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Spikes M, Schlupp I. Males can't afford to be choosy: Male reproductive investment does not influence preference for female size in Limia (Poeciliidae). Behav Processes 2021; 183:104315. [PMID: 33417929 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2021.104315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2020] [Revised: 12/21/2020] [Accepted: 01/02/2021] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Reproductive investment was initially thought to be the key selective force behind male mate preference for female characters, like size or ornamentation (i.e., the preference by males for certain females). Yet, evidence of polygynous species, where male reproductive investments are often inexpensive compared to those of females, have also been described to possess male preference. Our study aims to understand how reproductive investment influences the selection of choosy males in polygynous systems using two species of livebearing fishes varying in reproductive investment: Limia perugiae, in which males invest heavily into reproduction, and L. zonata in which males invest minimally into reproduction. We hypothesized that male reproductive investment when combined with fecundity selection will favour the evolution of male mate preference and thereby lead to males that invest heavily into reproduction being choosier than males that invest minimally. When male Limia were exposed to two females simultaneously, one from the small size class and one from the large size class, L. zonata chose large females over small ones, whereas L. perugiae allocated the same amount of time regardless of female size class. Although we fail to find support for our original hypotheses, our study highlights the need for a more thorough examination of non-model species like Limia. We suggest future studies analyse reproductive investment as it interacts with cryptic choice, multiple sensory cues as well as expand comparisons to multiple Limia species, especially those endemic to Cuba, Grand Cayman, and Jamaica.
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Affiliation(s)
- Montrai Spikes
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, United States.
| | - Ingo Schlupp
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, United States.
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2
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Schlupp I. Male mate choice in livebearing fishes: an overview. Curr Zool 2018; 64:393-403. [PMID: 30402080 PMCID: PMC6007348 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoy028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2017] [Accepted: 04/01/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Although the majority of studies on mate choice focus on female mate choice, there is growing recognition of the role of male mate choice too. Male mate choice is tightly linked to 2 other phenomena: female competition for males and ornamentation in females. In the current article, I review the existing literature on this in a group of fishes, Poeciliidae. In this group, male mate choice appears to be based on differences in female quality, especially female size, which is a proxy for fecundity. Some males also have to choose between heterospecific and conspecific females in the unusual mating system of the Amazon molly. In this case, they typically show a preference for conspecific females. Whereas male mate choice is relatively well documented for this family, female ornamentation and female competition are not.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingo Schlupp
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, 730 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK 73019, USA
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3
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Zimmer C, Riesch R, Jourdan J, Bierbach D, Arias-Rodriguez L, Plath M. Female Choice Undermines the Emergence of Strong Sexual Isolation between Locally Adapted Populations of Atlantic Mollies ( Poecilia mexicana). Genes (Basel) 2018; 9:E232. [PMID: 29724050 PMCID: PMC5977172 DOI: 10.3390/genes9050232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2018] [Revised: 04/23/2018] [Accepted: 04/25/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Divergent selection between ecologically dissimilar habitats promotes local adaptation, which can lead to reproductive isolation (RI). Populations in the Poecilia mexicana species complex have independently adapted to toxic hydrogen sulfide and show varying degrees of RI. Here, we examined the variation in the mate choice component of prezygotic RI. Mate choice tests across drainages (with stimulus males from another drainage) suggest that specific features of the males coupled with a general female preference for yellow color patterns explain the observed variation. Analyses of male body coloration identified the intensity of yellow fin coloration as a strong candidate to explain this pattern, and common-garden rearing suggested heritable population differences. Male sexual ornamentation apparently evolved differently across sulfide-adapted populations, for example because of differences in natural counterselection via predation. The ubiquitous preference for yellow color ornaments in poeciliid females likely undermines the emergence of strong RI, as female discrimination in favor of own males becomes weaker when yellow fin coloration in the respective sulfide ecotype increases. Our study illustrates the complexity of the (partly non-parallel) pathways to divergence among replicated ecological gradients. We suggest that future work should identify the genomic loci involved in the pattern reported here, making use of the increasing genomic and transcriptomic datasets available for our study system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Zimmer
- College of Animal Science & Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China.
