner A. Innovation: an emerging focus from cells to societies. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 372:rstb.2016.0414. [PMID: 29061887 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2016.0414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Innovations are generally unexpected, often spectacular changes in phenotypes and ecological functions. The contributions to this theme issue are the latest conceptual, theoretical and experimental developments, addressing how ecology, environment, ontogeny and evolution are central to understanding the complexity of the processes underlying innovations. Here, we set the stage by introducing and defining key terms relating to innovation and discuss their relevance to biological, cultural and technological change. Discovering how the generation and transmission of novel biological information, environmental interactions and selective evolutionary processes contribute to innovation as an ecosystem will shed light on how the dominant features across life come to be, generalize to social, cultural and technological evolution, and have applications in the health sciences and sustainability.This article is part of the theme issue 'Process and pattern in innovations from cells to societies'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael E Hochberg
- Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution, Université de Montpellier, 34095 Montpellier, France .,Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA.,Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, 31015 Toulouse, France
| | - Pablo A Marquet
- Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA.,Departamento de Ecologı́a, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Alameda 340, Santiago, Chile.,Instituto de Ecología y Biodiversidad (IEB), Casilla 653, Santiago, Chile.,Instituto de Sistemas Complejos de Valparaíso (ISCV), Artillería 4780, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Robert Boyd
- Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA.,School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
| | - Andreas Wagner
- Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA.,Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
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33
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Servedio MR, Boughman JW. The Role of Sexual Selection in Local Adaptation and Speciation. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ECOLOGY EVOLUTION AND SYSTEMATICS 2017. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ecolsys-110316-022905] [Citation(s) in RCA: 135] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Sexual selection plays several intricate and complex roles in the related processes of local adaptation and speciation. In some cases sexual selection can promote these processes, but in others it can be inhibitory. We present theoretical and empirical evidence supporting these dual effects of sexual selection during local adaptation, allopatric speciation, and speciation with gene flow. Much of the empirical evidence for sexual selection promoting speciation is suggestive rather than conclusive; we present what would constitute strong evidence for sexual selection driving speciation. We conclude that although there is ample evidence that sexual selection contributes to the speciation process, it is very likely to do so only in concert with natural selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria R. Servedio
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27516
| | - Janette W. Boughman
- Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824
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34
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Debelle A, Courtiol A, Ritchie MG, Snook RR. Mate choice intensifies motor signalling in Drosophila. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.09.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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35
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Oke KB, Rolshausen G, LeBlond C, Hendry AP. How Parallel Is Parallel Evolution? A Comparative Analysis in Fishes. Am Nat 2017; 190:1-16. [DOI: 10.1086/691989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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36
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Martínez-Ruiz C, Knell RJ. Sexual selection can both increase and decrease extinction probability: reconciling demographic and evolutionary factors. J Anim Ecol 2016; 86:117-127. [PMID: 27861841 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2016] [Accepted: 10/01/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Previous theoretical models of the effect of sexual selection on average individual fitness in a population have mostly predicted that sexually selected populations should adapt faster and clear deleterious mutations more quickly than populations where sexual selection is not operating. While some laboratory studies have supported these predictions, others have not and studies of field systems have tended to find negative effects of sexual selection, or no effect. The negative effects of sexual selection found in field and other studies are usually ascribed to the costs associated with strong sexual selection acting on the population. Here, using an individual-based model that allows feedback between demographic and evolutionary processes, we find that sexual selection can lead to both increases and decreases in population-level fitness measures such as extinction probability and adaptation rate. Whether fitness increases or decreases depends on a variety of environmental and demographic factors including the nature of environmental change, the carrying capacity of the environment, the average fecundity of the population in question and the strength of condition dependence. In many cases, our model predicts that sexual selection leads to higher extinction probability in small populations because of an increased risk of demographic stochasticity, but lower extinction probability in larger populations because of faster adaptation rates. This is consistent with field studies that have mostly focussed on very small populations such as recently introduced birds, and tend to find negative effects, and also with laboratory studies that tend to use larger populations and have tended to find positive effects. These findings go at least some way towards an understanding of the apparent contradictions between theoretical predictions, laboratory studies and field data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos Martínez-Ruiz
- School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, E1 4NS, UK
| | - Robert J Knell
- School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, E1 4NS, UK
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37
