scholarly journals Carotenoids, oxidative stress and female mating preference for longer lived males

2007 ◽  
Vol 274 (1618) ◽  
pp. 1591-1596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas W Pike ◽  
Jonathan D Blount ◽  
Bjørn Bjerkeng ◽  
Jan Lindström ◽  
Neil B Metcalfe
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Gasterosteus Aculeatus ◽  
Reproductive Investment ◽  
Mating Preference ◽  
Implicit Assumption ◽  
Sexual Ornaments ◽  
Sexual Ornament ◽  
Breeding Attempt ◽  
Rate Of Ageing

Some of the most spectacular exaggerated sexual ornaments are carotenoid dependent. It has been suggested that such ornaments have evolved because carotenoid pigments are limiting for both signal expression and in their role as antioxidants and immunostimulants. An implicit assumption of this hypothesis is that males which can afford to produce more elaborate carotenoid-dependent displays are signalling their enhanced ability to resist parasites, disease or oxidative stress and hence would be predicted to live longer. Therefore, in species with carotenoid-dependent ornaments where a parent's future longevity is crucial for determining offspring survival, there should be a mating preference for partners that present the lowest risk of mortality during the breeding attempt, as signalled by the ability to allocate carotenoids to sexual displays. In an experimental study using three-spined sticklebacks ( Gasterosteus aculeatus ), we show that when dietary carotenoid intake is limited, males attempt to maintain their sexual ornament at the expense of body carotenoids and hence suffer from reduced reproductive investment and a shorter lifespan. These males also suffer from an increased susceptibility to oxidative stress, suggesting that this may constitute the mechanism underlying the increased rate of ageing. Furthermore, in pairwise mate-choice trials, females preferred males that had a greater access to carotenoids and chance of surviving the breeding season, suggesting that females can make adaptive mate choice decisions based on a male's carotenoid status and potential future longevity.

scholarly journals Availability of non-carotenoid antioxidants affects the expression of a carotenoid-based sexual ornament

2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 353-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas W Pike ◽  
Jonathan D Blount ◽  
Jan Lindström ◽  
Neil B Metcalfe
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Gasterosteus Aculeatus ◽  
Multiple Roles ◽  
Visual Signal ◽  
Honest Signal ◽  
Animal Kingdom ◽  
Yellow Orange ◽  
Sexual Ornament ◽  
Positive Correlations ◽  
Antioxidant Diet

Carotenoids are responsible for much of the yellow, orange and red pigmentation in the animal kingdom, and the importance of such coloration as an honest signal of individual quality has received widespread attention. In particular, owing to the multiple roles of carotenoids as pigments, antioxidants and immunostimulants, carotenoid-based coloration has been suggested to advertise an individual's antioxidant or immune defence capacity. However, it has recently been argued that carotenoid-based signals may in fact be advertising the availability of different antioxidants, many of which (including various vitamins, antioxidant enzymes and minerals) are colourless and so would be uninformative as components of a visual signal, yet often have greater biological activity than carotenoids. We tested this hypothesis by feeding male sticklebacks ( Gasterosteus aculeatus ) a diet containing a fixed level of carotenoids and either low or high, but biologically realistic levels of the colourless antioxidant vitamins C and E. High-antioxidant diet males produced significantly more intensely coloured (but not larger) carotenoid-based regions of nuptial coloration and were preferred over size-matched males of the opposite diet treatment in mate-choice trials. Furthermore, there were positive correlations between an individual's somatic antioxidant activity and signal intensity. Our data suggest that carotenoid-based ornaments may honestly signal an individual's availability of non-carotenoid antioxidants, allowing females to make adaptive mate-choice decisions.

scholarly journals No male mate choice for female boldness in a bi-parental West African cichlid, the rainbow krib (Pelvicachromis pulcher)

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e5373 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulrike Scherer ◽  
Wiebke Schuett
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Parental Species ◽  
Reproductive Investment ◽  
West African ◽  
Choice Test ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Male Mate Choice ◽  
African Cichlid ◽  
Personality Differences ◽  
Male Mate