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Goethe University of Frankfurt, Max-von-Laue-Straße 13, D-60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
| | - Rüdiger Riesch
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour, School of Biological Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, UK.
| | - Jonas Jourdan
- Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, D-63571 Gelnhausen, Germany.
| | - David Bierbach
- Department of Biology and Ecology of Fishes, Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Müggelseedamm 310, D-12587 Berlin, Germany.
| | - Lenin Arias-Rodriguez
- División Académica de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco (UJAT), 86150 Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico.
| | - Martin Plath
- College of Animal Science & Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China.
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China.
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4
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Liu Y, Torres L, Tiersch TR. Quality evaluation of sperm from livebearing fishes: Standardized assessment of sperm bundles (spermatozeugmata) from Xenotoca eiseni (Goodeidae). Theriogenology 2018; 107:50-56. [PMID: 29128701 PMCID: PMC5725256 DOI: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2017.10.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2017] [Revised: 10/25/2017] [Accepted: 10/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Standardized evaluation of sperm quality is essential for research, commercial-scale cryopreservation, and induced spawning. However, standardized methods for evaluation of sperm bundles (spermatozeugmata or spermatophores) have not been established. The purpose of the present study was to use Redtail Splitfin (Xenotoca eiseni) as a model for freshwater livebearing fishes to establish initial standardized methods to collect sperm bundles, and quantitatively and qualitatively evaluate quality-related attributes. No sperm or sperm bundles were able to be collected by stripping. Testes were removed, rinsed, weighed, placed in 50 μL of buffer solution on a glass slide, and crushed gently 3-5 times with angled spade-tip forceps. Sperm bundles were released into the buffer solution and collected with a pipette into 1.5-mL centrifuge tubes. To quantify size and shape, images of bundles were captured with a CCD camera connected to a microscope, and measured with computer software. There was no significant correlation between body wet weight and major bundle axis length (P = 0.6759), minor axis length (P = 0.5658), average axis length (P = 0.5869), aspect ratio (P = 0.7839), and observed area (P = 0.5727). The concentrations of sperm bundles, estimated with the three methods (Makler® counting chamber, a hemocytometer, and direct counting) were significantly different (P < 0.0001). Hemocytometers were suitable for estimation of bundles from X. eiseni. To evaluate activation of sperm, bundles were viewed with a microscope, and classified into one of five phases by evaluating morphology of the bundles and motion of sperm within the bundles as Phase 0 through Phase 4 that represented early through late activation stages. The frequencies and duration of each activation phase were used to evaluate dissociation of sperm bundles and motility capability of sperm within the bundles. Within 180 min of activation, all five phases were observed. Overall, this study for the first time established standardized methods to collect and evaluate quality-related attributes of sperm bundles. These standardized evaluations provide a basis for further modification, standardization, and generalization, which are useful in research on livebearing fishes involving male gametes, such as studies on cryopreservation, artificial insemination, and in development of germplasm repositories for imperiled species including goodeids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Liu
- Aquatic Germplasm and Genetic Resources Center, School of Renewable Natural Resources, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA
| | - Leticia Torres
- Aquatic Germplasm and Genetic Resources Center, School of Renewable Natural Resources, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA
| | - Terrence R Tiersch
- Aquatic Germplasm and Genetic Resources Center, School of Renewable Natural Resources, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA.