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Lehtonen J, Kokko H, Parker GA. What do isogamous organisms teach us about sex and the two sexes? Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150532. [PMID: 27619696 PMCID: PMC5031617 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/24/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Isogamy is a reproductive system where all gametes are morphologically similar, especially in terms of size. Its importance goes beyond specific cases: to this day non-anisogamous systems are common outside of multicellular animals and plants, they can be found in all eukaryotic super-groups, and anisogamous organisms appear to have isogamous ancestors. Furthermore, because maleness is synonymous with the production of small gametes, an explanation for the initial origin of males and females is synonymous with understanding the transition from isogamy to anisogamy. As we show here, this transition may also be crucial for understanding why sex itself remains common even in taxa with high costs of male production (the twofold cost of sex). The transition to anisogamy implies the origin of male and female sexes, kickstarts the subsequent evolution of sex roles, and has a major impact on the costliness of sexual reproduction. Finally, we combine some of the consequences of isogamy and anisogamy in a thought experiment on the maintenance of sexual reproduction. We ask what happens if there is a less than twofold benefit to sex (not an unlikely scenario as large short-term benefits have proved difficult to find), and argue that this could lead to a situation where lineages that evolve anisogamy-and thus the highest costs of sex-end up being associated with constraints that make invasion by asexual reproduction unlikely (the 'anisogamy gateway' hypothesis).This article is part of the themed issue 'Weird sex: the underappreciated diversity of sexual reproduction'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jussi Lehtonen
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia
| | - Hanna Kokko
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Geoff A Parker
- Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZB, UK
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Lankinen Å, Strandh M. Differential selection on pollen and pistil traits in relation to pollen competition in the context of a sexual conflict over timing of stigma receptivity. AOB PLANTS 2016; 8:plw061. [PMID: 27562796 PMCID: PMC5063087 DOI: 10.1093/aobpla/plw061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2016] [Accepted: 08/15/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Sexual conflict and its evolutionary consequences are understudied in plants, but the theory of sexual conflict may help explain how selection generates and maintains variability. Here, we investigated selection on pollen and pistil traits when pollen arrives sequentially to partially receptive pistils in relation to pollen competition and a sexual conflict over timing of stigma receptivity in the mixed-mating annual Collinsia heterophylla (Plantaginaceae). In this species the conflict is generated by early fertilizing pollen that reduces seed production, which is counteracted by delaying receptivity in the recipient. We performed sequential two-donor pollinations at early floral developmental stages involving two pollen deposition schedules (with or without a time lag of 1 day), using only outcross or self and outcross pollen. We investigated pollen and pistil traits in relation to siring success (male fitness) and seed production (female fitness). In contrast to previous findings in receptive pistils in C. heterophylla and in other species, last arriving pollen donors showed highest siring success in partially receptive pistils. The last male advantage was weaker when self pollen was the first arriving donor. Two measures of germination rate (early and late) and pollen tube growth rate of first arriving donors were important for siring success in crosses with a time lag, while only late germination rate had an effect in contemporary crosses. Curiously, late stigma receptivity was negatively related to seed production in our contemporary crosses, which was opposite to expectation. Our results in combination with previous studies suggest that pollen and pistil traits in C. heterophylla are differentially advantageous depending on stage of floral development and varying pollen deposition schedules. Variation in success of these traits over floral development time may result from sexually antagonistic selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Åsa Lankinen
- Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Plant Protection Biology, PO Box 102, S-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden
| | - Maria Strandh
- Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Plant Protection Biology, PO Box 102, S-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden Department of Biology, Lund University, Ecology Building, S-223 62 Lund, Sweden
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Ciccotto PJ, Mendelson TC. The ecological drivers of nuptial color evolution in darters (Percidae: Etheostomatinae). Evolution 2016; 70:745-56. [PMID: 27003224 DOI: 10.1111/evo.12901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2015] [Revised: 02/24/2016] [Accepted: 02/26/2016] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Closely related animal lineages often vary in male coloration, and ecological selection is hypothesized to shape this variation. The role of ecological selection in inhibiting male color has been documented extensively at the population level, but relatively few studies have investigated the evolution of male coloration across a clade of closely related species. Darters are a diverse group of fishes that vary in the presence of elaborate male nuptial coloration, with some species exhibiting vivid color patterns and others mostly or entirely achromatic. We used phylogenetic logistic regression to test for correlations between the presence/absence of color traits across darter species and the ecological conditions in which these species occur. Environmental variables were correlated with the presence of nuptial color in darters with colorful species tending to inhabit environments that would support fewer predators and potentially transmit a broader spectrum of natural light compared to species lacking male coloration. We also tested the color preferences of a common darter predator, largemouth bass, and found that it exhibits a strong preference for red, providing further evidence of predation as a source of selection on color evolution in darters. Ecological selection therefore appears to be an important factor in dictating the presence or absence of male coloration in this group of fishes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick J Ciccotto
- Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, 32611.