Background In many species, males have a lower reproductive investment than females and are therefore assumed to increase their fitness with a high number of matings rather than by being choosy. However, in bi-parental species, also males heavily invest into reproduction. Here, reproductive success largely depends on costly parental care; with style and amount of parental effort in several cases being associated with personality differences (i.e., consistent between-individual differences in behaviour). Nonetheless, very little is known about the effect of personality differences on (male) mate choice in bi-parental species. Methods In the present study, we tested male mate choice for the level and consistency of female boldness in the rainbow krib, Pelviachromis pulcher, a bi-parental and territorial West African cichlid. Individual boldness was assumed to indicate parental quality because it affects parental defence behaviour. For all males and females, boldness was assessed twice as the activity under simulated predation risk. Mate choice trials were conducted in two steps. First, we let a male observe two females expressing their boldness. Then, the male could choose between these two females in a standard mate choice test. Results We tested for a male preference for behavioural (dis-)similarity vs. a directional preference for boldness but our data support the absence of effects of male and/or female boldness (level and consistency) on male mating preference. Discussion Our results suggest female personality differences in boldness may not be selected for via male mate choice.

Interactions between oxidative stress and attractiveness to mates and individual mate choice in the beetle Tenebrio molitor

Ethology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gloria Ruiz‐Guzmán ◽  
Sagrario Cordero‐Molina ◽  
Indrikis Krams ◽  
Jorge Contreras‐Garduño
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Tenebrio Molitor

scholarly journals Within-generation and transgenerational plasticity of mate choice in oceanic stickleback under climate change

2019 ◽  
Vol 374 (1768) ◽  
pp. 20180183 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lukas Fuxjäger ◽  
Sylvia Wanzenböck ◽  
Eva Ringler ◽  
K. Mathias Wegner ◽  
Harald Ahnelt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Environmental Change ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Gasterosteus Aculeatus ◽  
Ocean Warming ◽  
Acclimation Temperature ◽  
Transgenerational Plasticity ◽  
Developmental Temperature ◽  
Sexual Traits

Plasticity, both within and across generations, can shape sexual traits involved in mate choice and reproductive success, and thus direct measures of fitness. Especially, transgenerational plasticity (TGP), where parental environment influences offspring plasticity in future environments, could compensate for otherwise negative effects of environmental change on offspring sexual traits. We conducted a mate choice experiment using stickleback ( Gasterosteus aculeatus ) with different thermal histories (ambient 17°C or elevated 21°C) within and across generations under simulated ocean warming using outdoor mesocosms. Parentage analysis of egg clutches revealed that maternal developmental temperature and reproductive (mesocosm) environment affected egg size, with females that developed at 17°C laying smaller eggs in 21°C mesocosms, likely owing to metabolic costs at elevated temperature. Paternal developmental temperature interacted with the reproductive environment to influence mating success, particularly under simulated ocean warming, with males that developed at 21°C showing lower overall mating success compared with 17°C males, but higher mating success in 21°C mesocosms. Furthermore, mating success of males was influenced by the interaction between F1 developmental temperature and F0 parent acclimation temperature, demonstrating the potential role of both TGP and within-generation plasticity in shaping traits involved in sexual selection and mate choice, potentially facilitating rapid responses to environmental change. This article is part of the theme issue ‘The role of plasticity in phenotypic adaptation to rapid environmental change’.

scholarly journals The effect of male-male competition and ornament size on mean and variance of courtship intensity towards heterospecific and conspecific females

2015 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-131
Author(s):  
Inka Keränen ◽  
Aapo Kahilainen ◽  
Janne S. Kotiaho ◽  
Katja Kuitunen
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Investment ◽  
Search Costs ◽  
Competitive Environment ◽  
Species Discrimination ◽  
Sexual Ornaments ◽  
Courtship Intensity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Mean And Variance ◽  
Calopteryx Splendens

