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Carleial R, Pizzari T, Richardson DS, McDonald GC. Disentangling the causes of temporal variation in the opportunity for sexual selection. Nat Commun 2023; 14:1006. [PMID: 36813810 PMCID: PMC9947164 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-36536-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2022] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2023] Open
Abstract
In principle, temporal fluctuations in the potential for sexual selection can be estimated as changes in intrasexual variance in reproductive success (i.e. the opportunity for selection). However, we know little about how opportunity measures vary over time, and the extent to which such dynamics are affected by stochasticity. We use published mating data from multiple species to investigate temporal variation in the opportunity for sexual selection. First, we show that the opportunity for precopulatory sexual selection typically declines over successive days in both sexes and shorter sampling periods lead to substantial overestimates. Second, by utilising randomised null models, we also find that these dynamics are largely explained by an accumulation of random matings, but that intrasexual competition may slow temporal declines. Third, using data from a red junglefowl (Gallus gallus) population, we show that declines in precopulatory measures over a breeding period were mirrored by declines in the opportunity for both postcopulatory and total sexual selection. Collectively, we show that variance-based metrics of selection change rapidly, are highly sensitive to sampling durations, and likely lead to substantial misinterpretation if used as indicators of sexual selection. However, simulations can begin to disentangle stochastic variation from biological mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rômulo Carleial
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK. .,Science Directorate, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, TW9 3AE, UK.
| | - Tommaso Pizzari
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK
| | | | - Grant C McDonald
- Department of Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Budapest, Budapest, 1077, Hungary.
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2
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Harrison LM, Melo GC, Perez DM, Backwell PRY. Why signal if you are not attractive? Courtship synchrony in a fiddler crab. Behav Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arab088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Synchronized male courtship signals are puzzling because males generally compete with each other for females. Male Austruca mjoebergi fiddler crabs wave in synchrony to attract females, but, all else being equal, females have a strong preference for “leader” males that can produce waves before other males (“followers”). So why do followers participate in synchrony? Here, we experimentally investigate three explanations for why followers might wave in synchrony: 1) followers obtain a small proportion of matings, 2) followers are more likely than a leader to attract females if they are positioned closer to her than is the leader, and 3) synchrony functions as a long-distance visual signal that attracts females so there is a net benefit to synchrony for all males. Using robotic male crabs, we found that females show a strong preference for leading males, but followers obtain a “better-than-nothing” proportion of mates. We also showed that closer proximity of a follower to the female did not affect her preference for leaders, although being a leader increased a male’s success when he was further from the female than were rival males. Finally, females were more likely to approach a distant group if there was a leader present, suggesting that followers do benefit from participating in synchrony.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren M Harrison
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, 134 Linnaeus Way, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Gabriela C Melo
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, 25 Rainforest Walk, Clayton, VIC, 3800, Australia
| | - Daniela M Perez
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, 134 Linnaeus Way, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
- Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Caixa Postal 19031, Curitiba, PR, 81531-990, Brazil
| | - Patricia R Y Backwell
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, 134 Linnaeus Way, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
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3
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Dougherty LR. Meta-analysis reveals that animal sexual signalling behaviour is honest and resource based. Nat Ecol Evol 2021; 5:688-699. [PMID: 33723423 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-021-01409-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2020] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Animals often need to signal to attract mates and behavioural signalling may impose substantial energetic and fitness costs to signallers. Consequently, individuals often strategically adjust signalling effort to maximize the fitness payoffs of signalling. An important determinant of these payoffs is individual state, which can influence the resources available to signallers, their likelihood of mating and their motivation to mate. However, empirical studies often find contradictory patterns of state-based signalling behaviour. For example, individuals in poor condition may signal less than those in good condition to conserve resources (ability-based signalling) or signal more to maximize short-term reproductive success (needs-based signalling). To clarify this relationship, I systematically searched for published studies examining animal sexual signalling behaviour in relation to six aspects of individual state: age, mated status, attractiveness, body size, condition and parasite load. Across 228 studies and 147 species, individuals (who were predominantly male) invested more into behavioural signalling when in good condition. Overall, this suggests that animal sexual signalling behaviour is generally honest and ability-based. However, the magnitude of state-dependent plasticity was small and there was a large amount of between-study heterogeneity that remains unexplained.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liam R Dougherty
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behaviour, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.
