1
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Kudo SI, Harano T, Tsai JF, Yoshizawa K, Kutsukake N. Maternal Care under Large Clutches with Small Eggs: The Evolution of Life History Traits in Shield Bugs. Am Nat 2024; 204:30-42. [PMID: 38857347 DOI: 10.1086/730145] [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] [Indexed: 06/12/2024]
Abstract
AbstractPatterns in the correlated evolution of parental care and life history traits are long established but controversial. Although parental care is related to large egg size in many taxa, conflicting results have also been reported. To test the evolutionary relationships between parental care and life history traits, we performed phylogenetic comparative analyses using shield bugs (Heteroptera: Acanthosomatidae), in which maternal guarding of eggs and young has repeatedly evolved. Our analyses revealed that female body size affected reproductive resource allocation. Contrary to the expectations of current theories, the acquisition of maternal care was associated with small eggs, large clutches, and large egg resource allocation. There was a greater trade-off between egg size and clutch size in caring species than in noncaring species. Egg and hatchling developmental rates were not correlated with egg size but were slower in caring species than in noncaring species. Analyses of evolutionary transitions suggest that the establishment of large clutches, small eggs, and large egg resource allocation preceded the evolution of maternal care. To our knowledge, this is the first study clarifying the evolution of parental care linked with small eggs in invertebrates.
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2
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Wang D, Zhang W, Yang S, Richter XYL. Sex differences in avian parental care patterns vary across the breeding cycle. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6980. [PMID: 37914691 PMCID: PMC10620184 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42767-5] [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: 11/04/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Parental care in birds consists of elaborate forms across stages, including nest building, incubation, and offspring provision. Despite their evolutionary importance, knowledge gaps exist in the extent to which parents contribute disproportionately to these forms and factors that are associated with variations in care patterns between sexes. Here, we analyzed 1533 bird species and discovered remarkable variability in care patterns. We show that parental care should not be viewed as a unitary trait but rather as a set of integrated features that exhibit considerable temporal and sex-specific variation. Our analyses also reveal moderate consistency in care patterns between breeding stages, pointing towards shared intrinsic factors driving sex-specific care. Notably, we found that species experiencing strong sexual selection on males or species facing paternity uncertainty display a tendency towards female-biased care. This work advances our understanding of the temporal variations in sex-specific contributions to avian parental care and their potential evolutionary drivers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daiping Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1 Beichen West Road, Chaoyang, 100101, Beijing, China.
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China.
| | - Wenyuan Zhang
- Edward Grey Institute, Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK
- Department of Biology, Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Science, McGill University, Montreal, QC, H3A 1B1, Canada
| | - Shuai Yang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1 Beichen West Road, Chaoyang, 100101, Beijing, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Xiang-Yi Li Richter
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 6, CH-3012, Bern, Switzerland.
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3
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Long X, Weissing FJ. Transient polymorphisms in parental care strategies drive divergence of sex roles. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6805. [PMID: 37884497 PMCID: PMC10603145 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42607-6] [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: 02/08/2023] [Accepted: 10/16/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The parental roles of males and females differ considerably between and within species. By means of individual-based evolutionary simulations, we strive to explain this diversity. We show that the conflict between the sexes creates a sex bias (towards maternal or paternal care), even if the two sexes are initially identical. When including sexual selection, there are two outcomes: either female mate choice and maternal care or no mate choice and paternal care. Interestingly, the care pattern drives sexual selection and not vice versa. Longer-term simulations exhibit rapid switches between alternative parental care patterns, even in constant environments. Hence, the evolutionary lability of sex roles observed in phylogenetic studies is not necessarily caused by external changes. Overall, our findings are in striking contrast to the predictions of mathematical models. We show that the discrepancies are caused by transient within-sex polymorphisms in parental strategies, a factor largely neglected in current sex-role theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyan Long
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, 9747AG, The Netherlands
- Institute of Biology I, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, 79104, Germany
| | - Franz J Weissing
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, 9747AG, The Netherlands.