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5
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Kim D, Waller J, Aspbury AS, Gabor CR. Mating Preferences of the Gynogenetic Amazon Molly Differ Between Populations Sympatric with Different Host Species. Ethology 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Diana Kim
- Department of Biology; Texas State University; San Marcos TX USA
| | - John Waller
- Department of Biology, Experimental Evolution, Ecology & Behaviour; Lund University; Lund Sweden
| | | | - Caitlin R. Gabor
- Department of Biology; Texas State University; San Marcos TX USA
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6
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Muraco JJ, Aspbury AS, Gabor CR. Does male behavioral type correlate with species recognition and stress? Behav Ecol 2013. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/art106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
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7
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Ciccotto PJ, Gumm JM, Mendelson TC. Male Association Preference for Conspecifics in the Redband Darter,Etheostoma luteovinctum(Teleostei: Percidae) Based on Visual Cues. COPEIA 2013. [DOI: 10.1643/ce-12-056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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8
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Nöbel S, Witte K. Public information influences sperm transfer to females in sailfin molly males. PLoS One 2013; 8:e53865. [PMID: 23342021 PMCID: PMC3547040 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0053865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2012] [Accepted: 12/06/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
In animals, including humans, the social environment can serve as a public information network in which individuals can gather public information about the quality of potential mates by observing conspecifics during sexual interactions. The observing individual itself is also a part of this information network. When recognized by the observed conspecifics as an audience, his/her presence could influence the sexual interaction between those individuals, because the observer might be considered as a potential mate or competitor. One of the most challenging questions in sexual selection to date is how the use of public information in the context of mate choice is linked to the fitness of individuals. Here, we could show that public information influences mate-choice behaviour in sailfin molly males, Poecilia latipinna, and influences the amount of sperm males transfer to a female partner. In the presence of an audience male, males spent less time with the previously preferred, larger of two females and significantly more time with the previously non-preferred, smaller female. When males could physically interact with a female and were faced with an audience male, three audience females or no audience, males transferred significantly more sperm to a female partner in the presence of an audience male than with female audience or no audience and spent less time courting his female partner. This is the first study showing that public information use turns into fitness investment, which is the crucial factor to understand the role of public information in the dynamic processes in sexual selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabine Nöbel
- Section of Biology, Research Group of Ecology and Behavioral Biology, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany.
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9
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RIESCH RÜDIGER, PLATH MARTIN, MAKOWICZ AMBERM, SCHLUPP INGO. Behavioural and life-history regulation in a unisexual/bisexual mating system: does male mate choice affect female reproductive life histories? Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2012.01886.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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10
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The role of androgens in species recognition and sperm production in Atlantic mollies (Poecilia mexicana). Physiol Behav 2012; 105:885-92. [PMID: 22061426 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2011.10.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2011] [Revised: 10/18/2011] [Accepted: 10/20/2011] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Much is known about the role of hormones in the regulation of vertebrate mating behavior, including receptivity, and several components of mate choice. Hormones may modulate reproductive behavior in such a way to increase or decrease the individual's motivation, and therefore hormones may be important in mediating behavior associated with reproductive isolation. The mating complex of the all female gynogenetic Amazon mollies, Poecilia formosa, and their parental species (sailfin mollies, P. latipinna, and Atlantic mollies, P. mexicana) is a model system for studying ultimate mechanisms of species recognition. However, proximate mechanisms, such as variation in hormone levels, and the effect of hormones on sperm production have not been extensively examined. We predict that one or more of the sex steroid hormones in teleost fish (11-ketotestosterone (KT), testosterone (T), and estradiol (E)) will play a role in species recognition (during mate choice and/or sperm priming) for Atlantic mollies (the maternal parental species) that are sympatric with Amazon mollies. We sequentially paired male Atlantic mollies with female conspecifics and Amazon mollies and obtained water-borne hormone samples before and after mating for all fish. We measured circulating KT, T, and E from the water samples. Although we did not find an overall KT response to mating with conspecifics as has been found previously in sailfin mollies, male Atlantic mollies that mated more with conspecific females had lower postmating T levels. Additionally, males attempted to mate more with conspecific females that had lower postmating E levels, but attempted to mate more with Amazon mollies that had higher postmating KT levels. We also examined the effect of KT on sperm priming (a mechanism of premating mate choice), and found that KT levels of male Atlantic mollies prior to mating are correlated with the sperm priming response when males were paired with conspecific females, but this correlation was not found when males were paired with Amazon mollies. Our results indicate that male mating behavior is affecting or responding to both male and female hormones, but that the hormones alone are not playing a role in species recognition. Male Atlantic mollies may not discriminate against Amazon mollies as strongly as male sailfin mollies because Amazon mollies resemble their maternal parental species more than their paternal species.
