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Potticary AL, Belk MC, Creighton JC, Ito M, Kilner R, Komdeur J, Royle NJ, Rubenstein DR, Schrader M, Shen S, Sikes DS, Smiseth PT, Smith R, Steiger S, Trumbo ST, Moore AJ. Revisiting the ecology and evolution of burying beetle behavior (Staphylinidae: Silphinae). Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e70175. [PMID: 39170054 PMCID: PMC11336061 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.70175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2024] [Revised: 07/24/2024] [Accepted: 07/29/2024] [Indexed: 08/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Investigating fundamental processes in biology requires the ability to ground broad questions in species-specific natural history. This is particularly true in the study of behavior because an organism's experience of the environment will influence the expression of behavior and the opportunity for selection. Here, we provide a review of the natural history and behavior of burying beetles of the genus Nicrophorus to provide the groundwork for comparative work that showcases their remarkable behavioral and ecological diversity. Burying beetles have long fascinated scientists because of their well-developed parenting behavior, exhibiting extended post-hatching care of offspring that varies extensively within and across taxa. Despite the burgeoning success of burying beetles as a model system for the study of behavioral evolution, there has not been a review of their behavior, ecology, and evolution in over 25 years. To address this gap, we leverage a developing community of researchers who have contributed to a detailed knowledge of burying beetles to highlight the utility of Nicrophorus for investigating the causes and consequences of social and behavioral evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahva L. Potticary
- Department of BiologyNorthern Michigan UniversityMarquetteMichiganUSA
- Department of EntomologyUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
| | - Mark C. Belk
- Department of BiologyBrigham Young UniversityProvoUtahUSA
| | - J. Curtis Creighton
- Department of Biological SciencesPurdue University NorthwestHammondIndianaUSA
| | - Minobu Ito
- Department of Environmental ScienceToho UniversityFunabashiChibaJapan
| | | | - Jan Komdeur
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life SciencesUniversity of GroningenGroningenThe Netherlands
| | - Nick J. Royle
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Faculty of Environment, Science & the EconomyUniversity of ExeterCornwallUK
| | - Dustin R. Rubenstein
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental BiologyColumbia UniversityNew York CityNew YorkUSA
| | - Matthew Schrader
- Department of BiologySewanee, The University of the SouthSewaneeTennesseeUSA
| | | | - Derek S. Sikes
- University of Alaska Museum and Department of Biology and WildlifeUniversity of Alaska FairbanksFairbanksAlaskaUSA
| | - Per T. Smiseth
- Institute of Ecology and EvolutionThe University of EdinburghEdinburghUK
| | - Rosemary Smith
- Department of Biological SciencesIdaho State UniversityPocatelloIdahoUSA
- Rocky Mountain Biological LaboratoryCrested ButteColoradoUSA
| | - Sandra Steiger
- Department of Evolutionary Animal EcologyUniversity of BayreuthBayreuthGermany
| | - Stephen T. Trumbo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of ConnecticutWaterburyConnecticutUSA
| | - Allen J. Moore
- Department of EntomologyUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
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Ratz T, Leissle L, Smiseth PT. The presence of conspecific intruders alters the magnitude of sex differences in care in a burying beetle. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.09.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
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3
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Trumbo ST. Why do males stay in biparental burying beetles? BEHAVIOUR 2022. [DOI: 10.1163/1568539x-bja10182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Biparental associations are rare in most taxa. A second parent should stay with its current brood only to enhance brood fitness or to increase its own future breeding opportunities. I compared the breeding performance of Nicrophorus defodiens pairs and single females while confronting a conspecific male intruder. Pairs fared better than single females in defending a brood, and age had a strong effect on contest outcomes even though defenders and intruders were of the same age. Pairs also produced larger broods than single females, but only on larger carcasses. The results and a review of prior studies suggest that the benefits for a male that stays with a partner during the post-hatch period, whether gains from offspring success or protecting mating opportunities, are observed primarily in the context of intruder pressure, and that paternal care such as regurgitations to young and nest maintenance would not have evolved in a rival-free world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen T. Trumbo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Waterbury, CT 06702, USA
