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Pärssinen V, Simmons LW, Kvarnemo C. Mating competition among females: testing the distinction between natural and sexual selection in an insect. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:240191. [PMID: 38586425 PMCID: PMC10999239 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.240191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
In species where females compete for mates, the male often provides the female with resources in addition to gametes. A recently suggested definition of sexual selection proposed that if females only benefit from additional resources that come with each mating and not additional gametes, female intrasexual competition for mating opportunities would result in natural selection rather than sexual selection. The nuptial gift-giving bushcricket Kawanaphila nartee has dynamic sex roles and has been a textbook example of sexual selection acting on females via mating competition. We investigated whether females of this species gain fitness benefits from nuptial gifts, additional ejaculates or both by controlling the number of matings and whether the female was allowed to consume the nutritious gift (spermatophylax) at mating. We found that egg production per day of life increased with the number of additional matings, both with and without spermatophylax consumption, but consuming the spermatophylax had an additional positive effect on the number of eggs. These effects were particularly strong in females with shorter lifespans. We discuss how the recently suggested definition of sexual selection applies to nuptial-feeding insects and conclude that both natural and sexual selections influence mating competition in K. nartee females.
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Affiliation(s)
- Varpu Pärssinen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg40530, Sweden
| | - Leigh W. Simmons
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences (M092), The University of Western Australia, Crawley6009, Australia
| | - Charlotta Kvarnemo
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg40530, Sweden
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2
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Ježová Z, Prokop P, Zvaríková M, Zvarík M. Unraveling the Significance of Draglines: Female Sexual Signalization in the Nursery-Web Spider, Pisaura mirabilis. INSECTS 2023; 14:765. [PMID: 37754733 PMCID: PMC10532251 DOI: 10.3390/insects14090765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Revised: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
Chemical signals used by animals to attract the opposite sex are well known in insects, but heavily understudied in spiders. We investigated the role of chemical signals in female draglines in a gift-giving spider, Pisaura mirabilis, using combined data from behavioral tests and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). We also investigated whether the quality of sexual signalization is influenced by crucial factors, such as female spider ontogeny, nutritional status, and mating status. We found that draglines of adult (versus subadult) and hungry (versus fed) females stimulated male motivation to produce nuptial gift, and highly sexually excited males invested more silk in gift production than less sexually excited males. Unexpectedly, chemical signals of eggsac-carrying females were similarly sexually attractive to draglines of adult females not carrying eggsac. HPLC identified significant chemical differences in female draglines, but these differences did not always correspond to male behavior. The integration of behavioral and chemical approaches is required to better understand animal behavior in future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zuzana Ježová
- Department of Environmental Ecology and Landscape Management, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Ilkovičova 6, 842 15 Bratislava, Slovakia; (Z.J.)
| | - Pavol Prokop
- Department of Environmental Ecology and Landscape Management, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Ilkovičova 6, 842 15 Bratislava, Slovakia; (Z.J.)
- Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská Cesta 9, 845 06 Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Martina Zvaríková
- Department of Environmental Ecology and Landscape Management, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Ilkovičova 6, 842 15 Bratislava, Slovakia; (Z.J.)