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11
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Robinson DM, Konkin-Garcia T, Espinedo CM, Gabor CR, Aspbury AS. Seasonal Effects on Female Fecundity and Male Sperm Availability in a Thermally Stable Temperate Population of Sailfin Mollies (Poecilia latipinna). AMERICAN MIDLAND NATURALIST 2011. [DOI: 10.1674/0003-0031-166.2.394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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12
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Examination of boldness traits in sexual and asexual mollies (Poecilia latipinna, P. formosa). Acta Ethol 2011. [DOI: 10.1007/s10211-011-0097-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
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13
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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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14
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Schlupp I. Mate choice and the Amazon molly: how sexuality and unisexuality can coexist. J Hered 2010; 101 Suppl 1:S55-61. [PMID: 20421327 DOI: 10.1093/jhered/esq015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the most complex and important problems in modern evolutionary biology remains to explain the evolution and persistence of sexual reproduction given the costs of sexuality. One way to study the relative strengths and weaknesses of sexuality and asexuality is to study the dynamics of the coexistence of sexual and asexual organisms. An excellent model system for such an approach is the unisexual Amazon molly, Poecilia formosa. This livebearing fish is clonal, but requires sperm to trigger embryogenesis. Amazon mollies need to obtain sperm from males of closely related species. In an effort to understand the apparently paradoxical coexistence of the Amazon molly with its sexual hosts, many theories were tested, but most seem to have little relevance to understanding stability, whereas male mating behavior is potentially very important.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingo Schlupp
- Department of Zoology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA.
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15
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Gabor CR, Grober MS. A potential role of male and female androgen in species recognition in a unisexual-bisexual mating complex. Horm Behav 2010; 57:427-33. [PMID: 20100486 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.01.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2009] [Revised: 01/18/2010] [Accepted: 01/20/2010] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Hormones play a critical role in the regulation of vertebrate mating behavior, including receptivity, and several components of mate choice. However, less is known about the role of these chemical messengers in mediating behavior associated with premating reproductive isolation. The bisexual-unisexual mating complex of sailfin mollies, Poecilia latipinna, and Amazon mollies, Poecilia formosa (sexual parasites of sailfins) has been a model system for studying ultimate mechanisms of species recognition. However proximate mechanisms, such as variation in hormone levels, have not been examined. We paired male sailfin mollies with either female conspecifics or Amazon mollies and obtained water-borne hormone samples before and after mating for all fish. We measured 11-ketotestosterone, testosterone, and estradiol from the water samples. As expected from previous studies, males mated with conspecifics more frequently than with Amazon mollies. 11-Ketotestosterone production by males increased when they mated with female sailfin mollies who themselves also showed elevated production of 11-ketotestosterone. This increase in male and female 11-ketotestosterone levels was not seen when males mated with Amazon mollies. This unique endocrine interaction represents a potential proximate mechanism for species recognition by male sailfin mollies. We found no significant change in testosterone or estradiol under these conditions suggesting that a single hormone mediates bidirectional interactions between males and females during courtship.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin R Gabor
- Texas State University- San Marcos, Department of Biology, San Marcos, TX 78666-4615, USA.
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16
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Males, but not females, contribute to sexual isolation between two sympatric species of Gambusia. Evol Ecol 2009. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-009-9343-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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17
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18
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Heubel KU, Rankin DJ, Kokko H. How to go extinct by mating too much: population consequences of male mate choice and efficiency in a sexual-asexual species complex. OIKOS 2009. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2008.17024.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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19
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Aluja M, Rull J, Pérez-Staples D, Díaz-Fleischer F, Sivinski J. Random mating among Anastrepha ludens (Diptera: Tephritidae) adults of geographically distant and ecologically distinct populations in Mexico. BULLETIN OF ENTOMOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2009; 99:207-214. [PMID: 19063753 DOI: 10.1017/s0007485308006299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
The Mexican fruit fly Anastrepha ludens (Loew) (Diptera: Tephritidae) is a polyphagous pestiferous insect with a geographical range encompassing highly variable environmental conditions. Considering that cryptic species have been recently found among South American representatives of the same taxonomic group as A. ludens, we tested whether or not some populations of A. ludens have evolved assortative mating as an isolating mechanism that maintains intrapopulation genetic differences and behavioral adaptations to local conditions. Males and females stemming from widely separated locations with similar environmental conditions and males and females stemming from populations within individual-flight range, but collected in different hosts (a native and an exotic one), mated randomly amongst themselves when placed in a field cage. Despite the fact that sibling males and females from two distinct populations also mated randomly amongst themselves, siblings engaged in significantly longer copulations than non-siblings, indicating that perhaps adults discriminated mates with similar genetic compositions. Our results have important practical implications as A. ludens is the most devastating pest of citrus in Mexico and Central America, and large-scale releases of sterile flies are used to control it.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Aluja
- Instituto de Ecología, A.C., C.P. 91000 Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico.