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4
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Ma L, Versteegh MA, Hammers M, Komdeur J. Sex-specific influence of communal breeding experience on parenting performance and fitness in a burying beetle. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:211179. [PMID: 35223054 PMCID: PMC8847889 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.211179] [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: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Communal breeding, wherein multiple conspecifics live and reproduce together, may generate short-term benefits in terms of defence and reproduction. However, its carry-over effects remain unclear. We experimentally tested the effects of communal breeding on parental care and reproduction in burying beetles (Nicrophorus vespilloides), which use carcasses as breeding resources and provide parental care to offspring. We subjected individuals to communal or non-communal breeding (i.e. pair breeding) during their first breeding event and to non-communal breeding during their second breeding event. We measured the parental care of individuals and of groups and the reproductive success of groups during both breeding events. In communal groups, large individuals became dominant and largely monopolized the carcass, whereas small individuals (i.e. subordinates) had restricted access to the carcass. At the first breeding event, large males in communal groups spent more time providing care than large males in non-communal groups, whereas such an effect was not observed for large females and small individuals. Reproductive successes were similar in communal and non-communal groups, indicating no short-term benefits of communal breeding in terms of reproduction. Compared with males from non-communal groups, males originating from communal groups produced a larger size of brood during their second breeding event, whereas such an effect was not observed for females. Our results demonstrate the sex-specific effects of communal breeding experience on parenting performance and fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Long Ma
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Maaike A. Versteegh
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Martijn Hammers
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
- Aeres University of Applied Sciences, Arboretum West 98, 1325 WB Almere, The Netherlands
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
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Ratz T, Kremi K, Leissle L, Richardson J, Smiseth PT. Access to Resources Shapes Sex Differences Between Caring Parents. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.712425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In species where both parents cooperate to care for their joint offspring, one sex often provides more care than the other. The magnitude of such sex differences often varies both between and within species and may depend on environmental conditions, such as access to resources, predation risk and interspecific competition. Here we investigated the impact of one such environmental variable – access to resources for breeding – on the magnitude of sex differences in parental care in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. This species breeds on the carcasses of small vertebrates, which are the sole food source for parents and offspring during breeding. We manipulated access to resources by providing pairs with mouse carcasses from a broad mass range (3.65–26.15 g). We then monitored subsequent effects on the duration and amount of care provided by males and females, male and female food consumption and weight change during breeding, and larval traits related to offspring performance. We found that males increased their duration of care as carcass mass increased, while females remained with the brood until it had completed its development irrespective of carcass mass. There were thus more pronounced sex differences in parental care when parents had access to fewer resources for breeding. Overall, our findings show that sex differences between caring parents vary depending on access to resources during breeding. The finding that males extended their duration of care on larger carcasses suggests that access to more resources leads to a shift toward more cooperation between caring parents.