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4
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Zheng J, Komdeur J, Weissing FJ. Effects of season length and uniparental care efficacy on the evolution of parental care. J Anim Ecol 2023; 92:1719-1729. [PMID: 37335054 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13967] [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: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 06/21/2023]
Abstract
Parental care patterns differ enormously among and even within species. This is exemplified by Chinese penduline tits Remiz consobrinus, where biparental care, female-only care, male-only care and biparental desertion all occur in the same population; moreover, the distribution of these care patterns differs systematically between populations. The eco-evolutionary determinants of this diversity are largely unknown. We developed an individual-based model that allows us to investigate the effects of season length and offspring needs (expressed by the efficacy with which a clutch can be raised by a single parent) on the evolution of parental care patterns. The model is largely conceptual, aiming at general conclusions. However, to keep the model realistic, its set-up and the choice of parameters are motivated by field studies on Chinese penduline tits. Exploring a wide range of parameters, we investigate how parental care patterns are affected by season length and offspring needs and whether and under what conditions diverse parental care patterns can stably coexist. We report five main findings. First, under a broad range of conditions, different care patterns (e.g. male care and biparental care) coexist at equilibrium. Second, for the same parameters, alternative evolutionary equilibria are possible; this can explain differences in care patterns across populations. Third, rapid evolutionary transitions can occur between alternative equilibria; this can explain the often-reported evolutionary lability of parental care patterns. Fourth, season length has a strong but nonmonotonic effect on the evolved care patterns. Fifth, when uniparental care efficacy is low, biparental care tends to evolve; however, in many scenarios uniparental care is still common at equilibrium. In addition, our study sheds new light on Trivers' hypothesis that the sex with the highest prezygotic investment is predestined to invest more postzygotically as well. Our study highlights that diversity in parental care can readily evolve and it shows that even in the absence of environmental change parental care patterns can be evolutionary labile. In the presence of directional environmental change, systematic shifts in care patterns are to be expected.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jia Zheng
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Sciences and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Sciences and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Franz J Weissing
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Sciences and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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5
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Kappeler PM, Benhaiem S, Fichtel C, Fromhage L, Höner OP, Jennions MD, Kaiser S, Krüger O, Schneider JM, Tuni C, van Schaik J, Goymann W. Sex roles and sex ratios in animals. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2023; 98:462-480. [PMID: 36307924 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2021] [Revised: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In species with separate sexes, females and males often differ in their morphology, physiology and behaviour. Such sex-specific traits are functionally linked to variation in reproductive competition, mate choice and parental care, which have all been linked to sex roles. At the 150th anniversary of Darwin's theory on sexual selection, the question of why patterns of sex roles vary within and across species remains a key topic in behavioural and evolutionary ecology. New theoretical, experimental and comparative evidence suggests that variation in the adult sex ratio (ASR) is a key driver of variation in sex roles. Here, we first define and discuss the historical emergence of the sex role concept, including recent criticisms and rebuttals. Second, we review the various sex ratios with a focus on ASR, and explore its theoretical links to sex roles. Third, we explore the causes, and especially the consequences, of biased ASRs, focusing on the results of correlational and experimental studies of the effect of ASR variation on mate choice, sexual conflict, parental care and mating systems, social behaviour, hormone physiology and fitness. We present evidence that animals in diverse societies are sensitive to variation in local ASR, even on short timescales, and propose explanations for conflicting results. We conclude with an overview of open questions in this field integrating demography, life history and behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter M Kappeler
- Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Unit, German Primate Center - Leibniz Institute of Primatology, Kellnerweg 4, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- Department of Sociobiology/Anthropology, University of Göttingen, Kellnerweg 6, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Sarah Benhaiem
- Department of Ecological Dynamics, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Strasse 17, D-10315, Berlin, Germany
| | - Claudia Fichtel
- Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Unit, German Primate Center - Leibniz Institute of Primatology, Kellnerweg 4, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Lutz Fromhage
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, Ambiotica, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, 40014, Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Oliver P Höner
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Strasse 17, D-10315, Berlin, Germany
| | - Michael D Jennions
- Division of Ecology & Evolution, Research School of Biology, ANU College of Science, The Australian National University, RN Robertson Building, 46 Sullivans Creek Road, Canberra, ACT, 2600, Australia
| | - Sylvia Kaiser
- Department of Behavioural Biology, University of Münster, Badestr. 13, 48149, Münster, Germany
| | - Oliver Krüger
- Department of Animal Behavior, Bielefeld University, Morgenbreede 45, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Jutta M Schneider
- Department of Biology, Institute of Zoology, Universität Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King Platz 3, 20146, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Großhaderner Str 2, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Jaap van Schaik
- Applied Zoology and Nature Conservation, University of Greifswald, Loitzer Str. 26, 17489, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Goymann
- Department of Behavioural Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Str. 6a, D-82319, Seewiesen, Germany
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6