| | - Milan Zvarík
- Department of Nuclear Physics and Biophysics, Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics, Comenius University, Mlynská Dolina F1, 842 48 Bratislava, Slovakia;
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3
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Matzke M, Rossi A, Tuni C. Pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection increase offspring quality but impose survival costs to female field crickets. J Evol Biol 2023; 36:296-308. [PMID: 36484616 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.14132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2022] [Revised: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 11/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Whether sexual selection increases or decreases fitness is under ongoing debate. Sexual selection operates before and after mating. Yet, the effects of each episode of selection on individual reproductive success remain largely unexplored. We ask how disentangled pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection contribute to fitness of field crickets Gryllus bimaculatus. Treatments allowed exclusively for (i) pre-copulatory selection, with males fighting and courting one female, and the resulting pair breeding monogamously, (ii) post-copulatory selection, with females mating consecutively to multiple males and (iii) relaxed selection, with enforced pair monogamy. While standardizing the number of matings, we estimated a number of fitness traits across treatments and show that females experiencing sexual selection were more likely to reproduce, their offspring hatched sooner, developed faster and had higher body mass at adulthood, but females suffered survival costs. Interestingly, we found no differences in fitness of females or their offspring from pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection treatments. Our findings highlight the potential for sexual selection in enhancing indirect female fitness while concurrently imposing direct survival costs. By potentially outweighing these costs, increased offspring quality could lead to beneficial population-level consequences of sexual selection.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Aurora Rossi
- Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
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4
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Angelakakis A, Turetzek N, Tuni C. Female mating rates and their fitness consequences in the common house spider Parasteatoda tepidariorum. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9678. [PMID: 36590337 PMCID: PMC9797470 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9678] [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: 05/27/2022] [Revised: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Mating systems, with varying female mating rates occurring with the same partner (monandry) or with multiple mates (polyandry), can have far reaching consequences for population viability and the rate of gene flow. Here, we investigate the mating rates of the common house spider Parasteatoda tepidariorum (Theridiidae), an emerging model for genetic studies, with yet undescribed reproductive behavior. It is hypothesized that spiders belonging to this family have low re-mating rates. We paired females twice with the same male (monandry) or with different males (polyandry), and recorded behaviors, mating success and fitness resulting from single- and double-matings, either monandrous or polyandrous. Despite the study being explorative in nature, we predict successful matings to be more frequent during first encounters, to reduce female risk of remaining unmated. For re-mating to be adaptive, we expect higher fitness of double-mated females, and polyandrous females to experience highest mating success and fitness if reproductive gains are achieved by mating with multiple partners. We show that the majority of the females did not mate, and those that did mated only once, not necessarily on their first encounter. The likelihood of re-mating did not differ between monandrous and polyandrous encounters and female mating experience (mated once, twice monandrous, twice polyandrous) did not affect fitness, indicated by similar offspring production. Female twanging of the web leads to successful matings suggesting female behavioral receptivity. Cannibalism rates were low and mostly occurred pre-copulatory. We discuss how the species ecology, with potentially high mating costs for males and limited female receptivity, may shape a mating system with low mating rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Apostolos Angelakakis
- Behavioral Ecology, Faculty of BiologyLudwig‐Maximilians‐University MunichPlanegg‐MartinsriedGermany
- Evolutionary Ecology, Faculty of BiologyLudwig‐Maximilians‐University MunichPlanegg‐MartinsriedGermany
| | - Natascha Turetzek
- Evolutionary Ecology, Faculty of BiologyLudwig‐Maximilians‐University MunichPlanegg‐MartinsriedGermany
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Behavioral Ecology, Faculty of BiologyLudwig‐Maximilians‐University MunichPlanegg‐MartinsriedGermany
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5
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Matzke M, Toft S, Bechsgaard J, Pold Vilstrup A, Uhl G, Künzel S, Tuni C, Bilde T. Sperm competition intensity affects sperm precedence patterns in a polyandrous gift-giving spider. Mol Ecol 2022; 31:2435-2452. [PMID: 35178803 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2021] [Revised: 01/26/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Sperm competition drives traits that enhance fertilization success. The amount of sperm transferred relative to competitors is key for attaining paternity. Female reproductive morphology and male mating order may also influence fertilization, however the outcome for sperm precedence under intense sperm competition remains poorly understood. In the polyandrous spider Pisaura mirabilis, males offer nuptial gifts which prolong copulation and increase sperm transfer, factors proposed to alter sperm precedence patterns under strong sperm competition. First, we assessed the degree of female polyandry by genotyping wild broods. A conservative analysis identified up to 4 sires, with a mean of 2 sires per brood, consistent with an optimal mating female rate. Then we asked whether intense sperm competition shifts sperm precedence patterns from first male