1
|
Yang Y, Axelrod CJ, Grant E, Earl SR, Urquhart EM, Talbert K, Johnson LE, Walker Z, Hsiao K, Stone I, Carlson BA, López-Sepulcre A, Gordon SP. Evolutionary divergence of developmental plasticity and learning of mating tactics in Trinidadian guppies. J Anim Ecol 2023. [PMID: 38156548 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 12/30/2023]
Abstract
Behavioural plasticity is a major driver in the early stages of adaptation, but its effects in mediating evolution remain elusive because behavioural plasticity itself can evolve. In this study, we investigated how male Trinidadian guppies (Poecilia reticulata) adapted to different predation regimes diverged in behavioural plasticity of their mating tactic. We reared F2 juveniles of high- or low-predation population origins with different combinations of social and predator cues and assayed their mating behaviour upon sexual maturity. High-predation males learned their mating tactic from conspecific adults as juveniles, while low-predation males did not. High-predation males increased courtship when exposed to chemical predator cues during development; low-predation males decreased courtship in response to immediate chemical predator cues, but only when they were not exposed to such cues during development. Behavioural changes induced by predator cues were associated with developmental plasticity in brain morphology, but changes acquired through social learning were not. We thus show that guppy populations diverged in their response to social and ecological cues during development, and correlational evidence suggests that different cues can shape the same behaviour via different neural mechanisms. Our study demonstrates that behavioural plasticity, both environmentally induced and socially learnt, evolves rapidly and shapes adaptation when organisms colonize ecologically divergent habitats.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yusan Yang
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Caleb J Axelrod
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | - Elly Grant
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Shayna R Earl
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky, USA
| | - Ellen M Urquhart
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Katie Talbert
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | - Lauren E Johnson
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Zakiya Walker
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Kyle Hsiao
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Isabel Stone
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Bruce A Carlson
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Andrés López-Sepulcre
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| | - Swanne P Gordon
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Evans JP, Turnbull EJ, Lymbery RA. Testing for age-dependent effects of dietary restriction on the strength of condition dependence in ejaculate traits in the guppy ( Poecilia reticulata). ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230805. [PMID: 37650067 PMCID: PMC10465203 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/07/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Ejaculates can be costly to produce and depend on an individual's condition, defined as the pool of resources allocated to fitness. A method for assessing condition dependence is to manipulate resource availability and test for a reduction in trait expression. Here, we assess the effects of dietary restriction on two determinants of reproductive fitness in the guppy Poecilia reticulata-sperm production and sperm motility. Importantly, we administered dietary restriction at distinct developmental stages to test: (1) whether dietary restriction, when applied exclusively to juveniles, compromised the ejaculates of newly mature males; (2) whether any observed effects of dietary restriction seen in (1) were reversible when fish returned to an unrestricted diet; and (3) whether dietary restriction applied exclusively to adults influenced ejaculates. We found detrimental effects of resource limitation on both traits, and these were consistent across the three developmental stages tested. Furthermore, dietary restriction reduced male body weight, but this was partially reversed when diet-stressed juveniles (i.e. group 2) returned to unrestricted diets. This latter result suggests that diet-stressed males may sacrifice growth in order to maintain their investment in ejaculates. Together these findings underscore the importance of resource acquisition in determining the expression of ejaculate traits.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan P. Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth 6009, WA, Australia
| | - Elizabeth J. Turnbull
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth 6009, WA, Australia
| | - Rowan A. Lymbery
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Perth 6009, WA, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
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.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Aurora Rossi
- Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Cristina Tuni
- Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Lymbery RA, Alvaro BJ, Evans JP. Does diet influence ejaculate expenditure under experimentally altered risk of sperm competition in guppies? Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.09.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
|
5
|
Fernlund Isaksson E, Reuland C, Kahrl AF, Devigili A, Fitzpatrick JL. Resource-dependent investment in male sexual traits in a viviparous fish. Behav Ecol 2022; 33:954-966. [PMID: 36382231 PMCID: PMC9639585 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arac060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2021] [Revised: 04/12/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2022] [Indexed: 09/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Exaggerated and conspicuous sexually selected traits are often costly to produce and maintain. Costly traits are expected to show resource-dependent expression, since limited resources prevent animals from investing maximally in multiple traits simultaneously. However, there may be critical periods during an individual's life where the expression of traits is altered if resources are limited. Moreover, costly sexual traits may arise from sexual selection acting both before (pre-copulatory) and after mating (post-copulatory). Gaining a robust understanding of resource-dependent trait expression therefore requires an approach that examines both episodes of sexual selection after resource limitation during different times in an individual's life. Yet few studies have taken such an approach. Here, we examine how resource restriction influences a set of pre- and post-copulatory traits in male pygmy halfbeaks (Dermogenys collettei), which invest in sexual ornaments and routinely engage in male-male contests and sperm competition. Critically, we examined responses in males when resources were restricted during development and after reaching sexual maturity. Both pre- and post-copulatory traits are resource-dependent in male halfbeaks. Body size, beak size, courtship behavior, and testes size were reduced by diet restriction, while, unexpectedly, the restricted-diet group had a larger area of red color on the beak and fins after diet treatment. These patterns were generally consistent when resources were restricted during development and after reaching sexual maturity. The study reinforces the role of resource acquisition in maintaining variation among sexual traits.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Erika Fernlund Isaksson