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Udu IN, Bonsall MB, Klug H. Life history and the evolutionary loss of parental care. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20220658. [PMID: 35855605 PMCID: PMC9297021 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.0658] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Parental care has been gained and lost evolutionarily multiple times. While many studies have focused on the origin of care, few have explored the evolutionary loss of care. Understanding the loss of parental care is important as the conditions that favour its loss will not necessarily be the opposite of those that favour the evolution of care. Evolutionary hysteresis (the case in which evolution depends on the history of a system) could create a situation in which it is relatively challenging to lose care once it has evolved. Here, using a mathematical approach, we explore the evolutionary loss of parental care in relation to basic life-history conditions. Our results suggest that parental care is most likely to be lost when egg and adult death rates are low, eggs mature quickly, and the level of care provided is high. We also predict evolutionary hysteresis with respect to egg maturation rate: as egg maturation rate decreases, it becomes increasingly more costly to lose care than to gain it. This suggests that once care is present, it will be particularly challenging for it to be lost if eggs develop slowly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isimeme N. Udu
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, TN, USA,Department of Biology, Spelman College, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Michael B. Bonsall
- Mathematical Ecology Research Group, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK,St Peter's College, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Hope Klug
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, TN, USA,SimCenter, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, TN, USA
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7
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Does ecology and life history predict parental cooperation in birds? A comparative analysis. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-022-03195-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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8
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Bronikowski AM, Meisel RP, Biga PR, Walters J, Mank JE, Larschan E, Wilkinson GS, Valenzuela N, Conard AM, de Magalhães JP, Duan J, Elias AE, Gamble T, Graze R, Gribble KE, Kreiling JA, Riddle NC. Sex-specific aging in animals: Perspective and future directions. Aging Cell 2022; 21:e13542. [PMID: 35072344 PMCID: PMC8844111 DOI: 10.1111/acel.13542] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Revised: 11/15/2021] [Accepted: 12/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Sex differences in aging occur in many animal species, and they include sex differences in lifespan, in the onset and progression of age-associated decline, and in physiological and molecular markers of aging. Sex differences in aging vary greatly across the animal kingdom. For example, there are species with longer-lived females, species where males live longer, and species lacking sex differences in lifespan. The underlying causes of sex differences in aging remain mostly unknown. Currently, we do not understand the molecular drivers of sex differences in aging, or whether they are related to the accepted hallmarks or pillars of aging or linked to other well-characterized processes. In particular, understanding the role of sex-determination mechanisms and sex differences in aging is relatively understudied. Here, we take a comparative, interdisciplinary approach to explore various hypotheses about how sex differences in aging arise. We discuss genomic, morphological, and environmental differences between the sexes and how these relate to sex differences in aging. Finally, we present some suggestions for future research in this area and provide recommendations for promising experimental designs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne M. Bronikowski
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal BiologyIowa State UniversityAmesIowaUSA
| | - Richard P. Meisel
- Department of Biology and BiochemistryUniversity of HoustonHoustonTexasUSA
| | - Peggy R. Biga
- Department of BiologyThe University of Alabama at BirminghamBirminghamAlabamaUSA
| | - James R. Walters
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyThe University of KansasLawrenceKansasUSA
| | - Judith E. Mank
- Department of ZoologyUniversity of British ColumbiaVancouverBritish ColumbiaCanada
- Department of BioscienceUniversity of ExeterPenrynUK
| | - Erica Larschan
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and BiochemistryBrown UniversityProvidenceRhode IslandUSA
| | | | - Nicole Valenzuela
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal BiologyIowa State UniversityAmesIowaUSA
| | - Ashley Mae Conard
- Department of Computer ScienceCenter for Computational and Molecular BiologyBrown UniversityProvidenceRhode IslandUSA
| | - João Pedro de Magalhães
- Integrative Genomics of Ageing GroupInstitute of Ageing and Chronic DiseaseUniversity of LiverpoolLiverpoolUK
| | | | - Amy E. Elias
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and BiochemistryBrown UniversityProvidenceRhode IslandUSA
| | - Tony Gamble
- Department of Biological SciencesMarquette UniversityMilwaukeeWisconsinUSA
- Milwaukee Public MuseumMilwaukeeWisconsinUSA
- Bell Museum of Natural HistoryUniversity of MinnesotaSaint PaulMinnesotaUSA
| | - Rita M. Graze
- Department of Biological SciencesAuburn UniversityAuburnAlabamaUSA
| | - Kristin E. Gribble
- Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and EvolutionMarine Biological LaboratoryWoods HoleMassachusettsUSA
| | - Jill A. Kreiling
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and BiochemistryBrown UniversityProvidenceRhode IslandUSA
| | - Nicole C. Riddle
- Department of BiologyThe University of Alabama at BirminghamBirminghamAlabamaUSA
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9
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Azad T, Alonzo SH, Bonsall MB, Klug H. Life history, mating dynamics and the origin of parental care. J Evol Biol 2021; 35:379-390. [PMID: 34783118 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13959] [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: 03/30/2021] [Revised: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 10/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Parental care, mating dynamics and life history co-evolve. Understanding the diversity of reproductive patterns found in nature is a major focus of evolutionary ecology research. Previous research suggests that the origin of parental care of eggs will be favoured when egg and adult death rates and juvenile survival are relatively high. However, the previous research that explored the link between care and life history did not account for among-species variation in mating dynamics. As mating dynamics are generally expected to influence care, we explore, theoretically, the life-history conditions (stage-specific rates of maturation and survival) that favour parental care across three mating scenarios: reproductive rate (1) is unaffected by males (assuming that some males are present), (2) increases as male abundance increases or (3) decreases as male abundance increases. Across scenarios, all forms of care were most strongly favoured when egg and adult death rates, juvenile survival and female egg maturation rates were relatively high. When reproductive rate was unaffected by male abundance or increased as male abundance increased, as we might expect in systems in which females are mate-limited, all forms of care were most strongly favoured when male egg maturation rate (i.e. the rate at which male eggs develop, mature and hatch) was moderate or high. When greater male abundance inhibited reproduction, which might occur in systems with intense male-male competition, all forms of care were most strongly favoured when male egg maturation rate was low-to-moderate. These results suggest that life history affects the evolution of parental care, and sex-specific life history can interact with mating dynamics to influence the origin of care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamjeed Azad