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6
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Ratz T, Monteith KM, Vale PF, Smiseth PT. Carry on caring: infected females maintain their parental care despite high mortality. Behav Ecol 2021; 32:738-746. [PMID: 35169391 PMCID: PMC8842341 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arab028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2020] [Revised: 02/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Parental care is a key component of an organism's reproductive strategy that is thought to trade-off with allocation toward immunity. Yet, it is unclear how caring parents respond to pathogens: do infected parents reduce care as a sickness behavior or simply from being ill or do they prioritize their offspring by maintaining high levels of care? To address this issue, we investigated the consequences of infection by the pathogen Serratia marcescens on mortality, time spent providing care, reproductive output, and expression of immune genes of female parents in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. We compared untreated control females with infected females that were inoculated with live bacteria, immune-challenged females that were inoculated with heat-killed bacteria, and injured females that were injected with buffer. We found that infected and immune-challenged females changed their immune gene expression and that infected females suffered increased mortality. Nevertheless, infected and immune-challenged females maintained their normal level of care and reproductive output. There was thus no evidence that infection led to either a decrease or an increase in parental care or reproductive output. Our results show that parental care, which is generally highly flexible, can remain remarkably robust and consistent despite the elevated mortality caused by infection by pathogens. Overall, these findings suggest that infected females maintain a high level of parental care, a strategy that may ensure that offspring receive the necessary amount of care but that might be detrimental to the parents' own survival or that may even facilitate disease transmission to offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tom Ratz
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Katy M Monteith
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Pedro F Vale
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Per T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK
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Moss JB, Moore AJ. Constrained flexibility of parental cooperation limits adaptive responses to harsh conditions. Evolution 2021; 75:1835-1849. [PMID: 34153114 PMCID: PMC8362138 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2021] [Revised: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Parental care is predicted to evolve to mitigate harsh environments, thus adaptive plasticity of care may be an important response to our climate crisis. In biparental species, fitness costs may be reduced by resolving conflict and enhancing cooperation among partners. We investigated this prediction with the burying beetle, Nicrophorus orbicollis, by exposing them to contrasting benign and harsh thermal environments. Despite measurable fitness costs under the harsh environment, sexual conflict persisted in the form of sex-specific social plasticity. That is, females provided equivalent care with or without males, whereas males with partners deserted earlier and reduced provisioning effort. The interaction of social condition and thermal environment did not explain variation in individual behavior, failing to support a temperature-mediated shift from conflict to cooperation. Examining selection gradients and splines on cumulative care revealed a likely explanation for these patterns. Contrary to predictions, increased care did not enhance offspring performance under stress. Rather, different components of care were under different selection regimes, with optimization constrained due to lack of coordination between parents. We suggest that the potential for parenting to ameliorate the effects of our climate crisis may depend on the sex-specific evolutionary drivers of parental care, and that this may be best reflected in components of care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeanette B Moss
- Department of Entomology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, 30602, USA.,Current Address: Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, 61801, USA
| | - Allen J Moore
- Department of Entomology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, 30602, USA
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8
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9
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Males and females of a polygamous songbird respond differently to mating opportunities. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-021-03000-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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10
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Schrader M, Keller MK, Lucey GF. Adaptation to monogamy influences parental care but not mating behavior in the burying beetle, Nicrophorus vespilloides. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:6525-6535. [PMID: 32724530 PMCID: PMC7381755 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2020] [Revised: 04/03/2020] [Accepted: 04/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
The mating system is expected to have an important influence on the evolution of mating and parenting behaviors. Although many studies have used experimental evolution to examine how mating behaviors evolve under different mating systems, this approach has seldom been used to study the evolution of parental care. We used experimental evolution to test whether adaptation to different mating systems involves changes in mating and parenting behaviors in populations of the burying beetle, Nicrophorus vespilloides. We maintained populations under monogamy or promiscuity for six generations. This manipulation had an immediate impact on reproductive performance and adult survival. Compared to monogamy, promiscuity reduced brood size and adult (particularly male) survival during breeding. After six generations of experimental evolution, there was no divergence between monogamous and promiscuous populations in mating behaviors. Parents from the promiscuous populations (especially males) displayed less care than parents from the monogamous populations. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that male care will increase with the certainty of paternity. However, it appears that this change is not associated with a concurrent change in mating behaviors.
