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Martens BM, Martin OY, Janicke T, Winkler L. No fitness effects of same-sex copulations in male red flour beetles. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e11027. [PMID: 38505178 PMCID: PMC10949009 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.11027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2023] [Revised: 01/22/2024] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 03/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Same-sex sexual behavior occurs in diverse animal taxa, yet its evolutionary maintenance is poorly understood as such behavior seems to be costly and does not directly increase reproductive success. We used male Tribolium castaneum beetles, which frequently engage in same-sex copulations, to test if same-sex sexual behavior influences future male mating behavior and reproductive success of males. Furthermore, we tested whether same-sex sexual behavior has benefits via indirect sperm translocation. We conducted a series of mating trials demonstrating that males exposed to same-sex behavior did not sire less offspring compared to control males that did not engage in same-sex behavior. This suggests that same-sex copulations did not lead to fitness costs in subsequent mating interactions. In addition, we found no evidence that indirect sperm translocation via an intermediate male occurs in T. castaneum. Taken together, these results imply that same-sex sexual behavior in males is associated with no costs in terms of lower mating rate and reduced siring success and does not seem to entail benefits. Moreover, our data conform to the hypothesis that sexual indiscrimination is prevalent in this species, which may explain the relatively high frequency of same-sex sexual behavior in T. castaneum.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Oliver Y. Martin
- Department of Biology & Institute of Integrative Biology (IBZ)ETH ZürichZurichSwitzerland
| | - Tim Janicke
- Applied ZoologyTU DresdenDresdenGermany
- Centre d'Écologie Fonctionnelle et Évolutive, UMR 5175, CNRSUniversité de Montpellier, École Pratique des Hautes ÉtudesMontpellier Cedex 05France
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2
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Strategic adjustment of ejaculate quality in response to variation of the socio-sexual environment. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-021-03032-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
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3
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Šmejkal M, Bartoň D, Brabec M, Sajdlová Z, Souza AT, Moraes KR, Soukalová K, Blabolil P, Vejřík L, Kubečka J. Climbing up the ladder: male reproductive behaviour changes with age in a long-lived fish. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-020-02961-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
High reproductive performance is the key attribute of male fitness, especially due to the high reproductive skew among the males of most animal species. Males of long-lived iteroparous species have opportunities to improve upon their previous reproductive attempts with increasing age. We collected individual-specific reproductive behaviour and age data on a cyprinid fish, the asp (Leuciscus aspius), from 2015 to 2019. We tested whether males changed their performance over time using a unique dataset where individual performance was recorded yearly with passive telemetry. Individual fish behaviour was tracked from one to five reproductive seasons at least a year after the tagging. Fish were scored by measures of quality (first arrival time, number of visits and time spent in the reproductive grounds, and encountered proportion of males to all adult fish). In general, fish improved in the first three metrics with age, suggesting a shift towards behaviours likely to enhance reproductive success as individuals aged. A larger size at tagging was predictive of earlier fish arrival on the spawning ground in subsequent years. Our study therefore demonstrates the importance of age as a factor when considering the potential reproductive success of long-lived fish species.
Significance statement
High reproductive performance is the key attribute of male fitness. Males of long-lived species reproducing multiple times in their life have opportunities to improve upon their previous reproductive performance with increasing age. In this 5-year study, we tracked a large cyprinid fish with telemetry systems during their reproduction. We investigated the age-related behavioural changes in males and demonstrated the improvement of male reproductive timing and length of stay with potential repercussions for male’s reproductive output. We emphasize the importance of old and experienced individuals among the fish population, which are often targeted and selectively removed from the human-managed waters.