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4
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McCullough EL, Chou CC, Backwell PRY. Cost of an elaborate trait: a trade-off between attracting females and maintaining a clean ornament. Behav Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/araa072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Many sexually selected ornaments and weapons are elaborations of an animal’s outer body surface, including long feathers, colorful skin, and rigid outgrowths. The time and energy required to keep these traits clean, attractive, and in good condition for signaling may represent an important but understudied cost of bearing a sexually selected trait. Male fiddler crabs possess an enlarged and brightly colored claw that is used both as a weapon to fight with rival males and also as an ornament to court females. Here, we demonstrate that males benefit from grooming because females prefer males with clean claws over dirty claws but also that the time spent grooming detracts from the amount of time available for courting females. Males, therefore, face a temporal trade-off between attracting the attention of females and maintaining a clean claw. Our study provides rare evidence of the importance of grooming for mediating sexual interactions in an invertebrate, indicating that sexual selection has likely shaped the evolution of self-maintenance behaviors across a broad range of taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin L McCullough
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, 46 Sullivans Creek Road, The Australian National University, Acton, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Chun-Chia Chou
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, 46 Sullivans Creek Road, The Australian National University, Acton, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Patricia R Y Backwell
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, 46 Sullivans Creek Road, The Australian National University, Acton, ACT 2601, Australia
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5
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Chou CC, Perez DM, Johns S, Gardner R, Kerr KA, Head ML, McCullough EL, Backwell PRY. Staying cool: the importance of shade availability for tropical ectotherms. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-019-2721-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
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6
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Zeng H, Wee SSE, Painting CJ, Zhang S, Li D. Equivalent effect of UV coloration and vibratory signal on mating success in a jumping spider. Behav Ecol 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ary167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Hua Zeng
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Samantha S E Wee
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Christina J Painting
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag, Auckland Mail Centre, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Shichang Zhang
- Center for Behavioral Ecology & Evolution, State Key Laboratory of Biocatalysis and Enzyme Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Hubei University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Daiqin Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
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Bourdiol J, Chou CC, Perez DM, Backwell PRY. Investigating the role of a mud structure in a fiddler crab: do semidomes have a reproductive function? Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-018-2556-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Ida A, Karino K. Changes in Mate Preferences by Female Guppies: Effects of Male Phenotypes and Female Age. Zoolog Sci 2017; 34:505-512. [PMID: 29219043 DOI: 10.2108/zs170075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
In recent decades, variation in female preferences within a species has attracted considerable attention. However, how female individuals in most species change their mate preferences remain unclear. In this study, we examined the change in mate preferences in female individuals of the guppy, Poecilia reticulata. This was done by exposing naïve, virgin females to two male groups differing in the abundance of ornamented males over a period of seven days. The male-exposure treatment groups consisted of (1) primarily males with large orange spots and (2) primarily males with small orange spots. Following each treatment, we measured female preference for brightly colored males with large orange spots, using a pair of digitally modified male images differing in orange spot patterns. Our results indicated that the patterns of change in mate preferences differed between young and old females. After exposure to primarily males with large orange spots, young females were more attracted to the male images overall and showed a preference for the bright male image. Specifically, young females showed a stronger preference for the bright male image when they had been exposed to male groups in which the among-male difference in orange spot patterns was greater. However, in old females, both male-exposure treatments and order of the treatments affected their mate preferences. These results suggest that social components, i.e., both the abundance of ornamented males and the age structure of females in a population, influence the direction and intensity of sexual selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akiho Ida
- Department of Biology, Tokyo Gakugei University, 4-1-1 Koganei, Tokyo 184-8501, Japan
| | - Kenji Karino
- Department of Biology, Tokyo Gakugei University, 4-1-1 Koganei, Tokyo 184-8501, Japan
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Kopena R, López P, Martín J. Immune challenged male Iberian green lizards may increase the expression of some sexual signals if they have supplementary vitamin E. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-017-2401-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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11
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Using whole-group metabolic rate and behaviour to assess the energetics of courtship in red-sided garter snakes. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.06.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
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12
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Rebar D, Greenfield MD. When do acoustic cues matter? Perceived competition and reproductive plasticity over lifespan in a bushcricket. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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13
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Vega-Trejo R, Backwell PRY. Testing female preferences under more natural conditions: a case study on a fiddler crab. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-017-2314-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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14
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Seasonal Effects on the Population, Morphology and Reproductive Behavior of Narnia femorata (Hemiptera: Coreidae). INSECTS 2017; 8:insects8010013. [PMID: 28106715 PMCID: PMC5371941 DOI: 10.3390/insects8010013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2016] [Revised: 12/21/2016] [Accepted: 01/04/2017] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Many insects are influenced by the phenology of their host plants. In North Central Florida, Narnia femorata (Hemiptera: Coreidae) spends its entire life cycle living and feeding on Opuntia mesacantha ssp. lata. This cactus begins producing flower buds in April that lead to unripe green fruit in June that ripen into red fruit through December. Many morphological and behavioral characteristics of N. femorata are known to be affected by cactus phenology in a controlled laboratory setting, including the degree of sexual dimorphism and mating behavior. Our goal with this study was to determine if similar phenotypic changes of N. femorata occurred over time in the wild, and the extent to which these changes were concordant with phenological changes in its host plant. Further, we investigate the length of the insect mouthparts (beak) over time. Ongoing work has suggested that beak length may change across cohorts of developing insects in response to feeding deep within cactus fruit where seed and pulp depth decrease as the fruit ripens. Our results revealed a drop in cactus fruit abundance between the months of July through October 2015 as cactus fruits turned red and ripened. Simultaneously, the average body size of both males and females of N. femorata declined at two sampled sites. Male hind femora (a sexually-selected weapon) decreased disproportionately in size over time so that males later in the year had relatively smaller hind femora for their body size. The sex-specific patterns of morphological change led to increased sexual-size dimorphism and decreased sexual dimorphism for hind femora later in the year. Further, we found that beak length decreased across cohorts of insects as cactus fruit ripened, suggesting phenotypic plasticity in mouthpart length. Behavioral studies revealed that female readiness to mate increased as the season progressed. In sum, we found pronounced changes in the phenotypes of these insects in the field. Although this study is far from comprehensive, it provides tantalizing patterns that suggest many directions for future research.