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20
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Evans JP. No evidence for sperm priming responses under varying sperm competition risk or intensity in guppies. Naturwissenschaften 2009; 96:771-9. [DOI: 10.1007/s00114-009-0529-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2009] [Revised: 03/10/2009] [Accepted: 03/10/2009] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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21
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Schlupp I. Chapter 5 Behavior of Fishes in the Sexual/Unisexual Mating System of the Amazon Molly (Poecilia formosa). ADVANCES IN THE STUDY OF BEHAVIOR 2009. [DOI: 10.1016/s0065-3454(09)39005-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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22
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Aspbury AS, Espinedo CM, Gabor CR. Lack of species discrimination based on chemical cues by male sailfin mollies, Poecilia latipinna. Evol Ecol 2008. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-008-9291-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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23
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Riesch R, Schlupp I, Plath M. Female sperm limitation in natural populations of a sexual/asexual mating complex (Poecilia latipinna, Poecilia formosa). Biol Lett 2008; 4:266-9. [PMID: 18319207 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2008.0019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In sperm-dependent sexual/asexual mating systems, male mate choice is critical for understanding the mechanisms behind apparent stability observed in natural populations. The gynogenetic Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa) requires sperm from sexual males (e.g. Poecilia latipinna) to trigger embryogenesis, but inheritance is strictly maternal. Consequently, males should try to avoid or reduce the cost of mating with asexuals. We investigated male mate choice by documenting the presence of sperm in natural populations and found that a higher proportion of sexual females had sperm than asexuals. In addition, among those females that had sperm, sexuals had more sperm than asexuals. Our results hint at a role for male mate choice as a stabilizing factor in such systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rüdiger Riesch
- Department of Zoology, University of Oklahoma, 730 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK 73019, USA.
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24
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Heubel KU, Schlupp I. Seasonal plasticity in male mating preferences in sailfin mollies. Behav Ecol 2008. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arn105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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25
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Influence of male harassment and female competition on female feeding behaviour in a sexual–asexual mating complex of mollies (Poecilia mexicana, P. formosa). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2008. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-008-0597-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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26
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Gabor CR, Aspbury AS. Non-repeatable mate choice by male sailfin mollies, Poecilia latipinna, in a unisexual-bisexual mating complex. Behav Ecol 2008. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arn043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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27
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Kokko H, Heubel KU, Rankin DJ. How populations persist when asexuality requires sex: the spatial dynamics of coping with sperm parasites. Proc Biol Sci 2008; 275:817-25. [PMID: 18182369 PMCID: PMC2596895 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2007.1199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2007] [Revised: 10/24/2007] [Accepted: 11/01/2007] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The twofold cost of sex implies that sexual and asexual reproduction do not coexist easily. Asexual forms tend to outcompete sexuals but may eventually suffer higher extinction rates, creating tension between short- and long-term advantages of different reproductive modes. The 'short-sightedness' of asexual reproduction takes a particularly intriguing form in gynogenetic species complexes, in which an asexual species requires sperm from a related sexual host species to trigger embryogenesis. Asexuals are then predicted to outcompete their host, after which neither species can persist. We examine whether spatial structure can explain continued coexistence of the species complex, and assess the evidence based on data on the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa). A modification of the Levins metapopulation model creates two regions of good prospects for coexistence, connected by a region of poorer patch occupancy levels. In the first case, mate discrimination and/or niche differentiation keep local extinction rates low, and most patches contain both species; the other possibility resembles host-parasite dynamics where parasites frequently drive the host locally extinct. Several dynamical features are counterintuitive and relate to the parasitic nature of interactions in the species complex: for example, high local extinction rates of the asexual species can be beneficial for its own persistence. This creates a link from the evolution of sexual reproduction to that of prudent predation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanna Kokko
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, Laboratory of Ecological and Evolutionary Dynamics, University of Helsinki, PO Box 65 (Viikinkaari 1), 00014 Helsinki, Finland.