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4
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Cattelan S, Vidotto M, Devigili A, Pilastro A, Grapputo A. Differential gene regulation in selected lines for high and low sperm production in male guppies. Mol Reprod Dev 2020; 87:430-441. [PMID: 32100427 DOI: 10.1002/mrd.23332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2019] [Accepted: 02/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
In species where females mate with more than one male during the same reproductive event, males typically increase the number of sperm produced to boost their fertilization share. Sperm is not limitless, however, and theory predicts that their production will come at the cost of other fitness-related traits, such as body growth or immunocompetence, although these evolutionary trade-offs are notoriously difficult to highlight. To this end, we combined artificial selection for sperm production with a transcriptome analysis using Poecilia reticulata, a fish characterized by intense sperm competition in which the number of sperm transferred during mating is the most important predictor of fertilization success, yet sperm production is highly variable among males. We compared the brain and testes transcriptome in male guppies of lines artificially selected for high and low sperm production by identifying pivotal differentially expressed gene sets that may regulate spermatogenesis and immune function in this species. Despite the small differences in single genes' expression, gene set enrichment analysis showed coordinated gene expression differences associated with several pathways differentially regulated in the two selection lines. High sperm production males showed an upregulation of pathways related to immunosuppression and development of spermatozoa indicating a possible immunological cost of sperm production.
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5
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Vrtílek M, Žák J, Blažek R, Polačik M, Cellerino A, Reichard M. Limited scope for reproductive senescence in wild populations of a short-lived fish. Naturwissenschaften 2018; 105:68. [DOI: 10.1007/s00114-018-1594-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2018] [Revised: 11/09/2018] [Accepted: 11/13/2018] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
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6
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Firman RC, Garcia‐Gonzalez F, Simmons LW, André GI. A competitive environment influences sperm production, but not testes tissue composition, in house mice. J Evol Biol 2018; 31:1647-1654. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2018] [Revised: 07/26/2018] [Accepted: 07/28/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Renée C. Firman
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology School of Biological Sciences (M092) The University of Western Australia Crawley WA Australia
| | - Francisco Garcia‐Gonzalez
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology School of Biological Sciences (M092) The University of Western Australia Crawley WA Australia
- Estacion Biológica de Doñana CSIC Sevilla Spain
| | - Leigh W. Simmons
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology School of Biological Sciences (M092) The University of Western Australia Crawley WA Australia
| | - Gonçalo I. André
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology School of Biological Sciences (M092) The University of Western Australia Crawley WA Australia
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7
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Smith C, Spence R, Reichard M. Sperm is a sexual ornament in rose bitterling. J Evol Biol 2018; 31:1610-1622. [PMID: 30066434 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13357] [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] [Received: 05/17/2018] [Revised: 07/14/2018] [Accepted: 07/17/2018] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
In many taxa, odour cues mediate mating decisions. A key question is what these odours comprise, where they are produced, and what they signal. Using rose bitterling, fish that spawn in the gills of freshwater mussels, we investigated the role of sperm cues on female oviposition decisions using individuals of known MHC genotype. Male bitterling frequently released sperm prior to female oviposition and females responded with an increased probability of oviposition and released a greater number of eggs, particularly if males had a dissimilar MHC genotype. These mating preferences by females were shown to be adaptive, with MHC dissimilarity of males and females correlated positively with embryo survival. These results support a role for indirect benefits to rose bitterling mate choice, and we propose that sperm acts as a releaser pheromone in bitterling, functioning as a sexual ornament signalling male quality as a mate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carl Smith
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Brno, Czech Republic.,Department of Ecology and Vertebrate Zoology, University of Łódź, Łódź, Poland.,School of Biology and Bell-Pettigrew Museum of Natural History, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, UK
| | - Rowena Spence
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, UK
| | - Martin Reichard
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Brno, Czech Republic
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8