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11
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Strickland K, Frère CH. Individual Variation in the Social Plasticity of Water Dragons. Am Nat 2019; 194:194-206. [DOI: 10.1086/704089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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12
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Carter MJ, Wilson AJ, Moore AJ, Royle NJ. The role of indirect genetic effects in the evolution of interacting reproductive behaviors in the burying beetle, Nicrophorus vespilloides. Ecol Evol 2019; 9:998-1009. [PMID: 30805136 PMCID: PMC6374716 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.4731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2018] [Revised: 10/22/2018] [Accepted: 10/24/2018] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
Social interactions can give rise to indirect genetic effects (IGEs), which occur when genes expressed in one individual affect the phenotype of another individual. The evolutionary dynamics of traits can be altered when there are IGEs. Sex often involves indirect effects arising from first-order (current) or second-order (prior) social interactions, yet IGEs are infrequently quantified for reproductive behaviors. Here, we use experimental populations of burying beetles that have experienced bidirectional selection on mating rate to test for social plasticity and IGEs associated with focal males mating with a female either without (first-order effect) or with (second-order effect) prior exposure to a competitor, and resource defense behavior (first-order effect). Additive IGEs were detected for mating rate arising from (first-order) interactions with females. For resource defense behavior, a standard variance partitioning analysis provided no evidence of additive genetic variance-either direct or indirect. However, behavior was predicted by focal size relative to that of the competitor, and size is also heritable. Assuming that behavior is causally dependent on relative size, this implies that both DGEs and IGEs do occur (and may potentially interact). The relative contribution of IGEs may differ among social behaviors related to mating which has consequences for the evolutionary trajectories of multivariate traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mauricio J. Carter
- Centre for Ecology and ConservationUniversity of ExeterPenrynUK
- Present address:
Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ciencias de la VidaUniversidad Andrés BelloRepública 440SantiagoChile
| | | | - Allen J. Moore
- Centre for Ecology and ConservationUniversity of ExeterPenrynUK
- Present address:
Department of EntomologyCollege of Agricultural and Environmental SciencesUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGA30602‐7503USA
| | - Nick J. Royle
- Centre for Ecology and ConservationUniversity of ExeterPenrynUK
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Smiseth PT, Royle NJ. The resolution of conflict in families. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2018; 28:8-12. [PMID: 30551771 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2018.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2018] [Revised: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 03/12/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The emergence of family groups is associated with conflict over the allocation of food or other limited resources. Understanding the mechanisms mediating the resolution of such conflict is a major aim in behavioral ecology. Most empirical work on familial conflict has focused on birds. Here, we highlight how recent work on insects provides new and exciting insights into how such conflict is resolved. This work shows that conflict resolution can be more complex than traditionally envisioned, often involving multiple mechanisms. For example, it shows that the resolution of sexual conflict involves a combination of behavioral negotiation, direct assessment of partner's state, and manipulation using anti-aphrodisiacs or prenatal maternal effects. Furthermore, it highlights that there is a shift from the traditional emphasis on conflict (and competition) to a greater emphasis on the balance between conflict on the one hand and cooperation on the other.
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Affiliation(s)
- P T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK.
| | - N J Royle
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn TR10 9EZ, UK
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14
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Keppner EM, Ayasse M, Steiger S. Manipulation of parental nutritional condition reveals competition among family members. J Evol Biol 2018; 31:822-832. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2017] [Accepted: 02/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Eva M. Keppner
- Institute for Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics; Ulm University; Ulm Germany
| | - Manfred Ayasse
- Institute for Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics; Ulm University; Ulm Germany
| | - Sandra Steiger
- Institute for Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics; Ulm University; Ulm Germany
- Institute of Insect Biotechnology; University of Gießen; Gießen Germany
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15
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Smith AN, Creighton JC, Belk MC. Why does it take two to tango? Lifetime fitness consequences of parental care in a burying beetle. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0186466. [PMID: 29088220 PMCID: PMC5663378 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0186466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Accepted: 10/02/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In species that require parental care, each parent can either care for their offspring or leave them in the care of the other parent. For each parent this creates three possible parental care strategies: biparental care, uniparental (male or female) care, and uniparental desertion by either the male or female. The burying beetle, Nicrophorus orbicollis, typically exhibits biparental care of offspring, and thus provides a unique system that allows us to compare the fitness benefits of these parental care strategies in an unconfounded way. In this study, we assess the lifetime fitness of biparental care, uniparental care, and uniparental desertion strategies in both male and female N. orbicollis. Specifically, we tested for increased fitness of the biparental care strategy compared to uniparental care strategies. Second, we test for equality of fitness between uniparental care and uniparental desertion strategies. Surprisingly, biparental care yields lower lifetime fitness for both parents compared to the other two strategies. Also, uniparental care and uniparental desertion strategies yielded equal fitness. The evolution of biparental care in this system is not consistent with the expectation of a mutual fitness benefit. We discuss other potential explanations for the evolution of biparental care in this system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashlee N. Smith