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Robinson DM, Aspbury AS, Gabor CR. Differential sperm expenditure by male sailfin mollies, Poecilia latipinna, in a unisexual–bisexual species complex and the influence of spermiation during mating. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2007. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-007-0495-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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Schlupp I, Plath M. Male mate choice and sperm allocation in a sexual/asexual mating complex of Poecilia (Poeciliidae, Teleostei). Biol Lett 2007; 1:169-71. [PMID: 17148157 PMCID: PMC1626217 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2005.0306] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Male mate choice is critical for understanding the evolution and maintenance of sexual/asexual mating complexes involving sperm-dependent, gynogenetic species. Amazon mollies (Poecilia formosa) require sperm to trigger embryogenesis, but the males (e.g. Poecilia mexicana) do not contribute genes. Males benefit from mating with Amazon mollies, because such matings make males more attractive to conspecific females, but they might control the cost of such matings by providing less sperm to Amazon mollies. We examined this at the behavioural and sperm levels. P. mexicana males preferred to mate with, and transferred more sperm to conspecific females. However, if males mated with P. formosa, sperm was readily transferred. This underscores the importance of male choice in this system.
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Affiliation(s)
- I Schlupp
- Biozentrum Grindel, Martin-Luther-King Platz 3, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
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Hill SE, Ryan MJ. The role of model female quality in the mate choice copying behaviour of sailfin mollies. Biol Lett 2007; 2:203-5. [PMID: 17148362 PMCID: PMC1618924 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2005.0423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Female mate choice copying is a socially mediated mate choice behaviour, in which a male's attractiveness to females increases if he was previously chosen by another female as a mate. Although copying has been demonstrated in numerous species, little is known about the specific benefits it confers to copying females. Here we demonstrate that the mate choice behaviour of female sailfin mollies (Poecilia latipinna) is influenced by the phenotypic quality of model females with whom males are observed consorting. Test females choosing between two males of similar body length were found to significantly increase time spent with previously non-preferred males after having observed them with a relatively high-quality female. Conversely, females were found to significantly decrease time spent with previously preferred males after having observed them with a relatively low-quality female. Female mate choice copying might be maintained by selection based on the heuristic value it provides females choosing between males whose quality differences are not easily distinguishable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Hill
- University of Texas at Austin, Department of Psychology, 1 University Station A8000, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
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Reinhardt K. Sperm numbers vary between inter- and intra-population matings of the grasshopper Chorthippus parallelus. Biol Lett 2007; 2:239-41. [PMID: 17148372 PMCID: PMC1618906 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2006.0446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Comparing the reproductive output of intra- and inter-population matings is the most common way to assess whether post-mating reproductive isolation is caused by genetic incompatibilities. Such genetic incompatibility can however, only assume that the quantity of the post-mating signals involved does not differ between intra- and inter-population matings. This assumption may not be true because sexual selection predicts reduced mating effort towards low-quality mates and in many circumstances, allopatric partners are low-quality mates. Post-mating efforts may, therefore, be reduced in inter- compared to intra-population matings. Here, I test this crucial assumption by studying variation in one post-mating trait, sperm number, in crosses of two parapatric grasshopper populations. In both populations, males transferred fewer sperm to allopatric than sympatric females. If such plasticity with respect to population is common in other post-mating traits, differences between inter- and intra-population crosses may be more frequently caused by differences in sperm number rather than gamete incompatibility. Additionally, I found that sperm numbers declined less rapidly in the female storage organ of allopatric than sympatric females but its rate differed markedly between populations. This is discussed with respect to female adaptations to male traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Klaus Reinhardt
- University of Sheffield, Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingo Schlupp
- Department of Zoology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma 73019;
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