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André GI, Firman RC, Simmons LW. Phenotypic plasticity in genitalia: baculum shape responds to sperm competition risk in house mice. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:20181086. [PMID: 30051823 PMCID: PMC6053933 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2018] [Accepted: 06/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Males are known to adjust their expenditure on testes growth and sperm production in response to sperm competition risk. Genital morphology can also contribute to competitive fertilization success but whether male genital morphology can respond plastically to the sperm competition environment has received little attention. Here, we exposed male house mice to two different sperm competition environments during their sexual development and quantified phenotypic plasticity in baculum morphology. The sperm competition environment generated plasticity in body growth. Males maturing under sperm competition risk were larger and heavier than males maturing under no sperm competition risk. We used a landmark-based geometric morphometric approach to measure baculum size and shape. Independent of variation in body size, males maintained under risk of sperm competition had a relatively thicker and more distally extended baculum bulb compared with males maintained under no sperm competition risk. Plasticity in baculum shape paralleled evolutionary responses to selection from sperm competition reported in previous studies of house mice. Our findings provide experimental evidence of socially mediated phenotypic plasticity in male genitalia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gonçalo I André
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences (M092), The University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia
| | - Renée C Firman
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences (M092), The University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia
| | - Leigh W Simmons
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences (M092), The University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia
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9
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(Ginny) Greenway E, Balfour VL, Shuker DM. Can females choose to avoid mating failure in the seed bug Lygaeus simulans? Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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10
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Engqvist L, Taborsky M. The evolution of strategic male mating effort in an information transfer framework. J Evol Biol 2017; 30:1143-1152. [PMID: 28374957 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2016] [Revised: 02/13/2017] [Accepted: 03/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Sperm competition theory predicts that males should use cues indicating the risk and intensity of sperm competition to tailor their sperm investment accordingly. Rival males are an important source of social information regarding sperm competition risk. However, revealing such information may not be in the rival males' interest. Here, we use a theoretical approach based on informed and uninformed games to investigate when information transfer about sperm competition risk to competitors is beneficial for a male, and when it is not. The results show that signalling to potential future mates that a female has already mated is beneficial when the signalling male has a sperm competition disadvantage, whereas it is unfavourable when the signaller has an advantage. The reason for this counterintuitive result is that the rival males' optimal response is to reduce sperm investment when the signaller has a disadvantage and, conversely, to increase investment when the signaller has an advantage. Furthermore, we analysed scenarios where males use alternative reproductive tactics. In this situation, signalling the awareness of sperm competition risk rarely pays; instead, it is beneficial to maintain an information advantage. Thus, it may be beneficial for bourgeois males to accept cuckoldry instead of revealing their sperm competition awareness to reproductive parasites. These results provide new insight into the evolution of communication between rivals in the context of sperm competition.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Engqvist
- Department of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - M Taborsky
- Department of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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11
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Phillips A, Reichard M, Smith C. Sex differences in the responses to oviposition site cues by a fish revealed by tests with an artificial host. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.02.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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12
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Schütz D, Tschirren L, Pachler G, Grubbauer P, Taborsky M. Sperm-limited males save ejaculates for future matings when competing with superior rivals. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.12.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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13
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Smith C, Philips A, Reichard M. Cognitive ability is heritable and predicts the success of an alternative mating tactic. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 282:20151046. [PMID: 26041347 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.1046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to attract mates, acquire resources for reproduction, and successfully outcompete rivals for fertilizations may make demands on cognitive traits--the mechanisms by which an animal acquires, processes, stores and acts upon information from its environment. Consequently, cognitive traits potentially undergo sexual selection in some mating systems. We investigated the role of cognitive traits on the reproductive performance of male rose bitterling (Rhodeus ocellatus), a freshwater fish with a complex mating system and alternative mating tactics. We quantified the learning accuracy of males and females in a spatial learning task and scored them for learning accuracy. Males were subsequently allowed to play the roles of a guarder and a sneaker in competitive mating trials, with reproductive success measured using paternity analysis. We detected a significant interaction between male mating role and learning accuracy on reproductive success, with the best-performing males in maze trials showing greater reproductive success in a sneaker role than as a guarder. Using a cross-classified breeding design, learning accuracy was demonstrated to be heritable, with significant additive maternal and paternal effects. Our results imply that male cognitive traits may undergo intra-sexual selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carl Smith