| | - Tamra C Mendelson
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, 21250
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Pfennig KS, Pfennig DW, Porter C, Martin RA. Sexual selection's impacts on ecological specialization: an experimental test. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 282:20150217. [PMID: 25925102 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.0217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
In many species, individuals specialize on different resources, thereby reducing competition. Such ecological specialization can promote the evolution of alternative ecomorphs-distinct phenotypes adapted for particular resources. Elucidating whether and how this process is influenced by sexual selection is crucial for understanding how ecological specialization promotes the evolution of novel traits and, potentially, speciation between ecomorphs. We evaluated the population-level effects of sexual selection (as mediated by mate choice) on ecological specialization in spadefoot toad tadpoles that express alternative ecomorphs. We manipulated whether sexual selection was present or reversed by mating females to their preferred versus non-preferred males, respectively. We then exposed their tadpoles to resource competition in experimental mesocosms. The resulting distribution of ecomorphs was similar between treatments, but sexual selection generated poorer trait integration in, and lower fitness of, the more specialized carnivore morph. Moreover, disruptive and directional natural selection were weaker in the sexual selection present treatment. Nevertheless, this effect on disruptive selection was smaller than previously documented effects of ecological opportunity and competitor density. Thus, sexual selection can inhibit adaptation to resource competition and thereby hinder ecological specialization, particularly when females obtain fitness benefits from mate choice that offset the cost of producing competitively inferior offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karin S Pfennig
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, CB#3280, Coker Hall, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3280, USA
| | - David W Pfennig
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, CB#3280, Coker Hall, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3280, USA
| | - Cody Porter
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, CB#3280, Coker Hall, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3280, USA
| | - Ryan A Martin
- Department of Biology, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA
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De Lisle SP, Rowe L. Independent evolution of the sexes promotes amphibian diversification. Proc Biol Sci 2015; 282:20142213. [PMID: 25694616 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.2213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Classic ecological theory predicts that the evolution of sexual dimorphism constrains diversification by limiting morphospace available for speciation. Alternatively, sexual selection may lead to the evolution of reproductive isolation and increased diversification. We test contrasting predictions of these hypotheses by examining the relationship between sexual dimorphism and diversification in amphibians. Our analysis shows that the evolution of sexual size dimorphism (SSD) is associated with increased diversification and speciation, contrary to the ecological theory. Further, this result is unlikely to be explained by traditional sexual selection models because variation in amphibian SSD is unlikely to be driven entirely by sexual selection. We suggest that relaxing a central assumption of classic ecological models-that the sexes share a common adaptive landscape-leads to the alternative hypothesis that independent evolution of the sexes may promote diversification. Once the constraints of sexual conflict are relaxed, the sexes can explore morphospace that would otherwise be inaccessible. Consistent with this novel hypothesis, the evolution of SSD in amphibians is associated with reduced current extinction threat status, and an historical reduction in extinction rate. Our work reconciles conflicting predictions from ecological and evolutionary theory and illustrates that the ability of the sexes to evolve independently is associated with a spectacular vertebrate radiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen P De Lisle
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks St., Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
| | - Locke Rowe
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Willcocks St., Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3B2