priority, as expected from female morphology, to last male advantage. We varied sexual selection intensity experimentally and determined competitive fertilization outcome by genotyping broods. In double matings, one male monopolised paternity regardless of mating order. A mating order effect with first male priority was revealed when females were mated to 4 males, however this effect disappeared when females were mated to 6 males, likely due to increased sperm mixing. The proportion of males that successfully sired offspring drastically decreased with the number of competitors. Longer copulations translated into higher paternity shares independently of mating order, reinforcing the advantage of traits that prolong copulation duration under intense competition, such as the nuptial gift. Sperm competition intensity enhances the impact of competitive sexual traits and imposes multiple effects on paternity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Magdalena Matzke
- Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Søren Toft
- Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Jesper Bechsgaard
- Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Astrid Pold Vilstrup
- Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark.,Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Aarhus University, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Gabriele Uhl
- General and Systematic Zoology, University of Greifswald, Zoological Institute and Museum, Loitzer Straße 26, D-17489, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Sven Künzel
- Department for Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, August-Thienemann Straße 2, D-24306, Plön, Germany
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Trine Bilde
- Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
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6
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Evolution of male nuptial gift and female remating: A quantitative genetic model. J Theor Biol 2022; 533:110939. [PMID: 34688613 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2021.110939] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2021] [Revised: 10/10/2021] [Accepted: 10/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
In some species of separate sexes, males present a nuptial gift containing nutrition to their mate. Producing a large nuptial gift is a considerable cost to the male, but it may improve his siring success if the female reduces the likelihood to accept another male after receiving a large gift. The female may receive a direct benefit by accepting another male who provides an additional nuptial gift. Additionally, the female may receive an indirect fitness benefit via laying offspring sired by a male who is able to produce a large nuptial gift. We formalized the multivariate quantitative genetics model describing the coevolution of the size of nuptial gift produced by the male (x) and the female's propensity to engage in remating (y). We analyzed the model focusing two cases: [1] remating females receive no indirect fitness benefit, but enjoy direct benefit of nutrition; and [2] remating females receive no direct benefit, but enjoy an indirect fitness benefit due to a positive genetic correlation of x and y, which is possible if random mutations tend to make males produce small nuptial gifts. In both cases, the stable evolutionary equilibrium with neither nuptial gift nor remating (x-=y-=0) always exists. Another stable equilibrium may exist in which male produces nuptial gifts (x->0) and female engage in multiple mating (y->0). We discussed implications to the sexual conflict.
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7
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Heimerl D, Dudová P, Wacker K, Schenkel E, Despréaux G, Tuni C. Adult sex ratio and male body condition affect alternative reproductive tactics in a spider. Behav Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arab138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Biases in adult sex ratios can alter the intensity of sexual selection by enhancing competition for mates. Under intense competition males increase their investment in behaviors to outcompete rivals (e.g., fighting). Yet, given that in male-biased environments mating opportunities are rare males may alternatively reduce costly courtship and/or adopt alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs). Males of the spider Pisaura mirabilis adopt different mating tactics, offering females genuine nuptial gifts (prey), nutritionally worthless gifts (prey leftovers), or no gifts. To test whether behavioral shifts between gift tactics are triggered by changes in the competitive environment, we established replicate spider populations under natural conditions at varying adult sex ratios (male-biased, female-biased and equal) and sampled gift tactics repeatedly over time. We additionally explored how male individual traits, such as body size and condition, affect the expression of ARTs. In male-biased populations males produced more gifts but of low quality, suggesting competition to trigger increased mating effort to ensure mate acquisition and fertilizations, but through a worthless gift tactic. Production of gifts and of genuine gifts was favored by high body condition, pointing to energetic limitations as being central for male reproductive capacity. We hence highlight two co-existing mechanisms at play to explain ARTs in this system, the competitive social environment where expression of gift tactics is based on optimal-decision making to overcome competition, and a conditional strategy linked to the individual’s energetic state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Heimerl
- Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Pavla Dudová
- Czech Academy of Sciences, Biology Centre, Institute of Entomology, Branišovská 1160/31, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, Branišovská 1645/31A, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Karoline Wacker
- Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Elisa Schenkel
- Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Garance Despréaux
- Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2 82152 Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
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8
