Although the majority of studies on mate choice focus on female mate choice, there is growing recognition of the role of male mate choice too. Male mate choice is tightly linked to 2 other phenomena： female competiti...Although the majority of studies on mate choice focus on female mate choice, there is growing recognition of the role of male mate choice too. Male mate choice is tightly linked to 2 other phenomena： female competition for males and ornamentation in females. In the current article, I review the existing literature on this in a group of fishes, Poeciliidae. In this group, male mate choice appears to be based on differences in female quality, especially female size, which is a proxy for fecundity. Some males also have to choose between heterospecific and conspecific females in the unusual mating system of the Amazon molly. In this case, they typically show a preference for conspecific females. Whereas male mate choice is relatively well documented for this family, female ornamentation and female competition are not.展开更多
Sexual ornaments contribute substantially to phenotypic diversity and it is particularly relevant to understand their evolution. Ornaments can assume the function of signals-of-quality that the choosy sex uses to eval...Sexual ornaments contribute substantially to phenotypic diversity and it is particularly relevant to understand their evolution. Ornaments can assume the function of signals-of-quality that the choosy sex uses to evaluate potential mating partners. Often there are no obvious direct benefits and investment into mate choice is primarily rewarded by beneficial alleles that are inherited to the offspring. Inter-sexual communication via sexual ornaments requires honesty of the sexual signal, yet the question of what maintains honesty remains only partially solved. One solution is that honesty is maintained by trait expression being dependent on individual condition, since condition-dependent trait expression offers an effectively inexhaustible source of genetic variability. Here we test in the highly sexually dimorphic club-legged grasshopper Gomphocerus sibiricus if putative sexual ornaments, in particular the striking front-leg clubs, are more strongly affected by a lipopolysaccharide （LPS） immune challenge than putatively not sexually selected traits. Our results show overall little condition-dependent expression of morphological and song traits, with sexually selected traits exhibiting effects comparable to nonsexually selected traits （with the possible exception of stridulatory file length and syllable-to-pause ratio in advertisement songs）. Interestingly, field observations of individuals of lethally parasitized individuals suggest that a very strong environmental challenge can specifically affect the expression of the front-leg clubs. The presence of 1% of males in natural populations with missing or heavily deformed clubs plus 5% with minor club deformations furthermore indicate that there are risks associated with club development during final ecdysis and this might act as a filter against deleterious alleles.展开更多
An understanding of the relative importance of extrinsic and intrinsic factors in determining the potential distribution and mating success of individuals is critical for the successful monitoring and management of pe...An understanding of the relative importance of extrinsic and intrinsic factors in determining the potential distribution and mating success of individuals is critical for the successful monitoring and management of pest species. Using a combination of field observations and a caged field experiment, we explored the roles of environmental and individual variation on the formation of mating aggregations and mating success in the buprestid beetle Capnodis tenebrionis （Linnaeus, 1767）, a pest species of stone fruit trees. Our field observations revealed that the formation of aggregations is influenced by a range of environmental factors including temperature, photoperiod, and population density. However, aggregations were not at random and were more likely to occur on the section of the plant with highest incidence of solar radiation and thus higher temperatures. Data from our experiment with caged beetles in the field further indicate that the reproductive behavior of this species varies with temperature. The probability of a successful mating occurring was also positively related to both male and female size. Females of C. tenebrionis mate several times over a 4-h period, but generally not with the same male. Information obtained from these studies is useful to define the most appropriate time for pest control, especially adopting strategies that interfere with reproduction.展开更多
文摘Although the majority of studies on mate choice focus on female mate choice, there is growing recognition of the role of male mate choice too. Male mate choice is tightly linked to 2 other phenomena： female competition for males and ornamentation in females. In the current article, I review the existing literature on this in a group of fishes, Poeciliidae. In this group, male mate choice appears to be based on differences in female quality, especially female size, which is a proxy for fecundity. Some males also have to choose between heterospecific and conspecific females in the unusual mating system of the Amazon molly. In this case, they typically show a preference for conspecific females. Whereas male mate choice is relatively well documented for this family, female ornamentation and female competition are not.
文摘Sexual ornaments contribute substantially to phenotypic diversity and it is particularly relevant to understand their evolution. Ornaments can assume the function of signals-of-quality that the choosy sex uses to evaluate potential mating partners. Often there are no obvious direct benefits and investment into mate choice is primarily rewarded by beneficial alleles that are inherited to the offspring. Inter-sexual communication via sexual ornaments requires honesty of the sexual signal, yet the question of what maintains honesty remains only partially solved. One solution is that honesty is maintained by trait expression being dependent on individual condition, since condition-dependent trait expression offers an effectively inexhaustible source of genetic variability. Here we test in the highly sexually dimorphic club-legged grasshopper Gomphocerus sibiricus if putative sexual ornaments, in particular the striking front-leg clubs, are more strongly affected by a lipopolysaccharide （LPS） immune challenge than putatively not sexually selected traits. Our results show overall little condition-dependent expression of morphological and song traits, with sexually selected traits exhibiting effects comparable to nonsexually selected traits （with the possible exception of stridulatory file length and syllable-to-pause ratio in advertisement songs）. Interestingly, field observations of individuals of lethally parasitized individuals suggest that a very strong environmental challenge can specifically affect the expression of the front-leg clubs. The presence of 1% of males in natural populations with missing or heavily deformed clubs plus 5% with minor club deformations furthermore indicate that there are risks associated with club development during final ecdysis and this might act as a filter against deleterious alleles.
文摘An understanding of the relative importance of extrinsic and intrinsic factors in determining the potential distribution and mating success of individuals is critical for the successful monitoring and management of pest species. Using a combination of field observations and a caged field experiment, we explored the roles of environmental and individual variation on the formation of mating aggregations and mating success in the buprestid beetle Capnodis tenebrionis （Linnaeus, 1767）, a pest species of stone fruit trees. Our field observations revealed that the formation of aggregations is influenced by a range of environmental factors including temperature, photoperiod, and population density. However, aggregations were not at random and were more likely to occur on the section of the plant with highest incidence of solar radiation and thus higher temperatures. Data from our experiment with caged beetles in the field further indicate that the reproductive behavior of this species varies with temperature. The probability of a successful mating occurring was also positively related to both male and female size. Females of C. tenebrionis mate several times over a 4-h period, but generally not with the same male. Information obtained from these studies is useful to define the most appropriate time for pest control, especially adopting strategies that interfere with reproduction.