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Svante Arrhenius väg 18B, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Charel Reuland
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Svante Arrhenius väg 18B, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ariel F Kahrl
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Svante Arrhenius väg 18B, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Alessandro Devigili
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Svante Arrhenius väg 18B, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Via Ugo Bassi 58B, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - John L Fitzpatrick
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Svante Arrhenius väg 18B, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Tregenza T, Niemelä PT, Rodríguez-Muñoz R, Hopwood PE. Environment and mate attractiveness in a wild insect. Behav Ecol 2022; 33:999-1006. [PMCID: PMC9639583 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arac067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2021] [Revised: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The role of female choice in sexual selection is well established, including the recognition that females choose their mates based on multiple cues. These cues may include intrinsic aspects of a male’s phenotype as well as aspects of the environment associated with the male. The role of the spatial location of a potential mate has been well studied in territorial vertebrates. However, despite their role as laboratory models for studies of sexual selection, the potential for insects to choose their mates on the basis of location has scarcely been studied. We studied a natural population of individually tagged crickets (Gryllus campestris) in a meadow in Northern Spain. Adults typically move between burrows every few days, allowing us to examine how pairing success of males can be predicted by the burrow they occupy, independent of their own characteristics. We observed the entirety of ten independent breeding seasons to provide replication and to determine whether the relative importance of these factors is stable across years. We find that both male ID and the ID his burrow affect the likelihood that he is paired with a female, but the burrow has a consistently greater influence. Furthermore, the two factors interact: the relative attractiveness of an individual male depends on which burrow he occupies. Our finding demonstrates a close interaction between naturally and sexually selected traits. It also demonstrates that mate choice studies may benefit from considering not only obvious secondary sexual traits, but also more cryptic traits such as microhabitat choice.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tom Tregenza
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter , Exeter , UK
| | - Petri T Niemelä
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, University of Helsinki , Viikinkaari, Biocenter, Helsinki , Finland
| | - Rolando Rodríguez-Muñoz
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter , Exeter , UK
| | - Paul E Hopwood
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, School of Biosciences, University of Exeter , Exeter , UK
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Rahman MM, Ferdouse Z, Nur N, Islam MN, Rouf MA, Arafat ST, Mustafizur Rahman S, Rahman MM. Microplastic ingestion alters the expression of some sexually selected traits in a model fish guppy ( Poecilia reticulata Peters 1859). MARINE AND FRESHWATER BEHAVIOUR AND PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 55:87-106. [DOI: 10.1080/10236244.2022.2100772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2021] [Accepted: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 09/27/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Md. Moshiur Rahman
- Fish Conservation and Culture Lab, Biological & Agricultural Engineering, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline, Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh
| | - Zannatul Ferdouse
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline, Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh
| | - Nazmir Nur
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline, Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh
| | - Md. Nazrul Islam
- Forestry and Wood Technology Discipline, Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh
| | - Muhammad Abdur Rouf
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline, Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh
| | - Shaikh Tareq Arafat
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline, Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh
| | | | - Md. Mostafizur Rahman
- Disaster and Human Security Management, Bangladesh University of Professionals, Dhaka, Bangladesh
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Galluccio E, Lymbery RA, Wilson A, Evans JP. Personality, sperm traits and a test for their combined dependence on male condition in guppies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022. [PMID: 35706668 DOI: 10.5061/dryad.00000005n] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
There is evidence that animal personality can affect sexual selection, with studies reporting that male behavioural types are associated with success during pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection. Given these links between personality and sexual traits, and the accumulating evidence that their expression can depend on an individual's dietary status (i.e. condition), a novel prediction is that changes in a male's diet should alter both the average expression of personality and sexual traits, and their covariance. We tested these predictions using the guppy Poecilia reticulata, a species previously shown to exhibit strong condition dependence in ejaculate traits and a positive correlation between sperm production and individual variation in boldness. Contrary to expectation, we found that dietary restriction-when administered in mature adult males-did not affect the expression of either behavioural (boldness and activity) or ejaculate traits, although we did find that males subjected to dietary stress exhibited a positive association between sperm velocity and boldness that was not apparent in the unrestricted diet group. This latter finding points to possible context-dependent patterns of covariance between sexually selected traits and personalities, which may have implications for patterns of selection and evolutionary processes under fluctuating environmental conditions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Edward Galluccio
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Rowan A Lymbery
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Alastair Wilson
- Centre for Ecology and Evolution, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Jonathan P Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Galluccio E, Lymbery RA, Wilson A, Evans JP. Personality, sperm traits and a test for their combined dependence on male condition in guppies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022. [PMID: 35706668 DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6002280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