Discrimination between hetero- and conspecifics is the elementary choice an individual performs when searching for potential mates. The level of selectivity and strength of species discrimination is modified by variance in the quality of females, level of the male’s reproductive investment, mate search costs, and the competitive environment. The effect of the competitive environment on both species discrimination and conspecific mate choice has seldom been studied simultaneously. We experimentally manipulated territorial competition ofCalopteryx splendensdamselfly males in the wild, and asked two questions. First, does increased competition influence the territorial males’ responses towards introduced heterospecificC. virgofemales. The effect of the size of the territorial males’ sexual ornaments (wing spot) on their responses towards females was also investigated. Second, does increased competition influence the territorial males’ response towards conspecific females? The effect of the size of the territorial males ornament was again investigated. The mean level of response towards heterospecific females did not change between the control (i.e., no competitors presented) and the competition (i.e., two competitors presented) treatments, but the variance of responses towards heterospecifics was greater in the competition treatment. The territorial males’ responses towards conspecific females did not change between control and competition treatments. These results indicate individual differences in the behavior of males towards heterospecifics when territorial competition was experienced. The observed pattern of discrimination might be adaptive when overall reproductive success is considered.

scholarly journals Mate-choice copying: Status quo and where to go

2015 ◽  
Vol 61 (6) ◽  
pp. 1073-1081 ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaudia Witte ◽  
Nina Kniel ◽  
Ilka Maria Kureck
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Public Information ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Present Evidence ◽  
Sexual Ornaments ◽  
Mate Choice Copying ◽  
Current State ◽  
Choice Strategy ◽  
State Of Research

Abstract Mate-choice copying is a fascinating and widespread mate-choice strategy. Individuals gather public information about potential mates by observing others during sexual interactions and choose or reject the same individual as a mate as the observed individual did before. The influence of copying behavior on an individual’s mate choice can be so strong that socially acquired information can override genetically based preferences for certain phenotypes. Thus, mate-choice copying enforces dynamic processes in sexual selection. Here, we review the current state of research on mate-choice copying and focus on sex-specific aspects. We present evidence that mate-choice copying can support the evolution of novel sexual ornaments, and we discuss potential costs of mate-choice copying when public information is not reliable. Moreover, we discuss the conflict faced by males that copy since mate-choice copying increases sperm competition. In conclusion we suggest interesting topics for future research in mate-choice copying.

scholarly journals A meta-analysis of factors influencing the strength of mate-choice copying in animals

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (6) ◽  
pp. 1279-1290 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alice D Davies ◽  
Zenobia Lewis ◽  
Liam R Dougherty
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Measure Theory ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Reproductive Investment ◽  
Mate Choice Copying ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Taxonomic Range ◽  
Males And Females

Abstract Mate-choice copying is a form of social learning in which an individual’s choice of mate is influenced by the apparent choices of other individuals of the same sex and has been observed in more than 20 species across a broad taxonomic range. Though fitness benefits of copying have proven difficult to measure, theory suggests that copying should not be beneficial for all species or contexts. However, the factors influencing the evolution and expression of copying have proven difficult to resolve. We systematically searched the literature for studies of mate-choice copying in nonhuman animals and, then, performed a phylogenetically controlled meta-analysis to explore which factors influence the expression of copying across species. Across 58 published studies in 23 species, we find strong evidence that animals copy the mate choice of others. The strength of copying was significantly influenced by taxonomic group; however, sample size limitations mean it is difficult to draw firm conclusions regarding copying in mammals and arthropods. The strength of copying was also influenced by experimental design: copying was stronger when choosers were tested before and after witnessing a conspecific’s mate choice compared to when choosers with social information were compared to choosers without. Importantly, we did not detect any difference in the strength of copying between males and females or in relation to the rate of multiple mating. Our search also highlights that more empirical work is needed to investigate copying in a broader range of species, especially those with differing mating systems and levels of reproductive investment.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document