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Radwan J, Engqvist L, Reinhold K. A Paradox of Genetic Variance in Epigamic Traits: Beyond "Good Genes" View of Sexual Selection. Evol Biol 2015; 43:267-275. [PMID: 27217597 PMCID: PMC4860406 DOI: 10.1007/s11692-015-9359-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2015] [Accepted: 11/04/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Maintenance of genetic variance in secondary sexual traits, including bizarre ornaments and elaborated courtship displays, is a central problem of sexual selection theory. Despite theoretical arguments predicting that strong sexual selection leads to a depletion of additive genetic variance, traits associated with mating success show relatively high heritability. Here we argue that because of trade-offs associated with the production of costly epigamic traits, sexual selection is likely to lead to an increase, rather than a depletion, of genetic variance in those traits. Such trade-offs can also be expected to contribute to the maintenance of genetic variation in ecologically relevant traits with important implications for evolutionary processes, e.g. adaptation to novel environments or ecological speciation. However, if trade-offs are an important source of genetic variation in sexual traits, the magnitude of genetic variation may have little relevance for the possible genetic benefits of mate choice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacek Radwan
- />Evolutionary Biology Group, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland
| | - Leif Engqvist
- />Evolutionary Biology, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
- />Department of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Klaus Reinhold
- />Evolutionary Biology, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
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Rovenko BM, Kubrak OI, Gospodaryov DV, Perkhulyn NV, Yurkevych IS, Sanz A, Lushchak OV, Lushchak VI. High sucrose consumption promotes obesity whereas its low consumption induces oxidative stress in Drosophila melanogaster. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2015; 79:42-54. [PMID: 26050918 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2015.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2015] [Revised: 05/12/2015] [Accepted: 05/27/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
The effects of sucrose in varied concentrations (0.25-20%) with constant amount of yeasts in larval diet on development and metabolic parameters of adult fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster were studied. Larvae consumed more food at low sucrose diet, overeating with yeast. On high sucrose diet, larvae ingested more carbohydrates, despite consuming less food and obtaining less protein derived from yeast. High sucrose diet slowed down pupation and increased pupa mortality, enhanced levels of lipids and glycogen, increased dry body mass, decreased water content, i.e. resulted in obese phenotype. Furthermore, it suppressed reactive oxygen species-induced oxidation of lipids and proteins as well as the activity of superoxide dismutase. The activity of catalase was gender-related. In males, at all sucrose concentrations used catalase activity was higher than at its concentration of 0.25%, whereas in females sucrose concentration virtually did not influence the activity. High sucrose diet increased content of protein thiols and the activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase. The increase in sucrose concentration also enhanced uric acid level in females, but caused opposite effects in males. Development on high sucrose diets was accompanied by elevated steady-state insulin-like peptide 3 mRNA level. Finally, carbohydrate starvation at yeast overfeeding on low sucrose diets resulted in oxidative stress reflected by higher levels of oxidized lipids and proteins accompanied by increased superoxide dismutase activity. Potential mechanisms involved in regulation of redox processes by carbohydrates are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bohdana M Rovenko
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Vassyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University, Ivano-Frankivsk 76018, Ukraine
| | - Olga I Kubrak
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Vassyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University, Ivano-Frankivsk 76018, Ukraine
| | - Dmytro V Gospodaryov
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Vassyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University, Ivano-Frankivsk 76018, Ukraine
| | - Natalia V Perkhulyn
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Vassyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University, Ivano-Frankivsk 76018, Ukraine
| | - Ihor S Yurkevych
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Vassyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University, Ivano-Frankivsk 76018, Ukraine
| | - Alberto Sanz
- Institute for Cell and Molecular Biosciences and Newcastle Institute for Ageing, Newcastle University, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne NE4 5PL, UK
| | - Oleh V Lushchak
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Vassyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University, Ivano-Frankivsk 76018, Ukraine.
| | - Volodymyr I Lushchak
- Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Vassyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University, Ivano-Frankivsk 76018, Ukraine.