There is evidence that animal personality can affect sexual selection, with studies reporting that male behavioural types are associated with success during pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection. Given these links between personality and sexual traits, and the accumulating evidence that their expression can depend on an individual's dietary status (i.e. condition), a novel prediction is that changes in a male's diet should alter both the average expression of personality and sexual traits, and their covariance. We tested these predictions using the guppy Poecilia reticulata, a species previously shown to exhibit strong condition dependence in ejaculate traits and a positive correlation between sperm production and individual variation in boldness. Contrary to expectation, we found that dietary restriction-when administered in mature adult males-did not affect the expression of either behavioural (boldness and activity) or ejaculate traits, although we did find that males subjected to dietary stress exhibited a positive association between sperm velocity and boldness that was not apparent in the unrestricted diet group. This latter finding points to possible context-dependent patterns of covariance between sexually selected traits and personalities, which may have implications for patterns of selection and evolutionary processes under fluctuating environmental conditions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Edward Galluccio
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Rowan A Lymbery
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Alastair Wilson
- Centre for Ecology and Evolution, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Jonathan P Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Galluccio E, Lymbery RA, Wilson A, Evans JP. Personality, sperm traits and a test for their combined dependence on male condition in guppies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220269. [PMID: 35706668 PMCID: PMC9156929 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
There is evidence that animal personality can affect sexual selection, with studies reporting that male behavioural types are associated with success during pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection. Given these links between personality and sexual traits, and the accumulating evidence that their expression can depend on an individual's dietary status (i.e. condition), a novel prediction is that changes in a male's diet should alter both the average expression of personality and sexual traits, and their covariance. We tested these predictions using the guppy Poecilia reticulata, a species previously shown to exhibit strong condition dependence in ejaculate traits and a positive correlation between sperm production and individual variation in boldness. Contrary to expectation, we found that dietary restriction-when administered in mature adult males-did not affect the expression of either behavioural (boldness and activity) or ejaculate traits, although we did find that males subjected to dietary stress exhibited a positive association between sperm velocity and boldness that was not apparent in the unrestricted diet group. This latter finding points to possible context-dependent patterns of covariance between sexually selected traits and personalities, which may have implications for patterns of selection and evolutionary processes under fluctuating environmental conditions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Edward Galluccio
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Rowan A. Lymbery
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Alastair Wilson
- Centre for Ecology and Evolution, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Jonathan P. Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
McDermott MT, Safran RJ. Sensitive periods during the development and expression of vertebrate sexual signals: A systematic review. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:14416-14432. [PMID: 34765116 PMCID: PMC8571593 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2020] [Revised: 08/14/2021] [Accepted: 09/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Many sexually selected traits exhibit phenotypic plasticity. Despite a growing appreciation for the ecological context in which sexual selection occurs, and for the role of plasticity in shaping traits associated with local adaptation and divergence, there is an important gap in knowledge about the onset and duration of plasticity in sexual trait expression. Integrating this temporal dimension of plasticity into models of sexual selection informs our understanding of the information conveyed by sexual traits and our predictions related to trait evolution, and is critical in this time of unprecedented and rapid environmental change. We conducted a systematic review of 869 studies to ask how trait modalities (e.g., visual and chemical) relate to the onset and duration of plasticity in vertebrate sexual signals. We show that this literature is dominated by studies of coloration in birds and fish, and most studies take place during the breeding season. Where possible, we integrate results across studies to link physiology of specific trait modalities with the life stage (e.g., juvenile, breeding, or nonbreeding) during which plasticity occurs in well-studied traits. Limitations of our review included a lack of replication in our dataset, which precluded formal analysis. We argue that the timing of trait plasticity, in addition to environmental context, is critical for determining whether and how various communication signals are associated with ecological context, because plasticity may be ongoing or occur at only one point in an individual's lifetime, and determining a fixed trajectory of trait expression. We advocate for careful consideration of the onset and duration of plasticity when analyzing how environmental variation affects sexual trait expression and associated evolutionary outcomes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Molly T. McDermott
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of ColoradoBoulderCOUSA
| | - Rebecca J. Safran
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of ColoradoBoulderCOUSA
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Macartney EL, Zeender V, Meena A, De Nardo AN, Bonduriansky R, Lüpold S. Sperm depletion in relation to developmental nutrition and genotype in Drosophila melanogaster. Evolution 2021; 75:2830-2841. [PMID: 34617270 PMCID: PMC9297908 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Revised: 09/15/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Nutrient limitation during development can restrict the ability of adults to invest in costly fitness traits, and genotypes can vary in their sensitivity to developmental nutrition. However, little is known about how genotype and nutrition affect male ability to maintain ejaculate allocation and achieve fertilization across successive matings. Using 17 isogenic lines of Drosophila melanogaster, we investigated how variation in developmental nutrition affects males' abilities to mate, transfer sperm, and sire offspring when presented with successive virgin females. We found that, with each successive mating, males required longer to initiate copulation, transferred fewer sperm, and sired fewer offspring. Males reared on a low-nutrient diet transferred fewer sperm than those reared on nutritionally superior diets, but the rate at which males depleted their sperm, as well as their reproductive performance, was largely independent of diet. Genotype and the genotype × diet interaction explained little of the variation in these male reproductive traits. Our results show that sperm depletion can occur rapidly and impose substantial fitness costs for D. melanogaster males across multiple genotypes and developmental environments.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Erin L Macartney