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA.,Department of Computer Science, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA
| | - Suzanne H Alonzo
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California, USA.,Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California, USA
| | - Michael B Bonsall
- Mathematical Ecology Research Group, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,St. Peter's College, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Hope Klug
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA.,SimCenter, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
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10
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Safari I, Goymann W. The evolution of reversed sex roles and classical polyandry: Insights from coucals and other animals. Ethology 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.13095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Ignas Safari
- Max‐Planck‐Institut für Ornithologie, Abteilung für Verhaltensneurobiologie Seewiesen Germany
- Coucal Project Chimala Tanzania
- Department of Biology University of Dodoma Dodoma Tanzania
| | - Wolfgang Goymann
- Max‐Planck‐Institut für Ornithologie, Abteilung für Verhaltensneurobiologie Seewiesen Germany
- Coucal Project Chimala Tanzania
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11
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Iyer P, Shukla A, Jadhav V, Sahoo BK. Anisogamy selects for male-biased care in self-consistent games with synchronous matings. Evolution 2020; 74:1018-1032. [PMID: 32342490 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2019] [Revised: 02/12/2020] [Accepted: 02/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
We reexamine the influential parental investment hypothesis proposed by Trivers for the causal relationship between anisogamy and widespread female-biased parental care. We build self-consistent versions of Maynard Smith's simple evolutionary game between males and females over parental care, and incorporate consequences of anisogamy for gamete production and its trade-off with parental care, and for patterns of mate limitation. As male mating opportunities are limited by females, frequency-dependent selection acts on male strategies. Assuming synchrony of matings in the population, our analytical models find either symmetric sex roles or male-biased care as an evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS), in contrast to Trivers' hypothesis. We simulate evolution in asynchronously mating populations and find that diverse parental roles, including female care, can be ESS depending on the parameters. When caring males can also remate, or when females can increase the clutch size by deserting, there is stronger selection for male-biased care. Hence, we argue that the mating-caring trade-off for males is neither a necessary consequence of anisogamy nor sufficient to select for female-biased care. Instead, the factors excluded from our models-costly competitive traits, sexual selection, and partial parentage-may be necessary for the parental investment hypothesis to work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Priya Iyer
- Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, 560012, India
| | - Abhishek Shukla
- Department of Mathematics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z2, Canada
| | - Vivek Jadhav
- Department of Physical Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali, Punjab, 140306, India
| | - Bikash Kumar Sahoo
- Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, 560012, India
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12
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Luoto S, Krams I, Rantala MJ. A Life History Approach to the Female Sexual Orientation Spectrum: Evolution, Development, Causal Mechanisms, and Health. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2019; 48:1273-1308. [PMID: 30229521 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-018-1261-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2017] [Revised: 05/29/2018] [Accepted: 06/14/2018] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Women's capacity for sexual fluidity is at least as interesting a phenomenon from the point of view of evolutionary biology and behavioral endocrinology as exclusively homosexual orientation. Evolutionary hypotheses for female nonheterosexuality have failed to fully account for the existence of these different categories of nonheterosexual women, while also overlooking broader data on the causal mechanisms, physiology, ontogeny, and phylogeny of female nonheterosexuality. We review the evolutionary-developmental origins of various phenotypes in the female sexual orientation spectrum using the synergistic approach of Tinbergen's four questions. We also present femme-specific and butch-specific hypotheses at proximate and ultimate levels of analysis. This review article indicates that various nonheterosexual female phenotypes emerge from and contribute to hormonally mediated fast life history strategies. Life history theory provides a biobehavioral explanatory framework for nonheterosexual women's masculinized body morphology, psychological dispositions, and their elevated likelihood of experiencing violence, substance use, obesity, teenage pregnancy, and lower general health. This pattern of life outcomes can create a feedback loop of environmental unpredictability and harshness which destabilizes intrauterine hormonal conditions in mothers, leading to a greater likelihood of fast life history strategies, global health problems, and nonheterosexual preferences in female offspring. We further explore the potential of female nonheterosexuality to function as an alloparental buffer that enables masculinizing alleles to execute their characteristic fast life history strategies as they appear in the female and the male phenotype. Synthesizing life history theory with the female sexual orientation spectrum enriches existing scientific knowledge on the evolutionary-developmental mechanisms of human sex differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Severi Luoto
- English, Drama and Writing Studies, University of Auckland, Arts 1, Building 206, Room 616, 14A Symonds St., Auckland, 1010, New Zealand.