- Biology Department, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, United States of America
| | - J. Curtis Creighton
- Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University Northwest, Hammond, IN, United States of America
| | - Mark C. Belk
- Biology Department, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, United States of America
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16
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Rosa ME, Barta Z, Fülöp A, Székely T, Kosztolányi A. The effects of adult sex ratio and density on parental care in Lethrus apterus (Coleoptera, Geotrupidae). Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.07.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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17
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Pascoal S, Kilner RM. Development and application of 14 microsatellite markers in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides reveals population genetic differentiation at local spatial scales. PeerJ 2017; 5:e3278. [PMID: 28480146 PMCID: PMC5417058 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.3278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2017] [Accepted: 04/06/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Burying beetles (genus Nicrophorus) are relatively rare among insects in providing sophisticated parental care. Consequently, they have become model species in research analysing social evolution, the evolution of parental care and mating systems. We used the recently published N. vespilloides genome and transcriptome to develop microsatellite markers. Specifically, we developed 14 polymorphic markers with five to 13 alleles per locus and used them to investigate levels of genetic differentiation in four south Cambridgeshire (UK) populations of N. vespilloides, separated by 21 km at most. The markers revealed significant genetic structuring among populations (global FST = 0.023) with all but one of the pairwise comparisons among populations being significant. The single exception was the comparison between the two closest populations, which are approximately 2.5 km apart. In general, the microsatellite markers showed lower observed heterozygosity than expected. We infer that there is limited dispersal between populations and potentially also some inbreeding within them and suggest that this may be due to habitat fragmentation. We discuss these results in the context of recent laboratory experiments on inbreeding and beetle flight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonia Pascoal
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Rebecca M Kilner
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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18
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Paquet M, Wotherspoon R, Smiseth PT. Caring males do not respond to cues about losses in paternity in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.03.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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19
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Stockley P, Hobson L. Paternal care and litter size coevolution in mammals. Proc Biol Sci 2017; 283:rspb.2016.0140. [PMID: 27097924 PMCID: PMC4855383 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.0140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2016] [Accepted: 03/24/2016] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Biparental care of offspring occurs in diverse mammalian genera and is particularly common among species with socially monogamous mating systems. Despite numerous well-documented examples, however, the evolutionary causes and consequences of paternal care in mammals are not well understood. Here, we investigate the evolution of paternal care in relation to offspring production. Using comparative analyses to test for evidence of evolutionary associations between male care and life-history traits, we explore if biparental care is likely to have evolved because of the importance of male care to offspring survival, or if evolutionary increases in offspring production are likely to result from the evolution of biparental care. Overall, we find no evidence that paternal care has evolved in response to benefits of supporting females to rear particularly costly large offspring or litters. Rather, our findings suggest that increases in offspring production are more likely to follow the evolution of paternal care, specifically where males contribute depreciable investment such as provisioning young. Through coevolution with litter size, we conclude that paternal care in mammals is likely to play an important role in stabilizing monogamous mating systems and could ultimately promote the evolution of complex social behaviours.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paula Stockley
- Mammalian Behaviour and Evolution Group, Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus, Chester High Road, Neston CH64 7TE, UK
| | - Liane Hobson
- Mammalian Behaviour and Evolution Group, Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus, Chester High Road, Neston CH64 7TE, UK
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20
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Royle NJ, Alonzo SH, Moore AJ. Co-evolution, conflict and complexity: what have we learned about the evolution of parental care behaviours? Curr Opin Behav Sci 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2016.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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21
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Effects of larval versus adult density conditions on reproduction and behavior of a leaf beetle. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-016-2212-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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22
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Abstract
How is sexual conflict during reproduction resolved when parents collaborate to rear offspring? A new study shows that female burying beetles communicate their hormonal status to their male partners to avoid costly superfluous mating, using an anti-aphrodisiac pheromone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nick J Royle
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK.