- School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Fife KY16 9TS, UK Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Květná 8, Brno 603 65, Czech Republic
| | - André Philips
- School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Fife KY16 9TS, UK
| | - Martin Reichard
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Květná 8, Brno 603 65, Czech Republic
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14
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Scarponi V, Chowdhury D, Godin JGJ. Male Mating History Influences Female Mate Choice in the Trinidadian Guppy (Poecilia reticulata). Ethology 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12427] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
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15
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Makowicz AM, Schlupp I. Effects of Female-Female Aggression in a Sexual/Unisexual Species Complex. Ethology 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
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16
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Sperm-depleted males influence the reproductive behaviour of conspecifics. Naturwissenschaften 2014; 101:875-82. [DOI: 10.1007/s00114-014-1227-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2014] [Revised: 08/09/2014] [Accepted: 08/11/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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17
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Smith C, Warren M, Rouchet R, Reichard M. The function of multiple ejaculations in bitterling. J Evol Biol 2014; 27:1819-29. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2014] [Revised: 05/04/2014] [Accepted: 05/09/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- C. Smith
- School of Biology; University of St Andrews; St Andrews UK
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology; Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; Brno Czech Republic
| | - M. Warren
- School of Biology; University of St Andrews; St Andrews UK
| | - R. Rouchet
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology; Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; Brno Czech Republic
- Institute of Botany; Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; Brno Czech Republic
| | - M. Reichard
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology; Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; Brno Czech Republic
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18
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Casalini M, Reichard M, Phillips A, Smith C. Male choice of mates and mating resources in the rose bitterling (Rhodeus ocellatus). Behav Ecol 2013. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/art050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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19
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Firman RC, Klemme I, Simmons LW. Strategic adjustments in sperm production within and between two island populations of house mice. Evolution 2013; 67:3061-70. [PMID: 24094355 DOI: 10.1111/evo.12164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2012] [Accepted: 04/18/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Sperm production is physiologically costly. Consequently, males are expected to be prudent in their sperm production, and tailor their expenditure according to prevailing social conditions. Differences in sperm production have been found across island populations of house mice that differ in the level of selection from sperm competition. Here, we determined the extent to which these differences represent phenotypic plasticity and/or population divergence in sperm production. We sourced individuals from two populations at the extreme levels of sperm competition, and raised them under common-garden conditions while manipulating the social experience of developing males. Males from the high-sperm competition population produced more sperm and better quality sperm than did males from the low-sperm competition population. In addition, males reared under a perceived "risk" of sperm competition produced greater numbers of sperm than males reared with "no risk." However, our analyses revealed that phenotypic plasticity in sperm production was greater for individuals from the high-sperm competition population. Our results are thus consistent with both population divergence and phenotypic plasticity in sperm production, and suggest that population level of sperm competition might affect the degree of adaptive plasticity in sperm production in response to sperm competition risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renée C Firman
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Animal Biology (M092), University of Western Australia, Nedlands, 6009, Australia.
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20
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Abstract
Sperm competition occurs when the spermatozoa of one male coincide with those of another to fertilise the same eggs. In some taxa males perform multiple ejaculations, which may function in sperm competition or in maintaining a baseline density of spermatozoa in the female reproductive tract to ensure fertilisation, a process that has been termed ‘topping up’. We investigated multiple ejaculations in the European bitterling (Rhodeus amarus), a freshwater fish that oviposits in freshwater mussels. We quantified spermatozoa in the mussel mantle cavity following ejaculation, and measured sperm motility parameters of males adopting different mating tactics. Following ejaculation spermatozoa density in the mussel increased linearly, peaked after 30 s, and then declined exponentially. Spermatozoa motility parameters did not differ between male mating tactics. We parameterised a model of sperm competition forR. amarus, which accurately predicted male fertilisation probability. We discuss these results in the context of multiple ejaculations and male mating tactics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carl Smith
- Department of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Reichard
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Brno, Czech Republic
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21