- School of Psychology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
| | - Indrikis Krams
- Department of Zoology and Animal Ecology, University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia
- Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Markus J Rantala
- Department of Biology & Turku Brain and Mind Center, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
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13
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Lynch KS, O'Connell LA, Louder MIM, Balakrishnan CN, Fischer EK. Understanding the Loss of Maternal Care in Avian Brood Parasites Using Preoptic Area Transcriptome Comparisons in Brood Parasitic and Non-parasitic Blackbirds. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2019; 9:1075-1084. [PMID: 30760540 PMCID: PMC6469424 DOI: 10.1534/g3.118.200992] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Parental care is critical for offspring survival in many species. However, parental behaviors have been lost in roughly 1% of avian species known as the obligate brood parasites. To shed light on molecular and neurobiological mechanisms mediating brood parasitic behavior, we compared brain gene expression patterns between two brood parasitic species and one closely related non-parasitic Icterid (blackbird) species. Our analyses focused on gene expression changes specifically in the preoptic area (POA), a brain region known to play a critical role in parental behavior across vertebrates. Using comparative transcriptomic approaches, we identified gene expression patterns associated with brood parasitism. We evaluated three non-mutually exclusive alternatives for the evolution of brood parasitism: (1) retention of juvenile-like (neotenic) gene expression, (2) reduced expression of maternal care-related genes in the POA, and/or (3) increased expression of genes inhibiting maternal care. We find evidence for neotenic expression patterns in both species of parasitic cowbirds as compared to maternal, non-parasites. In addition, we observed differential expression in a number of genes with previously established roles in mediating maternal care. Together, these results provide the first insight into transcriptomic and genetic mechanisms underlying the loss of maternal behavior in avian brood parasites.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Matthew I M Louder
- Department of Biology, East Carolina University: Greenville, NC, 27858
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801
| | | | - Eva K Fischer
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
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14
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Munch KL, Noble DWA, Budd L, Row A, Wapstra E, While GM. Maternal presence facilitates plasticity in offspring behavior: insights into the evolution of parental care. Behav Ecol 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ary122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Kirke L Munch
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001, Australia
| | - Daniel W A Noble
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001, Australia
- Ecology and Evolution Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, 2052, Australia
| | - Luke Budd
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001, Australia
| | - Aryana Row
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001, Australia
| | - Erik Wapstra
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001, Australia
| | - Geoffrey M While
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, 7001, Australia
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15
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Safari I, Goymann W. Certainty of paternity in two coucal species with divergent sex roles: the devil takes the hindmost. BMC Evol Biol 2018; 18:110. [PMID: 30005606 PMCID: PMC6043945 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-018-1225-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2018] [Accepted: 06/29/2018] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Certainty of paternity is considered an important factor in the evolution of paternal care. Several meta-analyses across birds support this idea, particularly for species with altricial young. However, the role of certainty of paternity in the evolution and maintenance of exclusive paternal care in the black coucal (Centropus grillii), which is the only known altricial bird species with male-only care, is not well understood. Here we investigated whether the differences in levels of paternal care in the black coucal and its sympatric congener, the bi-parental white-browed coucal (Centropus superciliosus), are shaped by extra-pair paternity. RESULTS We found that male black coucals experienced a substantially higher loss of paternity than white-browed coucals. Further, unlike any previously reported bird species, extra-pair offspring in black coucals represented mainly the last hatchlings of the broods, and these last hatchlings were more likely to disappear during partial-brood loss. CONCLUSION The results suggest that exclusive paternal care in black coucals is not maintained by male certainty of parentage, and extra-pair fertilizations are unlikely to be a female strategy for seeking 'good genes'. Extra-pair paternity in black coucals may reflect the inability of males to guard and copulate with the female after the onset of incubation, and a female strategy to demonstrate her commitment to other males of her social group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ignas Safari
- Max-Planck-Institut für Ornithologie, Abteilung für Verhaltensneurobiologie, Eberhard-Gwinner-Straße 6a, 82319, Seewiesen, Germany. .,Coucal Project, P.O. Box 26, Chimala, Tanzania. .,Department of Conservation Biology, University of Dodoma, P.O. Box 338, Dodoma, Tanzania.
| | - Wolfgang Goymann
- Max-Planck-Institut für Ornithologie, Abteilung für Verhaltensneurobiologie, Eberhard-Gwinner-Straße 6a, 82319, Seewiesen, Germany.,Coucal Project, P.O. Box 26, Chimala, Tanzania
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16
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Bonduriansky R, Crean AJ. What are parental condition‐transfer effects and how can they be detected? Methods Ecol Evol 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/2041-210x.12848] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Russell Bonduriansky
- Evolution & Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences University of New South Wales Australia Sydney NSW Australia
| | - Angela J. Crean
- Animal Reproduction Group School of Life and Environmental Sciences Faculty of Veterinary Science University of Sydney Sydney NSW Australia
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17