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23
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Benowitz KM, Moore AJ. Biparental care is predominant and beneficial to parents in the burying beetle Nicrophorus orbicollis (Coleoptera: Silphidae). Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2016; 119:1082-1088. [PMID: 28025585 DOI: 10.1111/bij.12830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Parenting strategies can be flexible within a species, and may have varying fitness effects. Understanding this flexibility and its fitness consequences is important for understanding why parenting strategies evolve. Here, we investigate the fitness consequences of flexible parenting in the burying beetle Nicrophorus orbicollis, a species known for its advanced provisioning behaviour of regurgitated vertebrate carrion to offspring by both sexes. We show that even when a parent is freely allowed to abandon the carcass at any point in time, biparental post-hatching care is the most common pattern of care adopted in N. orbicollis. Furthermore, two parents together raised more offspring than single parents of either sex, showing that the presence of the male can directly influences parental fitness even in the absence of competitors. This contrasts with studies in other species of burying beetle, where biparental families do not differ in offspring number. This may explain why biparental care is more common in N. orbicollis than in other burying beetles. We suggest how fitness benefits of two parents may play a role in the evolution and maintenance of flexible biparental care in N. orbicollis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle M Benowitz
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
| | - Allen J Moore
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
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Hopwood PE, Head ML, Jordan EJ, Carter MJ, Davey E, Moore AJ, Royle NJ. Selection on an antagonistic behavioral trait can drive rapid genital coevolution in the burying beetle, Nicrophorus vespilloides. Evolution 2016; 70:1180-8. [PMID: 27144373 PMCID: PMC5089618 DOI: 10.1111/evo.12938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2015] [Revised: 03/21/2016] [Accepted: 04/12/2016] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Male and female genital morphology varies widely across many taxa, and even among populations. Disentangling potential sources of selection on genital morphology is problematic because each sex is predicted to respond to adaptations in the other due to reproductive conflicts of interest. To test how variation in this sexual conflict trait relates to variation in genital morphology we used our previously developed artificial selection lines for high and low repeated mating rates. We selected for high and low repeated mating rates using monogamous pairings to eliminate contemporaneous female choice and male-male competition. Male and female genital shape responded rapidly to selection on repeated mating rate. High and low mating rate lines diverged from control lines after only 10 generations of selection. We also detected significant patterns of male and female genital shape coevolution among selection regimes. We argue that because our selection lines differ in sexual conflict, these results support the hypothesis that sexually antagonistic coevolution can drive the rapid divergence of genital morphology. The greatest divergence in morphology corresponded with lines in which the resolution of sexual conflict over mating rate was biased in favor of male interests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul E Hopwood
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - Megan L Head
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, United Kingdom.,Division of Evolution, Ecology and Genetics, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Acton, ACT, 0200, Australia
| | - Eleanor J Jordan
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - Mauricio J Carter
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, United Kingdom.,Centro Nacional del Medio Ambiente. Fundación de la Universidad de Chile, Av. Larrain 9975, La Reina, Santiago, Chile
| | - Emma Davey
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, United Kingdom
| | - Allen J Moore
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, United Kingdom.,Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, 30602
| | - Nick J Royle
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, TR10 9FE, United Kingdom.
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Hopwood PE, Mazué GPF, Carter MJ, Head ML, Moore AJ, Royle NJ. Do female Nicrophorus vespilloides reduce direct costs by choosing males that mate less frequently? Biol Lett 2016; 12:20151064. [PMID: 26979560 PMCID: PMC4843223 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2015.1064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Sexual conflict occurs when selection to maximize fitness in one sex does so at the expense of the other sex. In the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides, repeated mating provides assurance of paternity at a direct cost to female reproductive productivity. To reduce this cost, females could choose males with low repeated mating rates or smaller, servile males. We tested this by offering females a dichotomous choice between males from lines selected for high or low mating rate. Each female was then allocated her preferred or non-preferred male to breed. Females showed no preference for males based on whether they came from lines selected for high or low mating rates. Pairs containing males from high mating rate lines copulated more often than those with low line males but there was a negative relationship between female size and number of times she mated with a non-preferred male. When females bred with their preferred male the number of offspring reared increased with female size but there was no such increase when breeding with non-preferred males. Females thus benefited from being choosy, but this was not directly attributable to avoidance of costly male repeated mating.