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Beyer M, Mangliers J, Tuni C. Silk-borne chemicals of spider nuptial gifts elicit female gift acceptance. Biol Lett 2021; 17:20210386. [PMID: 34727704 PMCID: PMC8563295 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2021.0386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 10/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Chemical communication is important in a reproductive context for conveying information used for mate recognition and/or assessment during courtship and mating. Spider silk is a common vehicle for chemical communication between the sexes. However, despite being well described in females, male silk-borne chemicals remain largely unexplored. Males of the spider Pisaura mirabilis silk-wrap prey (i.e. nuptial gifts) that is offered to females during courtship and eaten by the female during mating. Interestingly, rejected males often add more silk to their gift which leads to successful mating, suggesting the presence of silk-borne chemicals that facilitate female gift acceptance. To test this hypothesis, we offered females standardized gifts covered with male silk that was either washed in solvents or unwashed, respectively, to remove or not any chemically active components. We scored female gift acceptance, and as expected in the case chemicals that mediate female mating behaviour are present in male silk, females were more likely to accept gifts covered with unwashed silk. Our findings suggest that silk-borne chemicals of nuptial gifts prime female responses, potentially signalling male quality or manipulating females into mating beyond their interests given the occurrence of male cheating behaviour via nutritionally worthless gifts in this system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Beyer
- Department of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2, Planegg-Martinsried 82152, Germany
| | - Julia Mangliers
- Department of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2, Planegg-Martinsried 82152, Germany
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Department of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Großhaderner Str. 2, Planegg-Martinsried 82152, Germany
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9
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Eberhard MJB, Möller TA, Uhl G. Dragline silk reveals female developmental stage and mediates male vibratory courtship in the nuptial gift‐giving spider
Pisaura mirabilis. Ethology 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.13124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Monika J. B. Eberhard
- General Zoology and Zoological Systematics Zoological Institute and Museum University of Greifswald Greifswald Germany
| | - Timon A. Möller
- General Zoology and Zoological Systematics Zoological Institute and Museum University of Greifswald Greifswald Germany
| | - Gabriele Uhl
- General Zoology and Zoological Systematics Zoological Institute and Museum University of Greifswald Greifswald Germany
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10
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Tuni C, Schneider J, Uhl G, Herberstein ME. Sperm competition when transfer is dangerous. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 375:20200073. [PMID: 33070729 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Aggressive and cannibalistic female spiders can impose strong selection on male mating and fertilization strategies. Furthermore, the distinctive reproductive morphology of spiders is predicted to influence the outcome of sperm competition. Polyandry is common in spiders, leading to defensive male strategies that include guarding, plugging and self-sacrifice. Paternity patterns are highly variable and unlikely to be determined solely by mating order, but rather by relative copulation duration, deployment of plugs and cryptic female choice. The ability to strategically allocate sperm is limited, either by the need to refill pedipalps periodically or owing to permanent sperm depletion after mating. Further insights now rely on unravelling several proximate mechanisms such as the process of sperm activation and the role of seminal fluids. This article is part of the theme issue 'Fifty years of sperm competition'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Tuni
- Department of Biology II, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Munich, Germany
| | - Jutta Schneider
- Institute of Zoology, University of Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King Platz 3, Hamburg 20146 Germany
| | - Gabriele Uhl
- General and Systematic Zoology, University of Greifswald, Bachstrasse 11/13, Greifswald 17489, Germany
| | - Marie E Herberstein
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, Sydney NSW 2109, Australia
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11
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Abstract
Abstract
Females mate multiply despite numerous costs. It is well established that polyandry can result in sexual conflict, favoring male adaptations that prevent sperm competition often to the disadvantage of the female. Such adaptations are extreme in spiders with one-shot genitalia of which parts break off and act as mating plugs, rendering them dysfunctional. In the spider Argiope bruennichi, mating plugs effectively prevent further males from inseminating and males that inseminate and plug both genital openings of a female secure exclusive paternity. However, females frequently prevent monopolization by attacking and cannibalizing males during their first copulation, leaving their second spermatheca free for another male. Here, we test whether the high frequency of sexual cannibalism evolved as a female adaptation to resist monopolization and secure indirect benefits of polyandry. To standardize conditions, we double-mated females either with the same or two different males and prevented male consumption. Using a split-brood design, we raised offspring to maturity under poor and rich food conditions and measured their survival, duration of juvenile phase, and adult body mass. Under low food, daughters of polyandrous mothers matured later but slightly heavier than daughters of monandrous females. Since the adaptive value of this combination is unclear, these findings lend no conclusive support to our hypothesis. We discuss the stereotypic nature of the female attack in the context of antagonistic co-evolution considering previous studies that found modest direct benefits of cannibalism as well as a potential for non-additive benefits.