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.,Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, CH-8057, Switzerland
| | - Valérian Zeender
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, CH-8057, Switzerland
| | - Abhishek Meena
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, CH-8057, Switzerland.,Department of Biological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Mohali, Mohali, 140306, India
| | - Alessio N De Nardo
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, CH-8057, Switzerland
| | - Russell Bonduriansky
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | - Stefan Lüpold
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, CH-8057, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Effect of parental phenotype on dispersal, growth and maturation of offspring in wild masu salmon (Oncorhynchus masou). Evol Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-020-10098-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
|
14
|
Rahman MM, Biswas R, Gazi L, Arafat ST, Rahman MM, Asaduzzaman M, Rahman SM, Ahsan MN. Annually twice induced spawnings provide multiple benefits: Experimental evidence from an Indian major carp (
Catla catla
, Hamilton 1822). AQUACULTURE RESEARCH 2020; 51:2275-2290. [DOI: 10.1111/are.14572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2019] [Accepted: 02/07/2020] [Indexed: 09/27/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Md. Moshiur Rahman
- Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology Tokyo Japan
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Ripon Biswas
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Litan Gazi
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Shaikh Tareq Arafat
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Md. Mostafizur Rahman
- Department of Disaster and Human Security Management Bangladesh University of Professionals Dhaka Bangladesh
| | - Md. Asaduzzaman
- Department of Marine Bioresource Science Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University Chittagong Bangladesh
| | - Sheikh Mustafizur Rahman
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
- Fish Resources Research Center King Faisal University Hofuf Saudi Arabia
| | - Md. Nazmul Ahsan
- Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Rahman MM, Siddique A, Rahman MA, Rahman SM, Asaduzzaman M, Khanom M, Khatun MM, Hasan MM. The interactive effects of paternal size and offspring feeding strategy on offspring fitness of an Indian major carp
Labeo rohita
(Hamilton, 1822). AQUACULTURE RESEARCH 2020; 51:2421-2431. [DOI: 10.1111/are.14586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2019] [Accepted: 02/18/2020] [Indexed: 09/27/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Md. Moshiur Rahman
- Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology Tokyo Japan
- Fisheries & Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Asif Siddique
- Fisheries & Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Md. Ashikur Rahman
- Fisheries & Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Sheikh Mustafizur Rahman
- Fisheries & Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
- Fish Resources Research Center King Faisal University Hofuf Al‐Ahsa Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
| | - Md. Asaduzzaman
- Department of Marine Bioresource Science Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University Chittagong Bangladesh
| | - Momotaz Khanom
- Fisheries & Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Mst. Muslima Khatun
- Fisheries & Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
| | - Md. Mehedi Hasan
- Fisheries & Marine Resource Technology Discipline Khulna University Khulna Bangladesh
- Sydney School of Veterinary Science Faculty of Science The University of Sydney Camden NSW Australia
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Patlar B, Ramm SA. Genotype‐by‐environment interactions for seminal fluid expression and sperm competitive ability. J Evol Biol 2019; 33:225-236. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2019] [Revised: 10/25/2019] [Accepted: 11/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bahar Patlar
- Evolutionary Biology Bielefeld University Bielefeld Germany
| | - Steven A. Ramm
- Evolutionary Biology Bielefeld University Bielefeld Germany
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Howie JM, Dawson HAC, Pomiankowski A, Fowler K. Limits to environmental masking of genetic quality in sexual signals. J Evol Biol 2019; 32:868-877. [PMID: 31134703 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2019] [Revised: 05/15/2019] [Accepted: 05/21/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
There is considerable debate over the value of male sexual ornaments as signals of genetic quality. Studies alternately report that environmental variation enhances or diminishes the genetic signal, or leads to crossover where genotypes perform well in one environment but poorly in another. A unified understanding is lacking. We conduct a novel experimental test examining the dual effects of distinct categories of genetic (inbred vs. crossed parental lines) and environmental quality (low, through high to extreme larval food stress) on a condition-dependent male ornament. We find that differences in genetic quality signalled by the ornament (male eyespan in Diasemopsis meigenii stalk-eyed flies) become visible and are amplified under high stress but are overwhelmed in extreme-stress environments. Variance among independent genetic lines increases with environmental stress in both genetic quality classes, but at a slower rate in high quality outcrossed flies. Individual genetic lines generally maintain their ranks across environments, except among high quality lines under low environmental stress, where low genetic variance among lines precludes differentiation between ranks. Our results provide a conceptual advance, demonstrating a unified pattern for how genetic and environmental quality interact. They show when environmental conditions lead to the amplification of differences in signals of genetic quality and thereby enhance the potential indirect genetic benefits gained by female mate choice.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- James Malcolm Howie
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK.,Institute of Population Genetics, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Andrew Pomiankowski
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK.,CoMPLEX, University College London, London, UK
| | - Kevin Fowler