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Spence R, Reichard M, Smith C. Strategic sperm allocation and a Coolidge effect in an externally fertilizing species. Behav Ecol 2012. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ars138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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22
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Reichard M, Smith C, Řežucha R. Personality traits, reproductive behaviour and alternative mating tactics in male European bitterling, Rhodeus amarus. BEHAVIOUR 2012. [DOI: 10.1163/156853912x643908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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23
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Delbarco-Trillo J. Adjustment of sperm allocation under high risk of sperm competition across taxa: a meta-analysis. J Evol Biol 2011; 24:1706-14. [PMID: 21569157 DOI: 10.1111/j.1420-9101.2011.02293.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Sperm competition theory predicts that under high risk of sperm competition, males will increase the number of sperm that they allocate to a female. This prediction has been supported by some experimental studies but not by others. Here, I conducted a meta-analysis to determine whether the increase in sperm allocation under high risk of sperm competition is a generalized response across taxa. I collected data from 39 studies and 37 species. Across taxa, males under a high risk of sperm competition respond by increasing their sperm allocation (mean effect size=0.32). Number of offspring did not explain a significant portion of the variation in effect sizes. A traditional meta-analysis (i.e. without phylogenetic information) described the variation among effect sizes better than a meta-analysis that incorporates the phylogenetic relationships among species, suggesting that the increase in sperm allocation under high risk of sperm competition is similarly prevalent across taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Delbarco-Trillo
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
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24
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PATEMAN-JONES CHRISTOPHER, RASOTTO MARIABERICA, REICHARD MARTIN, LIAO CAIPING, LIU HUANZHANG, ZIĘBA GRZEGORZ, SMITH CARL. Variation in male reproductive traits among three bitterling fishes (Acheilognathinae: Cyprinidae) in relation to the mating system. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2011.01648.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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25
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Kelly CD, Jennions MD. Sexual selection and sperm quantity: meta-analyses of strategic ejaculation. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2011; 86:863-84. [PMID: 21414127 DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-185x.2011.00175.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 214] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Clint D Kelly
- Department of Ecology, Evolution & Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, USA.
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26
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Michalik P, Rittschof CC. A comparative analysis of the morphology and evolution of permanent sperm depletion in spiders. PLoS One 2011; 6:e16014. [PMID: 21264312 PMCID: PMC3019211 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0016014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2010] [Accepted: 12/02/2010] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Once thought to be energetically cheap and easy to produce, empirical work has shown that sperm is a costly and limited resource for males. In some spider species, there is behavioral evidence that sperm are permanently depleted after a single mating. This extreme degree of mating investment appears to co-occur with other reproductive strategies common to spiders, e.g. genital mutilation and sexual cannibalism. Here we corroborate that sperm depletion in the golden orb-web spider Nephila clavipes is permanent by uncovering its mechanistic basis using light and electron microscopy. In addition, we use a phylogeny-based statistical analysis to test the evolutionary relationships between permanent sperm depletion (PSD) and other reproductive strategies in spiders. Male testes do not produce sperm during adulthood, which is unusual in spiders. Instead, spermatogenesis is nearly synchronous and ends before the maturation molt. Testis size decreases as males approach their maturation molt and reaches its lowest point after sperm is transferred into the male copulatory organs (pedipalps). As a consequence, the amount of sperm available to males for mating is limited to the sperm contained in the pedipalps, and once it is used, males lose their ability to fertilize eggs. Our data suggest that PSD has evolved independently at least three times within web-building spiders and is significantly correlated with the evolution of other mating strategies that limit males to monogamy, including genital mutilation and sexual cannibalism. We conclude that PSD may be an energy-saving adaptation in species where males are limited to monogamy. This could be particularly important in web-building spiders where extreme sexual size dimorphism results in large, sedentary females and small, searching males who rarely feed as adults and are vulnerable to starvation. Future work will explore possible energetic benefits and the evolutionary lability of PSD relative to other mate-limiting reproductive behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Michalik
- Zoologisches Institut und Museum, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-Universität, Greifswald, Germany.
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27
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Agbali M, Reichard M, Bryjová A, Bryja J, Smith C. MATE CHOICE FOR NONADDITIVE GENETIC BENEFITS CORRELATE WITH MHC DISSIMILARITY IN THE ROSE BITTERLING (RHODEUS OCELLATUS). Evolution 2010; 64:1683-96. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2010.00961.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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