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Delia J, Bravo-Valencia L, Warkentin KM. Patterns of parental care in Neotropical glassfrogs: fieldwork alters hypotheses of sex-role evolution. J Evol Biol 2017; 30:898-914. [PMID: 28241390 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2016] [Revised: 02/11/2017] [Accepted: 02/19/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Many animals provide parental care to offspring. Parental sex-roles vary extensively across taxa, and such patterns are considered well documented. However, information on amphibians is lacking relative to other vertebrate groups. We combine natural history observations with functional and historical analyses to examine the evolution of egg care in glassfrogs (Centrolenidae). Parental care was considered rare and predominately provided by males. Our field observations of 40 species revealed that care occurs throughout the family, and the caregiving sex changes across lineages. We discovered that a brief period of maternal care is widespread and occurs in species previously thought to lack care. Using a combination of female-removal experiments, prey-choice tests with egg-eating katydids, and parental disturbance-tolerance assays, we confirm the adaptive benefits of short-term maternal care in wild Cochranella granulosa and Teratohyla pulverata. To examine historical transitions between caregiving sexes, we assembled a molecular phylogeny and estimated ancestral care states using our data and the literature. We assessed patterns indicative of sex-specific constraints by testing whether transitions between the sexes are associated with changes in care levels. Our analyses support that male-only care evolved 2-3 times from female-only care, and this change is associated with substantial increases in care levels - a pattern supporting the hypothesis that male-only care evolved via constraints on maternal expenditure. Many groups of amphibians remain poorly studied, with emerging evidence indicating that care patterns are more diverse than currently appreciated. Natural history remains fundamental to uncovering this diversity and generating testable hypotheses of sex-role evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Delia
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - L Bravo-Valencia
- Profesional Universitaria, Equipo Fauna, Corantioquia, Santa Fe de Antioquia, Colombia
| | - K M Warkentin
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panamá, República de Panamá
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18
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Royle NJ, Alonzo SH, Moore AJ. Co-evolution, conflict and complexity: what have we learned about the evolution of parental care behaviours? Curr Opin Behav Sci 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2016.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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19
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Reyes E, Thrasher P, Bonsall MB, Klug H. Population-Level Density Dependence Influences the Origin and Maintenance of Parental Care. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0153839. [PMID: 27093056 PMCID: PMC4836686 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0153839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2015] [Accepted: 04/05/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Parental care is a defining feature of animal breeding systems. We now know that both basic life-history characteristics and ecological factors influence the evolution of care. However, relatively little is known about how these factors interact to influence the origin and maintenance of care. Here, we expand upon previous work and explore the relationship between basic life-history characteristics (stage-specific rates of mortality and maturation) and the fitness benefits associated with the origin and the maintenance of parental care for two broad ecological scenarios: the scenario in which egg survival is density dependent and the case in which adult survival is density dependent. Our findings suggest that high offspring need is likely critical in driving the origin, but not the maintenance, of parental care regardless of whether density dependence acts on egg or adult survival. In general, parental care is more likely to result in greater fitness benefits when baseline adult mortality is low if 1) egg survival is density dependent or 2) adult mortality is density dependent and mutant density is relatively high. When density dependence acts on egg mortality, low rates of egg maturation and high egg densities are less likely to lead to strong fitness benefits of care. However, when density dependence acts on adult mortality, high levels of egg maturation and increasing adult densities are less likely to maintain care. Juvenile survival has relatively little, if any, effect on the origin and maintenance of egg-only care. More generally, our results suggest that the evolution of parental care will be influenced by an organism's entire life history characteristics, the stage at which density dependence acts, and whether care is originating or being maintained.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elijah Reyes
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Patsy Thrasher
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Michael B. Bonsall
- Mathematical Ecology Research Group, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- St Peter’s College, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Hope Klug
- Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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20
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Consolmagno RC, Requena GS, Machado G, Brasileiro CA. Costs and benefits of temporary egg desertion in a rocky shore frog with male-only care. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-016-2102-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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21
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Pike DA, Clark RW, Manica A, Tseng HY, Hsu JY, Huang WS. Surf and turf: predation by egg-eating snakes has led to the evolution of parental care in a terrestrial lizard. Sci Rep 2016; 6:22207. [PMID: 26915464 PMCID: PMC4768160 DOI: 10.1038/srep22207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2015] [Accepted: 02/05/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals display a great diversity of parental care tactics that ultimately enhance offspring survival, but how such behaviors evolve remains unknown for most systems. Here, we studied the evolution of maternal care, in the form of nest guarding, in a single population of long-tailed sun skink (Eutropis longicaudata) living on Orchid Island (Taiwan). This species typically does not provide protection to its offspring. Using a common garden experiment, we show that maternal care is genetically determined in this population. Through field manipulations, we demonstrate that care provides a significant increase in egg survival on Orchid Island by reducing predation from egg-eating snakes (Oligodon formosanus); this predator is not abundant in other populations of the lizard, which do not display parental care. Finally, using extensive field surveys, we show that the seasonal availability of green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) nests is the cause for the high abundance of snake predators on Orchid Island, with the snakes consuming lizard eggs when green turtle eggs are not available. Together, these lines of evidence provide the first full demonstration of how predation can trigger the evolution of parental care in a species derived from a non-caring ancestor.