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Macartney EL, Crean AJ, Nakagawa S, Bonduriansky R. Effects of nutrient limitation on sperm and seminal fluid: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2019; 94:1722-1739. [PMID: 31215758 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2019] [Revised: 05/01/2019] [Accepted: 05/03/2019] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Theory predicts that costly sexual traits should be reduced when individuals are in poor condition (i.e. traits should exhibit condition-dependent expression). It is therefore widely expected that male ejaculate traits, such as sperm and seminal fluid, will exhibit reduced quantity and quality when dietary nutrients are limited. However, reported patterns of ejaculate condition dependence are highly variable, and there has been no comprehensive synthesis of underlying sources of such variation in condition-dependent responses. In particular, it remains unclear whether all ejaculate traits are equally sensitive to nutrient intake, and whether such traits are particularly sensitive to certain dietary nutrients, respond more strongly to nutrients during specific life stages, or respond more strongly in some taxonomic groups. We systematically reviewed these potential sources of variation through a meta-analysis across 50 species of arthropods and vertebrates (from 71 papers and 348 effect sizes). We found that overall, ejaculate traits are moderately reduced when dietary nutrients are limited, but we also detected substantial variation in responses. Seminal fluid quantity was strongly and consistently condition dependent, while sperm quantity was moderately condition dependent. By contrast, aspects of sperm quality (particularly sperm viability and morphology) were less consistently reduced under nutrient limitation. Ejaculate traits tended to respond in a condition-dependent manner to a wide range of dietary manipulations, especially to caloric and protein restriction. Finally, while all major taxa for which sufficient data exist (i.e. arthropods, mammals, fish) showed condition dependence of ejaculate traits, we detected some taxonomic differences in the life stage that is most sensitive to nutrient limitation, and in the degree of condition dependence of specific ejaculate traits. Together, these biologically relevant factors accounted for nearly 20% of the total variance in ejaculate responses to nutrient limitation. Interestingly, body size showed considerably stronger condition-dependent responses compared to ejaculate traits, suggesting that ejaculate trait expression may be strongly canalised to protect important reproductive functions, or that the cost of producing an ejaculate is relatively low. Taken together, our findings show that condition-dependence of ejaculate traits is taxonomically widespread, but there are also many interesting, biologically relevant sources of variation that require further investigation. In particular, further research is needed to understand the differences in selective pressures that result in differential patterns of ejaculate condition dependence across taxa and ejaculate traits.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Erin L Macartney
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Australia, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Angela J Crean
- Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Shinichi Nakagawa
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Australia, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Russell Bonduriansky
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Australia, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Plastic responses to novel environments are biased towards phenotype dimensions with high additive genetic variation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019; 116:13452-13461. [PMID: 31217289 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1821066116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Environmentally induced phenotypes have been proposed to initiate and bias adaptive evolutionary change toward particular directions. The potential for this to happen depends in part on how well plastic responses are aligned with the additive genetic variance and covariance in traits. Using meta-analysis, we demonstrate that plastic responses to novel environments tend to occur along phenotype dimensions that harbor substantial amounts of additive genetic variation. This suggests that selection for or against environmentally induced phenotypes typically will be effective. One interpretation of the alignment between the direction of plasticity and the main axis of additive genetic variation is that developmental systems tend to respond to environmental novelty as they do to genetic mutation. This makes it challenging to distinguish if the direction of evolution is biased by plasticity or genetic "constraint." Our results therefore highlight a need for new theoretical and empirical approaches to address the role of plasticity in evolution.
Collapse
|
20
|
Patlar B, Weber M, Ramm SA. Genetic and environmental variation in transcriptional expression of seminal fluid proteins. Heredity (Edinb) 2019; 122:595-611. [PMID: 30356222 PMCID: PMC6461930 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-018-0160-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2018] [Revised: 08/29/2018] [Accepted: 09/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Seminal fluid proteins (SFPs) are crucial mediators of sexual selection and sexual conflict. Recent studies have chiefly focused on environmentally induced plasticity as one source of variation in SFP expression, particularly in response to differing sperm competition levels. However, understanding the evolution of a trait in heterogenous environments requires estimates of both environmental and genetic sources of variation, as well as their interaction. Therefore, we investigated how environment (specifically mating group size, a good predictor of sperm competition intensity), genotype and genotype-by-environment interactions affect seminal fluid expression. To do so, we reared 12 inbred lines of a simultaneously hermaphroditic flatworm Macrostomum lignano in groups of either two or eight worms and measured the expression levels of 58 putative SFP transcripts. We then examined the source of variation in the expression of each transcript individually and for multivariate axes extracted from a principal component analysis. We found that mating group size did not affect expression levels according to the single transcript analyses, nor did it affect the first principal component (presumably representing overall investment in seminal fluid production). However, mating group size did affect the relative expression of different transcripts captured by the second principal component (presumably reflecting variation in seminal fluid composition). Most transcripts were genetically variable in their expression level and several exhibited genotype-by-environment interactions; relative composition also showed high genetic variation. Collectively, our results reveal the tightly integrated nature of the seminal fluid transcriptome and provide new insights into the quantitative genetic basis of seminal fluid investment and composition.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bahar Patlar
- Evolutionary Biology, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany.