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15
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Visual motion processing subserving behavior in crabs. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2016; 41:113-121. [PMID: 27662055 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2016.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2016] [Revised: 08/07/2016] [Accepted: 09/05/2016] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Motion vision originated during the Cambrian explosion more than 500 million years ago, likely triggered by the race for earliest detection between preys and predators. To successfully evade a predator's attack a prey must react quickly and reliably, which imposes a common constrain to the implementation of escape responses among different species. Thus, neural circuits subserving fast escape responses are usually straightforward and contain giant neurons. This review summarizes knowledge about a small group of motion-sensitive giant neurons thought to be central in guiding the escape performance of crabs to visual stimuli. The flexibility of the escape behavior contrasts with the stiffness of the optomotor response, indicating a task-dependent early segregation of visual pathways.
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16
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Hayes CL, Callander S, Booksmythe I, Jennions MD, Backwell PRY. Mate choice and the operational sex ratio: an experimental test with robotic crabs. J Evol Biol 2016; 29:1455-61. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2016] [Revised: 04/12/2016] [Accepted: 04/13/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- C. L. Hayes
- Evolution, Ecology & Genetics; Research School of Biology; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT Australia
| | - S. Callander
- Evolution, Ecology & Genetics; Research School of Biology; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT Australia
| | - I. Booksmythe
- Evolution, Ecology & Genetics; Research School of Biology; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT Australia
| | - M. D. Jennions
- Evolution, Ecology & Genetics; Research School of Biology; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT Australia
| | - P. R. Y. Backwell
- Evolution, Ecology & Genetics; Research School of Biology; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT Australia
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17
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Males adjust their signalling behaviour according to experience of male signals and male–female signal duets. J Evol Biol 2016; 29:766-76. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2015] [Revised: 12/21/2015] [Accepted: 01/05/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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18
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19
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Wacker S, Östlund-Nilsson S, Forsgren E, Newport C, Amundsen T. Mate choice plasticity in a coral reef fish. Behav Ecol 2016. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arw050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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20
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Variable Signals in a Complex World. ADVANCES IN THE STUDY OF BEHAVIOR 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.asb.2016.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
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21
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Abstract
Non-random mating, particularly positive size-assortative mating, is common and can have major evolutionary consequences. The causes of size-assortative mating, however, are rarely examined. Here we explore the possibility of sexual selection, mate availability and mating constraints causing the strong correlation between male and female sizes in the fiddler crabUca mjoebergi. We show that the full size range of males is available to females throughout the mating period, so mate availability is unlikely to cause size-assortative mating in this species. We also show that mechanical constraints do not prevent females from entering the burrows or mating with the full size range of males. We suggest that the strong size assortative mating that we observed throughout the mating cycle is driven by sexual selection. Both males and females prefer large partners. The benefit to mating with large partners needs further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- H.L. Clark
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
| | - P.R.Y. Backwell
- Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia
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22
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Rebar D, Barbosa F, Greenfield MD. Acoustic experience influences male and female pre- and postcopulatory behaviors in a bushcricket. Behav Ecol 2015. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arv171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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23
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Clark HL, Backwell PRY. Temporal and spatial variation in female mating preferences in a fiddler crab. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-015-1990-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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24
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DuVal E, Kapoor J. Causes and consequences of variation in female mate search investment in a lekking bird. Behav Ecol 2015. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arv110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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25
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Hermann CM, Brudermann V, Zimmermann H, Vollmann J, Sefc KM. Female preferences for male traits and territory characteristics in the cichlid fish Tropheus moorii. HYDROBIOLOGIA 2015; 748:61-74. [PMID: 25983339 PMCID: PMC4430825 DOI: 10.1007/s10750-014-1892-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Female mate preferences for male traits and resource characteristics affect trait evolution and diversification. Here, we test the effects of male body traits and territory characteristics on within-population female preferences and on population-assortative mating in the cichlid Tropheus moorii. Within-population preferences of females were independent of male body size, coloration and territory size but were strongly dependent on territory quality and co-varied with male courtship activity. Courtship activity of individual males was contingent on the quality of their assigned territory, and therefore, courtship may not only indicate intrinsic male quality. On the basis of these results we suggest that female preferences for high-quality territories reinforce the outcome of malemale competition and ensure male mating success. Mating preferences of females for males of their own color variant (ascertained in a previous experiment) were not overturned when males of another color variant were presented in a superior territory, indicating that within- and between-population mate preferences of females depend on different cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline M Hermann