Significance statement
Sexual conflict is extreme in spiders where sexual cannibalism impairs male mating rates. Males of the spider Argiope bruennichi possess one-shot genitalia which they break off to plug female genital openings. They gain exclusive paternity with a female if two copulations are achieved and both genital openings plugged. Females, however, stereotypically attack every male at the onset of copulation, limiting most males to single copulation but retaining the option to secure potential benefits of polyandry. Previous studies revealed weak direct and non-additive indirect benefits of multiple mating. In this study, we tested for the presence of additive genetic benefits but again found only inconclusive evidence for adaptive differences in offspring quality between monandrous and polyandrous females. All results combined, we here speculate that the stereotypic female attack might be a ghost of a past antagonistic co-evolution.
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12
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Prokop P. Male preferences for nuptial gifts and gift weight loss amongst the nursery web spider, Pisaura mirabilis. J ETHOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s10164-019-00612-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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13
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Magris M, Tuni C. Enough for all: no mating effort adjustment to varying mate availability in a gift-giving spider. Behav Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arz102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Males of a gift-giving spider do not modify their allocation to reproduction when mating opportunities vary. Due to their costly courtship via provision of food gifts to females, with high female availability males should reduce their reproductive investment per partner to avoid exhausting their energetic budget too early. Our findings suggest instead that males may be able to enlarge their total reproductive budget, possibly drawing resources from their food gifts by partially feeding on them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Magris
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
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14
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Albo MJ, Franco-Trecu V, Wojciechowski FJ, Toft S, Bilde T. Maintenance of deceptive gifts in a natural spider population: ecological and demographic factors. Behav Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arz040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractAlternative mating tactics are expected to occur predominantly when mate competition is intense, resources are in short supply, or as a result of asymmetric power relationships between individuals. Males of the nuptial gift-giving spider Pisaura mirabilis use a prevailing tactic of offering a nutritive gift (insect prey) and a deceptive tactic of offering a worthless gift (consumed prey) to prospective mates. If the male’s tactic depends on precopulatory male–male competition, worthless gifts should occur primarily late in the season, when the operational sex ratio (OSR) becomes male-biased. If it depends on resource availability and/or postcopulatory sexual selection (sperm competition), worthless gifts should occur mostly early in the mating season, when prey availability is low and most females are unmated (i.e., postcopulatory sexual selection is weak). Nuptial gift construction correlated positively with prey availability and negatively with OSR, suggesting that males increase reproductive effort when resource and mate availability increase. We did not find evidence for body condition affecting male tactic use. Male size had a marked effect on the reproductive tactic employed. Males that matured early in the season were very small and employed mostly the nutritive gift tactic during their short life. Among the males that matured later and persisted through the season, relatively small males employed the worthless gift tactic whereas large males employed the nutritive gift tactic. We suggest that the existence of 2 distinct life-history strategies among males (early small and late large size) interacts with environmental and demographic conditions to maintain the deceptive tactic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria J Albo
- Departamento de Ecología y Biología Evolutiva, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Avenida Italia, Montevideo, Uruguay
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Valentina Franco-Trecu
- Departamento de Ecología y Evolución, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Iguá, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Filip J Wojciechowski
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Department of Human Evolutionary Ecology, Adam Mickiewicz University, ul. Umultowska Poznań, Poland
| | - Søren Toft
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Trine Bilde
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade, Aarhus C, Denmark
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15
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Santostefano F, Galarza JA, Mappes J. Testing the direct and genetic benefit hypotheses of polyandry in the wood tiger moth. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-018-2525-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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16
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Ghislandi PG, Pekár S, Matzke M, Schulte-Döinghaus S, Bilde T, Tuni C. Resource availability, mating opportunity and sexual selection intensity influence the expression of male alternative reproductive tactics. J Evol Biol 2018; 31:1035-1046. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2017] [Revised: 03/12/2018] [Accepted: 04/09/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Stano Pekár
- Department of Botany and Zoology; Masaryk University; Brno Czech Republic
| | - Magdalena Matzke
- Department of Biology; Ludwig-Maximilians University; Munich Germany
| | | | - Trine Bilde
- Department of Bioscience; Aarhus University; Aarhus Denmark
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Department of Biology; Ludwig-Maximilians University; Munich Germany