| | - Michael Weber
- Evolutionary Biology, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Steven A Ramm
- Evolutionary Biology, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Macartney EL, Nicovich PR, Bonduriansky R, Crean AJ. Developmental diet irreversibly shapes male post-copulatory traits in the neriid fly Telostylinus angusticollis. J Evol Biol 2018; 31:1894-1902. [PMID: 30267554 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2018] [Revised: 08/20/2018] [Accepted: 09/23/2018] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Nutrient availability has been shown to influence investment in many fitness-related traits, including male reproductive success. Many studies have demonstrated that a reduction in nutrient availability alters male post-copulatory trait expression, with some studies demonstrating an effect of developmental nutrients and others, an effect of adult nutrients. However, few studies have manipulated both developmental and adult nutrients in the same experiment. Therefore, it is not clear what life-stage has the greatest effect on post-copulatory trait expression, and if the effects of developmental and adult nutrients can interact. Here, we investigate effects of developmental and adult nutrition on male testes and accessory gland size, sperm movement within the female reproductive tract and sperm length in the neriid fly, Telostylinus angusticollis. We found that males fed a nutrient-poor developmental diet produced sperm with a reduced tail beat frequency and had smaller testes and accessory glands compared to males fed a nutrient-rich developmental diet. In contrast, we found no effects of adult nutrition on any traits measured, although sperm length was correlated with body size and male age but unaffected by nutrition at any stage. Therefore, investment in adult post-copulatory traits is determined early on by developmental nutrients in male neriid flies, and this effect is not altered by adult nutrient availability.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Erin L Macartney
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Philip R Nicovich
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Advanced Molecular Imaging and EMBL Australia Node in Single Molecule Science, School of Medical Sciences, UNSW, Sydney, NSW, Australia.,Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Russell Bonduriansky
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Angela J Crean
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, UNSW Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia.,Sydney School of Veterinary Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Tuni C, Han CS, Dingemanse NJ. Multiple biological mechanisms result in correlations between pre- and post-mating traits that differ among versus within individuals and genotypes. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:rspb.2018.0951. [PMID: 30135156 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.0951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2018] [Accepted: 07/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Reproductive traits involved in mate acquisition (pre-mating traits) are predicted to covary with those involved in fertilization success (post-mating traits). Variation in male quality may give rise to positive, and resource allocation trade-offs to negative, covariances between pre- and post-mating traits. Empirical studies have yielded mixed results. Progress is hampered as researchers often fail to appreciate that mentioned biological mechanisms can act simultaneously but at different hierarchical levels of biological variation: genetic correlations may, for example, be negative due to genetic trade-offs but environmental correlations may instead be positive due to individual variation in resource acquisition. We measured pre-mating (aggression, body weight) and post-mating (ejaculate size) reproductive traits in a pedigreed population of southern field crickets (Gryllus bimaculatus). To create environmental variation, crickets were raised on either a low or a high nymphal density treatment. We estimated genetic and environmental sources of correlations between pre- and post-mating traits. We found positive genetic correlations between pre- and post-mating traits, implying the existence of genetic variation in male quality. Over repeated trials of the same individual (testing order), positive changes in one trait were matched with negative changes in other traits, suggesting energy allocating trade-offs within individuals among days. These findings demonstrate the need for research on pre- and post-mating traits to consider the hierarchical structure of trait correlations. Only by doing so was our study able to conclude that multiple mechanisms jointly shape phenotypic associations between pre- and post-mating traits in crickets.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Tuni
- Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Chang S Han
- Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany .,The School of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Niels J Dingemanse
- Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Plesnar-Bielak A, Skwierzyńska AM, Hlebowicz K, Radwan J. Relative costs and benefits of alternative reproductive phenotypes at different temperatures - genotype-by-environment interactions in a sexually selected trait. BMC Evol Biol 2018; 18:109. [PMID: 29996775 PMCID: PMC6042425 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-018-1226-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2018] [Accepted: 06/29/2018] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The maintenance of considerable genetic variation in sexually selected traits (SSTs) is puzzling given directional selection expected to act on these traits. A possible explanation is the existence of a genotype-by-environment (GxE) interaction for fitness, by which elaborate SSTs are favored in some environments but selected against in others. In the current study, we look for such interactions for fitness-related traits in the bulb mite, a male-dimorphic species with discontinuous expression of a heritable SST in the form of enlarged legs that are used as weapons. Results We show that evolution at 18 °C resulted in populations with a higher prevalence of this SST compared to evolution at 24 °C. We further demonstrate that temperature modified male reproductive success in a way that was consistent with these changes. There was a genotype-by-environment interaction for reproductive success – at 18 °C the relative reproductive success of armored males competing with unarmored ones was higher than at the moderate temperature of 24 °C. However, male morph did not have interactive effects with temperature with respect to other life history traits (development time and longevity). Conclusions A male genotype that is associated with the expression of a SST interacted with temperature in determining male reproductive success. This interaction caused an elaborate SST to evolve in different directions (more or less prevalent) depending on the thermal environment. The implication of this finding is that seasonal temperature fluctuations have the potential to maintain male polymorphism within populations. Furthermore, spatial heterogeneity in thermal conditions may cause differences among populations in SST selection. This could potentially cause selection against male immigrants from populations in different environments and thus strengthen barriers to gene flow.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Agata Plesnar-Bielak
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland.