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Affiliation(s)
- P E Hopwood
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn TR10 9EZ, UK
| | - G P F Mazué
- Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - M J Carter
- Centro Nacional del Medio Ambiente, Universidad de Chile, Avenida Larrain 9975, La Reina, Santiago, Chile
| | - M L Head
- Division of Evolution, Ecology and Genetics, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Acton, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia
| | - A J Moore
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - N J Royle
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn TR10 9EZ, UK
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26
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Weigel EG, Tinghitella RM, Boughman JW. No evidence for adjustment of maternal investment under alternative mate availability regimes. JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY 2016; 88:508-522. [PMID: 26508506 DOI: 10.1111/jfb.12793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2015] [Accepted: 09/07/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Using treatments that mimic high and low availability of reproductive males, it was found that female three-spined sticklebacks Gasterosteus aculeatus, previously shown to adjust their mate choices when male mates were rare, did not alter their reproductive investment strategies. These results suggest that plasticity in investment is perhaps limited by physiological requirements or dependent on relatively extreme mate availability regimes. The probability of becoming reproductive, number of clutches per season (per female), initial clutch size and mass and the timing of reproduction were all independent of the experience a female had with mate availability. This suggests that pre-copulatory plasticity in reproductive strategies may contribute more to variation in the strength and direction of sexual selection than reproductive investment in offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- E G Weigel
- Department of Zoology, Michigan State University, 288 Farm Lane Road RM 203, East Lansing, MI 48824, U.S.A
- BEACON Center for the Study of Evolution in Action, Michigan State University, Biomedical and Physical Sciences Building, 567 Wilson Road Room 1441, East Lansing, MI 48824, U.S.A
| | - R M Tinghitella
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Denver, F. W. Olin Hall, Room 102, 2190 E. Iliff Ave, Denver, CO 80208-9010, U.S.A
| | - J W Boughman
- Department of Zoology, Michigan State University, 288 Farm Lane Road RM 203, East Lansing, MI 48824, U.S.A
- BEACON Center for the Study of Evolution in Action, Michigan State University, Biomedical and Physical Sciences Building, 567 Wilson Road Room 1441, East Lansing, MI 48824, U.S.A
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Hopwood PE, Moore AJ, Tregenza T, Royle NJ. The effect of size and sex ratio experiences on reproductive competition in Nicrophorus vespilloides burying beetles in the wild. J Evol Biol 2016; 29:541-50. [PMID: 26749372 PMCID: PMC4785605 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2015] [Revised: 11/24/2015] [Accepted: 11/27/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Male parents face a choice: should they invest more in caring for offspring or in attempting to mate with other females? The most profitable course depends on the intensity of competition for mates, which is likely to vary with the population sex ratio. However, the balance of pay‐offs may vary among individual males depending on their competitive prowess or attractiveness. We tested the prediction that sex ratio and size of the resource holding male provide cues regarding the level of mating competition prior to breeding and therefore influence the duration of a male's biparental caring in association with a female. Male burying beetles, Nicrophorus vespilloides were reared, post‐eclosion, in groups that differed in sex ratio. Experimental males were subsequently translocated to the wild, provided with a breeding resource (carcass) and filmed. We found no evidence that sex ratio cues prior to breeding affected future parental care behaviour but males that experienced male‐biased sex ratios took longer to attract wild mating partners. Smaller males attracted a higher proportion of females than did larger males, securing significantly more monogamous breeding associations as a result. Smaller males thus avoided competitive male–male encounters more often than larger males. This has potential benefits for their female partners who avoid both intrasexual competition and direct costs of higher mating frequency associated with competing males.
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Affiliation(s)
- P E Hopwood
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Biosciences, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - A J Moore
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Biosciences, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK.,Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - T Tregenza
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Biosciences, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - N J Royle
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Biosciences, College of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
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28
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Erratum. J Evol Biol 2016; 29:226. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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