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17
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Beyer M, Czaczkes TJ, Tuni C. Does silk mediate chemical communication between the sexes in a nuptial feeding spider? Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-018-2454-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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Meade L, Harley E, Cotton A, Howie JM, Pomiankowski A, Fowler K. Variation in the benefits of multiple mating on female fertility in wild stalk-eyed flies. Ecol Evol 2017; 7:10103-10115. [PMID: 29238540 PMCID: PMC5723596 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3486] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2017] [Accepted: 09/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Polyandry, female mating with multiple males, is widespread across many taxa and almost ubiquitous in insects. This conflicts with the traditional idea that females are constrained by their comparatively large investment in each offspring, and so should only need to mate once or a few times. Females may need to mate multiply to gain sufficient sperm supplies to maintain their fertility, especially in species in which male promiscuity results in division of their ejaculate among many females. Here, we take a novel approach, utilizing wild-caught individuals to explore how natural variation among females and males influences fertility gains for females. We studied this in the Malaysian stalk-eyed fly species Teleopsis dalmanni. After an additional mating, females benefit from greatly increased fertility (proportion fertile eggs). Gains from multiple mating are not uniform across females; they are greatest when females have high fecundity or low fertility. Fertility gains also vary spatially, as we find an additional strong effect of the stream from which females were collected. Responses were unaffected by male mating history (males kept with females or in male-only groups). Recent male mating may be of lesser importance because males in many species, including T. dalmanni, partition their ejaculate to maintain their fertility over many matings. This study highlights the importance of complementing laboratory studies with data on wild-caught populations, where there is considerable heterogeneity between individuals. Future research should focus on environmental, demographic and genetic factors that are likely to significantly influence variation in individual female fecundity and fertility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara Meade
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and EnvironmentUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Elisabeth Harley
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and EnvironmentUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Alison Cotton
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and EnvironmentUniversity College LondonLondonUK
- CoMPLEXUniversity College LondonLondonUK
- Bristol Zoological SocietyBristol Zoo GardensCliftonBristolUK
| | - James M. Howie
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and EnvironmentUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Andrew Pomiankowski
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and EnvironmentUniversity College LondonLondonUK
- CoMPLEXUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | - Kevin Fowler
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and EnvironmentUniversity College LondonLondonUK
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Prokop P, Semelbauer M. Biometrical and behavioural associations with offering nuptial gifts by males in the spider Pisaura mirabilis. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.05.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Albo MJ, Macías-Hernández N, Bilde T, Toft S. Mutual benefit from exploitation of female foraging motivation may account for the early evolution of gifts in spiders. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.05.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Pandulli-Alonso I, Quaglia A, Albo MJ. Females of a gift-giving spider do not trade sex for food gifts: a consequence of male deception? BMC Evol Biol 2017; 17:112. [PMID: 28506206 PMCID: PMC5433081 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-017-0953-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2017] [Accepted: 04/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Polyandry is commonly maintained by direct benefits in gift-giving species, so females may remate as an adaptive foraging strategy. However, the assumption of a direct benefit fades in mating systems where male gift-giving behaviour has evolved from offering nutritive to worthless (non-nutritive) items. In the spider Paratrechalea ornata, 70% of gifts in nature are worthless. We therefore predicted female receptivity to be independent of hunger in this species. We exposed poorly-fed and well-fed females to multiple males offering nutritive gifts and well-fed females to males offering worthless gifts. Results Though the treatments strongly affected fecundity, females of all groups had similar number of matings. This confirms that female receptivity is independent of their nutritional state, i.e. polyandry does not prevail as a foraging strategy. Conclusions In the spider Pisaura mirabilis, in which the majority (62%) of gifts in nature are nutritive, female receptivity depends on hunger. We therefore propose that the dependence of female receptivity on hunger state may have evolved in species with predominantly nutritive gifts but is absent in species with predominantly worthless gifts. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-017-0953-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Pandulli-Alonso
- Laboratorio de Etología, Ecología y Evolución, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Avenida Italia, 3318, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Agustín Quaglia
- Laboratorio de Arbovirus-Instituto de Virología "Dr. J. M. Vanella"-Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Maria J Albo
- Laboratorio de Etología, Ecología y Evolución, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Avenida Italia, 3318, Montevideo, Uruguay.