| | - Anna Maria Skwierzyńska
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Kasper Hlebowicz
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Jacek Radwan
- Evolutionary Biology Group, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Vega-Trejo R, Head ML, Jennions MD, Kruuk LEB. Maternal-by-environment but not genotype-by-environment interactions in a fish without parental care. Heredity (Edinb) 2018; 120:154-167. [PMID: 29225350 PMCID: PMC5837127 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-017-0029-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2017] [Revised: 09/27/2017] [Accepted: 10/30/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The impact of environmental conditions on the expression of genetic variance and on maternal effects variance remains an important question in evolutionary quantitative genetics. We investigate here the effects of early environment on variation in seven adult life history, morphological, and secondary sexual traits (including sperm characteristics) in a viviparous poeciliid fish, the mosquitofish Gambusia holbrooki. Specifically, we manipulated food availability during early development and then assessed additive genetic and maternal effects contributions to the overall phenotypic variance in adults. We found higher heritability for female than male traits, but maternal effects variance for traits in both sexes. An interaction between maternal effects variance and rearing environment affected two adult traits (female age at maturity and male size at maturity), but there was no evidence of trade-offs in maternal effects across environments. Our results illustrate (i) the potential for pre-natal maternal effects to interact with offspring environment during development, potentially affecting traits through to adulthood and (ii) that genotype-by-environment interactions might be overestimated if maternal-by-environment interactions are not accounted for, similar to heritability being overestimated if maternal effects are ignored. We also discuss the potential for dominance genetic variance to contribute to the estimate of maternal effects variance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Regina Vega-Trejo
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia.
| | - Megan L Head
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Michael D Jennions
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
- Wissenschaftkolleg zu Berlin, Wallotstraße 19, 14193, Berlin, Germany
| | - Loeske E B Kruuk
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Grueber CE, Fitzpatrick JL, Devigili A, Gasparini C, Ramnarine IW, Evans JP. Population demography and heterozygosity-fitness correlations in natural guppy populations: An examination using sexually selected fitness traits. Mol Ecol 2017; 26:4631-4643. [PMID: 28734054 DOI: 10.1111/mec.14243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2016] [Accepted: 06/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Heterozygosity-fitness correlations (HFCs) have been examined in a wide diversity of contexts, and the results are often used to infer the role of inbreeding in natural populations. Although population demography, reflected in population-level genetic parameters such as allelic diversity or identity disequilibrium, is expected to play a role in the emergence and detectability of HFCs, direct comparisons of variation in HFCs across many populations of the same species, with different genetic histories, are rare. Here, we examined the relationship between individual microsatellite heterozygosity and a range of sexually selected traits in 660 male guppies from 22 natural populations in Trinidad. Similar to previous studies, observed HFCs were weak overall. However, variation in HFCs among populations was high for some traits (although these variances were not statistically different from zero). Population-level genetic parameters, specifically genetic diversity levels (number of alleles, observed/expected heterozygosity) and measures of identity disequilibrium (g2 and heterozygosity-heterozygosity correlations), were not associated with variation in population-level HFCs. This latter result indicates that these metrics do not necessarily provide a reliable predictor of HFC effect sizes across populations. Importantly, diversity and identity disequilibrium statistics were not correlated, providing empirical evidence that these metrics capture different essential characteristics of populations. A complex genetic architecture likely underpins multiple fitness traits, including those associated with male fitness, which may have reduced our ability to detect HFCs in guppy populations. Further advances in this field would benefit from additional research to determine the demographic contexts in which HFCs are most likely to occur.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Catherine E Grueber
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.,San Diego Zoo Global, San Diego, CA, USA.,Department of Zoology, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - John L Fitzpatrick
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.,Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia
| | - Alessandro Devigili
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.,Department of Biology, University of Padova, Padua, Italy
| | - Clelia Gasparini
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia
| | - Indar W Ramnarine
- Department of Life Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago
| | - Jonathan P Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Gasparini C, Dosselli R, Evans JP. Sperm storage by males causes changes in sperm phenotype and influences the reproductive fitness of males and their sons. Evol Lett 2017; 1:16-25. [PMID: 30283635 PMCID: PMC6121797 DOI: 10.1002/evl3.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2016] [Revised: 01/20/2017] [Accepted: 01/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent studies suggest that environmentally induced effects on sperm phenotype can influence offspring phenotype beyond the classic Mendelian inheritance mechanism. However, establishing whether such effects are conveyed purely through ejaculates, independently of maternal environmental effects, remains a significant challenge. Here, we assess whether environmentally induced effects on sperm phenotype affects male reproductive success and offspring fitness. We experimentally manipulated the duration of sperm storage by males, and thus sperm age, in the internally fertilizing fish Poecilia reticulata. We first confirm that sperm ageing influences sperm quality and consequently males reproductive success. Specifically, we show that aged sperm exhibit impaired velocity and are competitively inferior to fresh sperm when ejaculates compete to fertilize eggs. We then used homospermic (noncompetitive) artificial insemination to inseminate females with old or fresh sperm and found that male offspring arising from fertilizations by experimentally aged sperm suffered consistently impaired sperm quality when just sexually mature (four months old) and subsequently as adults (13 months old). Although we have yet to determine whether these effects have a genetic or epigenetic basis, our analyses provide evidence that environmentally induced variation in sperm phenotype constitutes an important source of variation in male reproductive fitness that has far reaching implications for offspring fitness.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Clelia Gasparini