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Berner D, Thibert-Plante X. How mechanisms of habitat preference evolve and promote divergence with gene flow. J Evol Biol 2015; 28:1641-55. [PMID: 26119841 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2015] [Revised: 06/13/2015] [Accepted: 06/19/2015] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Habitat preference may promote adaptive divergence and speciation, yet the conditions under which this is likely are insufficiently explored. We use individual-based simulations to study the evolution and consequence of habitat preference during divergence with gene flow, considering four different underlying genetically based behavioural mechanisms: natal habitat imprinting, phenotype-dependent, competition-dependent and direct genetic habitat preference. We find that the evolution of habitat preference generally requires initially high dispersal, is facilitated by asymmetry in population sizes between habitats, and is hindered by an increasing number of underlying genetic loci. Moreover, the probability of habitat preference to emerge and promote divergence differs greatly among the underlying mechanisms. Natal habitat imprinting evolves most easily and can allow full divergence in parameter ranges where no divergence is possible in the absence of habitat preference. The reason is that imprinting represents a one-allele mechanism of assortative mating linking dispersal behaviour very effectively to local selection. At the other extreme, direct genetic habitat preference, a two-allele mechanism, evolves under restricted conditions only, and even then facilitates divergence weakly. Overall, our results indicate that habitat preference can be a strong reproductive barrier promoting divergence with gene flow, but that this is highly contingent on the underlying preference mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Berner
- Zoological Institute, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - X Thibert-Plante
- National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA.,Department of Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.,Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, and IceLab, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
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Abstract
At the end of the last century, sexual conflict was identified as a powerful engine of speciation, potentially even more important than ecological selection. Earlier work that followed--experimental, comparative, and mathematical--provided strong initial support for this assertion. However, as the field matures, both the power of sexual conflict and constraints on the evolution of reproductive isolation as driven by sexual conflict are becoming better understood. From theoretical studies, we now know that speciation is only one of several possible evolutionary outcomes of sexual conflict. In line with these predictions, both experimental evolution studies and comparative analyses of fertilization proteins and of species richness show that sexual conflict leads to, or is associated with, reproductive isolation and speciation in some cases but not in others. Increased genetic variation (especially in females) without reproductive isolation is an underappreciated consequence of sexually antagonistic selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergey Gavrilets
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Mathematics, National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996
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Puechmaille SJ, Borissov IM, Zsebok S, Allegrini B, Hizem M, Kuenzel S, Schuchmann M, Teeling EC, Siemers BM. Female mate choice can drive the evolution of high frequency echolocation in bats: a case study with Rhinolophus mehelyi. PLoS One 2014; 9:e103452. [PMID: 25075972 PMCID: PMC4116191 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0103452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2014] [Accepted: 06/28/2014] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals employ an array of signals (i.e. visual, acoustic, olfactory) for communication. Natural selection favours signals, receptors, and signalling behaviour that optimise the received signal relative to background noise. When the signal is used for more than one function, antagonisms amongst the different signalling functions may constrain the optimisation of the signal for any one function. Sexual selection through mate choice can strongly modify the effects of natural selection on signalling systems ultimately causing maladaptive signals to evolve. Echolocating bats represent a fascinating group in which to study the evolution of signalling systems as unlike bird songs or frog calls, echolocation has a dual role in foraging and communication. The function of bat echolocation is to generate echoes that the calling bat uses for orientation and food detection with call characteristics being directly related to the exploitation of particular ecological niches. Therefore, it is commonly assumed that echolocation has been shaped by ecology via natural selection. Here we demonstrate for the first time using a novel combined behavioural, ecological and genetic approach that in a bat species, Rhinolophus mehelyi: (1) echolocation peak frequency is an honest signal of body size; (2) females preferentially select males with high frequency calls during the mating season; (3) high frequency males sire more off-spring, providing evidence that echolocation calls may play a role in female mate choice. Our data refute the sole role of ecology in the evolution of echolocation and highlight the antagonistic interplay between natural and sexual selection in shaping acoustic signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sébastien J. Puechmaille
- Sensory Ecology Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
- School of Biology & Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin, Ireland
- Tabachka Bat Research Station, Tabachka, Bulgaria
- * E-mail:
| | - Ivailo M. Borissov
- Sensory Ecology Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
- Tabachka Bat Research Station, Tabachka, Bulgaria
| | - Sándor Zsebok
- Sensory Ecology Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
- Tabachka Bat Research Station, Tabachka, Bulgaria
- MTA-ELTE-MTM Ecology Research Group, Budapest, Hungary
| | | | - Mohammed Hizem
- Tunis Superior Institute for Biological Applied Sciences, Tunis, Tunisia
| | - Sven Kuenzel
- Department Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Plön, Germany
| | - Maike Schuchmann
- Sensory Ecology Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
- Tabachka Bat Research Station, Tabachka, Bulgaria
| | - Emma C. Teeling
- School of Biology & Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Björn M. Siemers
- Sensory Ecology Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
- Tabachka Bat Research Station, Tabachka, Bulgaria
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48
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Kuchta SR, Svensson EI. Predator-mediated natural selection on the wings of the damselfly Calopteryx splendens: differences in selection among trait types. Am Nat 2014; 184:91-109. [PMID: 24921603 DOI: 10.1086/676043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Traits that increase mating success in males may come at a cost, such as an increased risk of predation. However, predator-mediated selection is challenging to document in natural populations, hampering our understanding of the trade-offs between sexual selection and predation. Here we report on a study of predator-mediated natural selection on wing traits in the damselfly Calopteryx splendens, the males of which possess conspicuous wing patches. Wagtails (genus Motacilla) are important avian predators of C. splendens, capturing them in flight and removing the wings prior to consumption. Using geometric morphometric techniques, we quantified the strength and mode of selection on wing traits by comparing wings from depredated individuals with the standing variation present in the population. Our results reveal that predator-mediated selection is stronger on secondary sexual characters than on size and shape, suggesting that traits related to flight performance are closer to their adaptive peaks. This could be a consequence of the long-term evolutionary association with avian predators, whereas stronger selection on conspicuous secondary sexual traits may reflect trade-offs between sexual and natural selection. Finally, even though C. splendens possesses nearly identical fore- and hindwings, we found evidence for divergent selection between them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shawn R Kuchta
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ohio University, Athens, Ohio 45701
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Arbuthnott D, Agrawal AF, Rundle HD. Remating and sperm competition in replicate populations of Drosophila melanogaster adapted to alternative environments. PLoS One 2014; 9:e90207. [PMID: 24587283 PMCID: PMC3934985 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0090207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2013] [Accepted: 01/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The prevalence of sexual conflict in nature, as well as the supposedly arbitrary direction of the resulting coevolutionary trajectories, suggests that it may be an important driver of phenotypic divergence even in a constant environment. However, natural selection has long been central to the operation of sexual conflict within populations and may therefore constrain or otherwise direct divergence among populations. Ecological context may therefore matter with respect to the diversification of traits involved in sexual conflict, and if natural selection is sufficiently strong, such traits may evolve in correlation with environment, generating a pattern of ecologically-dependent parallel evolution. In this study we assess among-population divergence both within and between environments for several traits involved in sexual conflict. Using eight replicate populations of Drosophila melanogaster from a long-term evolution experiment, we measured remating rates and subsequent offspring production of females when housed with two separate males in sequence. We found no evidence of any variation in male reproductive traits (offense or defense). However, the propensity of females to remate diverged significantly among the eight populations with no evidence of any environmental effect, consistent with sexual conflict promoting diversification even in the absence of ecological differences. On the other hand, females adapted to one environment (ethanol) tended to produce a higher proportion of offspring sired by their first mate as compared to those adapted to the other (cadmium) environment, suggesting ecologically-based divergence of this conflict phenotype. Because we find evidence for both stochastic population divergence operating outside of an ecological context and environment-dependent divergence of traits under sexual conflict, the interaction of these two processes is an important topic for future work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Devin Arbuthnott
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- * E-mail:
| | - Aneil F. Agrawal
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Howard D. Rundle
- Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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50
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Oufiero CE, Jugo K, Garland T. Swimming with a sword: tail beat kinematics in relation to sword length inXiphophorus. Funct Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.12222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Kristine Jugo
- Department of Biology; University of California; Riverside CA 92521 USA
| | - Theodore Garland
- Department of Biology; University of California; Riverside CA 92521 USA
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