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22
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Tuni C, Weber S, Bilde T, Uhl G. Male spiders reduce pre- and postmating sexual investment in response to sperm competition risk. Behav Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arx061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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Worthington AM, Kelly CD. Direct costs and benefits of multiple mating: Are high female mating rates due to ejaculate replenishment? Behav Processes 2016; 124:115-22. [DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2015.12.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2015] [Accepted: 12/22/2015] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
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Mestre L, Rodríguez-Teijeiro JD, Tuni C. Females of the Cellar Spider Discriminate Against Previous Mates. Ethology 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Laia Mestre
- Department of Animal Biology; University of Barcelona; Barcelona Spain
| | | | - Cristina Tuni
- Department Biology II; Ludwig Maximilians University Munich; Planegg-Martinsried Germany
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Toft S, Albo MJ. Optimal numbers of matings: the conditional balance between benefits and costs of mating for females of a nuptial gift-giving spider. J Evol Biol 2015; 28:457-67. [PMID: 25580948 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2014] [Revised: 01/03/2015] [Accepted: 01/05/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
In species where females gain a nutritious nuptial gift during mating, the balance between benefits and costs of mating may depend on access to food. This means that there is not one optimal number of matings for the female but a range of optimal mating numbers. With increasing food availability, the optimal number of matings for a female should vary from the number necessary only for fertilization of her eggs to the number needed also for producing these eggs. In three experimental series, the average number of matings for females of the nuptial gift-giving spider Pisaura mirabilis before egg sac construction varied from 2 to 16 with food-limited females generally accepting more matings than well-fed females. Minimal level of optimal mating number for females at satiation feeding conditions was predicted to be 2-3; in an experimental test, the median number was 2 (range 0-4). Multiple mating gave benefits in terms of increased fecundity and increased egg hatching success up to the third mating, and it had costs in terms of reduced fecundity, reduced egg hatching success after the third mating, and lower offspring size. The level of polyandry seems to vary with the female optimum, regulated by a satiation-dependent resistance to mating, potentially leaving satiated females in lifelong virginity.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Toft
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
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Abstract
Sexual cannibalism is a well-known example for sexual conflict and has many facets that determine the costs and benefits for the cannibal and the victim. Here, I focus on species in which sexual cannibalism is a general component of a mating system in which males invest maximally in mating with a single (monogyny) or two (bigyny) females. Sexual cannibalism can be a male strategy to maximize paternity and a female strategy to prevent paternity monopolization by any or a particular male. Considerable variation exists between species (1) in the potential of males to monopolize females, and (2) in the success of females in preventing monopolization by males. This opens up exciting future possibilities to investigate sexually antagonistic coevolution in a largely unstudied mating system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jutta M Schneider
- Zoological Institute & Museum, Biocentre Grindel, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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Albo MJ, Bilde T, Uhl G. Sperm storage mediated by cryptic female choice for nuptial gifts. Proc Biol Sci 2014; 280:20131735. [PMID: 24266042 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2013.1735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Polyandrous females are expected to discriminate among males through postcopulatory cryptic mate choice. Yet, there is surprisingly little unequivocal evidence for female-mediated cryptic sperm choice. In species in which nuptial gifts facilitate mating, females may gain indirect benefits through preferential storage of sperm from gift-giving males if the gift signals male quality. We tested this hypothesis in the spider Pisaura mirabilis by quantifying the number of sperm stored in response to copulation with males with or without a nuptial gift, while experimentally controlling copulation duration. We further assessed the effect of gift presence and copulation duration on egg-hatching success in matings with uninterrupted copulations with gift-giving males. We show that females mated to gift-giving males stored more sperm and experienced 17% higher egg-hatching success, compared with those mated to no-gift males, despite matched copulation durations. Uninterrupted copulations resulted in both increased sperm storage and egg-hatching success. Our study confirms the prediction that the nuptial gift as a male signal is under positive sexual selection by females through cryptic sperm storage. In addition, the gift facilitates longer copulations and increased sperm transfer providing two different types of advantage to gift-giving in males.
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