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences (M092) University of Western Australia Crawley 6009 Australia
| | - Ryan Dosselli
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences (M092) University of Western Australia Crawley 6009 Australia.,CIBER, ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology University of Western Australia Crawley 6009 Australia
| | - Jonathan P Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences (M092) University of Western Australia Crawley 6009 Australia
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Rowiński PK, Rogell B. Environmental stress correlates with increases in both genetic and residual variances: A meta-analysis of animal studies. Evolution 2017; 71:1339-1351. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.13201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2016] [Revised: 01/18/2017] [Accepted: 02/02/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Piotr K. Rowiński
- Department of Zoology; Stockholm University; Svante Arrhenius väg 18B 106 91 Stockholm Sweden
| | - Björn Rogell
- Department of Zoology; Stockholm University; Svante Arrhenius väg 18B 106 91 Stockholm Sweden
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Evans JP, Garcia-Gonzalez F. The total opportunity for sexual selection and the integration of pre- and post-mating episodes of sexual selection in a complex world. J Evol Biol 2016; 29:2338-2361. [PMID: 27520979 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12960] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2016] [Revised: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 08/05/2016] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
It is well known that sexual selection can target reproductive traits during successive pre- and post-mating episodes of selection. A key focus of recent studies has been to understand and quantify how these episodes of sexual selection interact to determine overall variance in reproductive success. In this article, we review empirical developments in this field but also highlight the considerable variability in patterns of pre- and post-mating sexual selection, attributable to variation in patterns of resource acquisition and allocation, ecological and social factors, genotype-by-environment interaction and possible methodological factors that might obscure such patterns. Our aim is to highlight how (co)variances in pre- and post-mating sexually selected traits can be sensitive to changes in a range of ecological and environmental variables. We argue that failure to capture this variation when quantifying the opportunity for sexual selection may lead to erroneous conclusions about the strength, direction or form of sexual selection operating on pre- and post-mating traits. Overall, we advocate for approaches that combine measures of pre- and post-mating selection across contrasting environmental or ecological gradients to better understand the dynamics of sexual selection in polyandrous species. We also discuss some directions for future research in this area.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J P Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Animal Biology (M092), University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia
| | - F Garcia-Gonzalez
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Animal Biology (M092), University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.,Doñana Biological Station, Spanish Research Council CSIC, Sevilla, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Mehlis M, Rick IP, Bakker TCM. Dynamic resource allocation between pre- and postcopulatory episodes of sexual selection determines competitive fertilization success. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 282:20151279. [PMID: 26490787 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.1279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
In polyandrous mating systems, male reproductive success depends on both mate-acquisition traits (precopulatory) and sperm competitive abilities (postcopulatory). Empirical data on the interaction between these traits are inconsistent; revealing positive, negative or no relationships. It is generally expected that the investment in pre- and postcopulatory traits is mediated by environmental conditions. To test how dietary resource availability affects sexual ornamentation, sperm quality and their interrelationship in three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus), full-sibling groups were raised under three conditions differing in food quantity and/or quality (i.e. carotenoid content): (i) high-quantity/high-quality, (ii) high-quantity/low-quality or (iii) low-quantity/low-quality. After 1 year of feeding, food-restricted males developed a more intense breeding coloration and faster sperm compared with their well-fed brothers, indicating that they allocated relatively more in pre- and postcopulatory traits. Moreover, they outcompeted their well-fed, carotenoid-supplemented brothers in sperm competition trials with equal numbers of competing sperm, suggesting that food-restricted males maximize their present reproductive success. This may result in reduced future reproductive opportunities as food-restricted males suffered from a higher mortality, had an overall reduced body size, and sperm number available for fertilization. In accordance with theory, a trade-off between the investment in pre- and postcopulatory traits was observed in food-restricted males, whereas well-fed males were able to allocate to both traits resulting in a significantly positive relationship.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marion Mehlis
- Institute for Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, University of Bonn, An der Immenburg 1, Bonn 53121, Germany
| | - Ingolf P Rick
- Institute for Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, University of Bonn, An der Immenburg 1, Bonn 53121, Germany
| | - Theo C M Bakker
- Institute for Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, University of Bonn, An der Immenburg 1, Bonn 53121, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Devigili A, Belluomo V, Locatello L, Rasotto MB, Pilastro A. Postcopulatory cost of immune system activation in Poecilia reticulata. ETHOL ECOL EVOL 2016. [DOI: 10.1080/03949370.2016.1152305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Vincenzo Belluomo
- Department of Life Science, Second University of Naples, 81100 Caserta, Italy
| | - Lisa Locatello
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy
| | | | - Andrea Pilastro
- Department of Biology, University of Padua, 35131 Padua, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Shuker DM. Genotype-by-environment interactions and sexual selection. Anim Behav 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.06.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
|