- Department of Zoology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Verena Brudermann
- Department of Zoology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Holger Zimmermann
- Department of Zoology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Johann Vollmann
- Division of Plant Breeding, Department of Crop Sciences, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU), Konrad Lorenz Str. 24, 3430 Tulln, Austria
| | - Kristina M Sefc
- Department of Zoology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010 Graz, Austria
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Řežucha R, Reichard M. Strategic exploitation of fluctuating asymmetry in male Endler's guppy courtship displays is modulated by social environment. J Evol Biol 2014; 28:356-67. [PMID: 25491203 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2014] [Accepted: 12/04/2014] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Lateral asymmetry in signalling traits enables males to strategically exploit their best side. In many animals, both body colouration and fluctuating asymmetry are signals of male attractiveness. We demonstrated experimentally that even sexually naïve male Poecilia wingei were able to identify their most attractive side (i.e. that with a higher proportion of carotenoid pigmentation) and use it preferentially during courtship. Notably, males retained their strategic signalling in a male-biased social environment, whereas they ceased to signal strategically in a female-biased environment. The degree of asymmetry in colouration did not affect overall courtship activity. Strategic lateralization in courtship displays was strongest and most repeatable in the male-biased social environment where males competed with rivals for matings. Individual asymmetry in colouration changed considerably over a period of 3 months. This suggests that colouration is a dynamic feature during adulthood and that males are capable of tracking and strategically exploiting their lateral asymmetry in accordance with their social environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Řežucha
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic; Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Brno, Czech Republic
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27
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Kahn AT, Holman L, Backwell PR. Female preferences for timing in a fiddler crab with synchronous courtship waving displays. Anim Behav 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.09.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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28
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Mating success is predicted by the interplay between multiple male and female traits in the small hairy maggot blowfly. Anim Behav 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.09.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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29
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Kerr KA, Christy JH, Joly-Lopez Z, Luque J, Collin R, Guichard F. Reproducing on time when temperature varies: shifts in the timing of courtship by fiddler crabs. PLoS One 2014; 9:e97593. [PMID: 24832079 PMCID: PMC4022618 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0097593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2013] [Accepted: 04/21/2014] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Many species reproduce when conditions are most favorable for the survival of young. Numerous intertidal fish and invertebrates release eggs or larvae during semilunar, large amplitude, nocturnal tides when these early life stages are best able to escape predation by fish that feed near the shore during the day. Remarkably, some species, including the fiddler crabs Uca terpsichores and Uca deichmanni, maintain this timing throughout the year as temperature, and thus the rate of embryonic development, vary. The mechanisms that allow such precision in the timing of the production of young are poorly known. A preliminary study suggested that when temperature decreases, U. terpsichores mate earlier in the tidal amplitude cycle such that larvae are released at the appropriate time. We tested this idea by studying the timing of courtship in U. terpsichores and U. deichmanni as temperature varied annually during two years, at 5 locations that differed in the temperature of the sediment where females incubate their eggs. Uca terpsichores courted earlier at locations where sediment temperature declined seasonally but not where sediment temperature remained elevated throughout the year. In contrast, clear shifts in courtship timing were not observed for U. deichmanni despite variation in sediment temperature. We discuss other mechanisms by which this species may maintain reproductive timing. These two species are likely to be affected differently by changes in the frequency and intensity of cold periods that are expected to accompany climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kecia A. Kerr
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Panama, Panama
- McGill-STRI Neotropical Environment Option (NEO), McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- * E-mail:
| | - John H. Christy
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Panama, Panama
| | - Zoé Joly-Lopez
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Javier Luque
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Panama, Panama
- University of Alberta, Department of Biological Sciences, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Rachel Collin
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Panama, Panama
- McGill-STRI Neotropical Environment Option (NEO), McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Frédéric Guichard
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- McGill-STRI Neotropical Environment Option (NEO), McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
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The effect of social environment on alternative mating tactics in male Endler's guppy, Poecilia wingei. Anim Behav 2014. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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Holman L, Kahn AT, Backwell PRY. Fiddlers on the roof: elevation muddles mate choice in fiddler crabs. Behav Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/art125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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