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Affiliation(s)
- David A Pike
- School of Marine and Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Australia
| | - Rulon W Clark
- Department of Biology, San Diego State University, USA
| | - Andrea Manica
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EJ UK
| | - Hui-Yun Tseng
- Department of Biology, National Museum of Natural Science, Taiwan
| | - Jung-Ya Hsu
- Department of Biology, National Museum of Natural Science, Taiwan
| | - Wen-San Huang
- Department of Biology, National Museum of Natural Science, Taiwan.,Department of Life Sciences, National Chung Hsing University, Taiwan
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22
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Liker A, Freckleton RP, Remeš V, Székely T. Sex differences in parental care: Gametic investment, sexual selection, and social environment. Evolution 2015; 69:2862-75. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.12786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2015] [Revised: 09/08/2015] [Accepted: 09/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- András Liker
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, Alfred Denny Building; University of Sheffield; Western Bank Sheffield S10 2TN United Kingdom
- Department of Limnology; University of Pannonia; PO Box 158 8201 Veszprém Hungary
| | - Robert P. Freckleton
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, Alfred Denny Building; University of Sheffield; Western Bank Sheffield S10 2TN United Kingdom
| | - Vladimir Remeš
- Department of Zoology and Laboratory of Ornithology; Palacký University; 17. listopadu 50 77146 Olomouc Czech Republic
| | - Tamás Székely
- Biodiversity Laboratory, Department of Biology and Biochemistry; University of Bath; Bath BA2 7AY United Kingdom
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, College of Ecology and Evolution; Sun Yat-sen University; Guangzhou 5102275 China
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23
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Transcriptomes of parents identify parenting strategies and sexual conflict in a subsocial beetle. Nat Commun 2015; 6:8449. [PMID: 26416581 PMCID: PMC4598741 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2015] [Accepted: 08/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Parenting in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides is complex and, unusually, the sex and number of parents that can be present is flexible. Such flexibility is expected to involve specialized behaviour by the two sexes under biparental conditions. Here, we show that offspring fare equally well regardless of the sex or number of parents present. Comparing transcriptomes, we find a largely overlapping set of differentially expressed genes in both uniparental and biparental females and in uniparental males including vitellogenin, associated with reproduction, and takeout, influencing sex-specific mating and feeding behaviour. Gene expression in biparental males is similar to that in non-caring states. Thus, being ‘biparental’ in N. vespilloides describes the family social organization rather than the number of directly parenting individuals. There was no specialization; instead, in biparental families, direct male parental care appears to be limited with female behaviour unchanged. This should lead to strong sexual conflict. The burying beetle shows flexible parenting behaviour. Here, the authors show that offspring fare equally well regardless of the sex or number of parents present and find similar gene expression profiles in uniparental and biparental females and in uniparental males, which suggests no specialization in parenting.
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24
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Griggio M. An experimental test on time constraint and sexual conflict over parental care. Ecol Evol 2015; 5:3622-7. [PMID: 26380691 PMCID: PMC4567866 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2015] [Revised: 06/17/2015] [Accepted: 06/21/2015] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Because parental care is costly, a sexual conflict between parents over parental investment is expected to arise. Parental care behavior is an adaptive decision, involving trade-offs between remating, and consequently desertion of the brood, and continuing parental effort. If the main advantage of desertion is remating, then this will be a time constraint, because the deserting individual will require a certain minimum period of time to breed again in the same breeding season. So, a short breeding season should force certain individuals to desert the first brood to have enough time to successfully complete their second breeding attempt. The rock sparrow, Petronia petronia, is an unusual species in which brood desertion can occur in both sexes and the breeding season is quite short so it is a good species to investigate the role of time constraint on brood desertion. For 3 years, I investigated the brood desertion modality of the rock sparrow. Then, for 2 years, I removed a group of experimental nest boxes during the autumn. Later, I re-installed the experimental nest boxes after the start of the breeding season (2 weeks after the first egg was laid), mimicking a shortening of the breeding season for the (experimental) pairs that used experimental nest boxes. I found that in the experimental pairs, the percentage of deserting individuals was significantly higher than in the control groups, and the deserting individuals were older females. This experiment adds to our knowledge of timing of reproduction effects on individual decisions to desert by showing that a short and delayed breeding season may have different effects on males and females. To my knowledge, this is the first experimental study that demonstrates a direct link between time constraint and brood desertion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Griggio
- Department of Biology, University of Padova Via U. Bassi 58/B, I-35131, Padova, Italy
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25
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Gilbert JDJ, Manica A. The evolution of parental care in insects: A test of current hypotheses. Evolution 2015; 69:1255-70. [PMID: 25825047 PMCID: PMC4529740 DOI: 10.1111/evo.12656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2014] [Accepted: 03/16/2015] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Which sex should care for offspring is a fundamental question in evolution. Invertebrates, and insects in particular, show some of the most diverse kinds of parental care of all animals, but to date there has been no broad comparative study of the evolution of parental care in this group. Here, we test existing hypotheses of insect parental care evolution using a literature-compiled phylogeny of over 2000 species. To address substantial uncertainty in the insect phylogeny, we use a brute force approach based on multiple random resolutions of uncertain nodes. The main transitions were between no care (the probable ancestral state) and female care. Male care evolved exclusively from no care, supporting models where mating opportunity costs for caring males are reduced—for example, by caring for multiple broods—but rejecting the “enhanced fecundity” hypothesis that male care is favored because it allows females to avoid care costs. Biparental care largely arose by males joining caring females, and was more labile in Holometabola than in Hemimetabola. Insect care evolution most closely resembled amphibian care in general trajectory. Integrating these findings with the wealth of life history and ecological data in insects will allow testing of a rich vein of existing hypotheses.
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Affiliation(s)
- James D J Gilbert
- Department of Evolution, Behaviour and Environment, University of Sussex, Brighton, BN1 9QG, United Kingdom. .,School of Biological, Biomedical and Environmental Science, University of Hull, Hull, HU6 7RX, United Kingdom.
| | - Andrea Manica
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
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26
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Kindsvater HK, Otto SP. The Evolution of Offspring Size across Life-History Stages. Am Nat 2014; 184:543-55. [DOI: 10.1086/678248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
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27
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Parker GA. The sexual cascade and the rise of pre-ejaculatory (Darwinian) sexual selection, sex roles, and sexual conflict. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol 2014; 6:a017509. [PMID: 25147177 DOI: 10.1101/cshperspect.a017509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
After brief historic overviews of sexual selection and sexual conflict, I argue that pre-ejaculatory sexual selection (the form of sexual selection discussed by Darwin) arose at a late stage in an inevitable succession of transitions flowing from the early evolution of syngamy to the evolution of copulation and sex roles. If certain conditions were met, this "sexual cascade" progressed inevitably, if not, sexual strategy remained fixed at a given stage. Prolonged evolutionary history of intense sperm competition/selection under external fertilization preceded the rise of advanced mobility, which generated pre-ejaculatory sexual selection, followed on land by internal fertilization and reduced sperm competition in the form of postcopulatory sexual selection. I develop a prospective model of the early evolution of mobility, which, as Darwin realized, was the catalyst for pre-ejaculatory sexual selection. Stages in the cascade should be regarded as consequential rather than separate phenomena and, as such, invalidate much current opposition to Darwin-Bateman sex roles. Potential for sexual conflict occurs throughout, greatly increasing later in the cascade, reaching its peak under precopulatory sexual selection when sex roles become highly differentiated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Geoff A Parker
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZB, United Kingdom
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28
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Klug H, Bonsall MB. What are the benefits of parental care? The importance of parental effects on developmental rate. Ecol Evol 2014; 4:2330-51. [PMID: 25360271 PMCID: PMC4203283 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2014] [Revised: 03/19/2014] [Accepted: 03/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
The evolution of parental care is beneficial if it facilitates offspring performance traits that are ultimately tied to offspring fitness. While this may seem self-evident, the benefits of parental care have received relatively little theoretical exploration. Here, we develop a theoretical model that elucidates how parental care can affect offspring performance and which aspects of offspring performance (e.g., survival, development) are likely to be influenced by care. We begin by summarizing four general types of parental care benefits. Care can be beneficial if parents (1) increase offspring survival during the stage in which parents and offspring are associated, (2) improve offspring quality in a way that leads to increased offspring survival and/or reproduction in the future when parents are no longer associated with offspring, and/or (3) directly increase offspring reproductive success when parents and offspring remain associated into adulthood. We additionally suggest that parental control over offspring developmental rate might represent a substantial, yet underappreciated, benefit of care. We hypothesize that parents adjust the amount of time offspring spend in life-history stages in response to expected offspring mortality, which in turn might increase overall offspring survival, and ultimately, fitness of parents and offspring. Using a theoretical evolutionary framework, we show that parental control over offspring developmental rate can represent a significant, or even the sole, benefit of care. Considering this benefit influences our general understanding of the evolution of care, as parental control over offspring developmental rate can increase the range of life-history conditions (e.g., egg and juvenile mortalities) under which care can evolve.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hope Klug
- Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga215 Holt Hall, Dept 2653 615 McCallie Aven, Chattanooga, 37403, Tennessee
| | - Michael B Bonsall
- Mathematical Ecology Research Group, Department of Zoology, University of OxfordOxford, OX1 3PS, U.K
- St Peter's CollegeOxford, OX1 2DL, U.K
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29
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30
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Klug H, Bonsall MB, Alonzo SH. Sex differences in life history drive evolutionary transitions among maternal, paternal, and bi-parental care. Ecol Evol 2013; 3:792-806. [PMID: 23610625 PMCID: PMC3631395 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2012] [Revised: 12/27/2012] [Accepted: 01/08/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Evolutionary transitions among maternal, paternal, and bi-parental care have been common in many animal groups. We use a mathematical model to examine the effect of male and female life-history characteristics (stage-specific maturation and mortality) on evolutionary transitions among maternal, paternal, and bi-parental care. When males and females are relatively similar – that is, when females initially invest relatively little into eggs and both sexes have similar mortality and maturation – transitions among different patterns of care are unlikely to be strongly favored. As males and females become more different, transitions are more likely. If females initially invest heavily into eggs and this reduces their expected future reproductive success, transitions to increased maternal care (paternal → maternal, paternal → bi-parental, bi-parental → maternal) are favored. This effect of anisogamy (i.e., the fact that females initially invest more into each individual zygote than males) might help explain the predominance of maternal care in nature and differs from previous work that found no effect of anisogamy on the origin of different sex-specific patterns of care from an ancestral state of no care. When male mortality is high or male egg maturation rate is low, males have reduced future reproductive potential and transitions to increased paternal care (maternal → paternal, bi-parental → paternal, maternal → bi-parental) are favored. Offspring need (i.e., low offspring survival in the absence of care) also plays a role in transitions to paternal care. In general, basic life-history differences between the sexes can drive evolutionary transitions among different sex-specific patterns of care. The finding that simple life-history differences can alone lead to transitions among maternal and paternal care suggests that the effect of inter-sexual life-history differences should be considered as a baseline scenario when attempting to understand how other factors (mate availability, sex differences in the costs of competing for mates) influence the evolution of parental care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hope Klug
- Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences, University of Tennessee-Chattanooga Dept. 2653, 615 McCallie Aven, Chattanooga, TN 37403, USA ; Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Yale University PO Box 208106, 165 Prospect St, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
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