Sexual selection on cuticular hydrocarbons of male sagebrush crickets in the wild

Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) play an essential role in mate recognition in insects but the form and intensity of sexual selection on CHCs has only been evaluated in a handful of studies, and never in a natural population. We quantified sexual selection operating on CHCs in a wild population of sagebrush crickets, a species in which nuptial feeding by females imposes an unambiguous phenotypic marker on males. Multivariate selection analysis revealed a saddle-shaped fitness surface, suggesting a complex interplay between the total abundance of CHCs and specific CHC combinations in their influence on female choice. The fitness surface resulting from two axes of disruptive selection reflected a trade-off between short- and long-chained CHCs, suggesting that males may be sacrificing some level of desiccation resistance in favour of increased attractiveness. There was a significant correlation between male body size and total CHC abundance, suggesting that male CHCs provide females with a reliable cue for maximizing benefits obtained from males. Notwithstanding the conspicuousness of males’ acoustic signals, our results suggest that selection imposed on males via female mating preferences may be far more complex than previously appreciated and operating in multiple sensory modalities.

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Disruptive sexual selection on male body size in the polyphenic black scavenger fly Sepsis thoracica

Behavioral Ecology ◽

10.1093/beheco/ary038 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 29 (3) ◽

pp. 769-777 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Juan Pablo Busso ◽

Wolf U Blanckenhorn

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Body Size ◽

Reproductive Success ◽

Mating Success ◽

Directional Selection ◽

Disruptive Selection ◽

Simultaneous Occurrence ◽

Male Body ◽

Male Body Size ◽

Starting Point

Abstract Sexual selection has 2 main components, female preference and male–male competition, which can lead males to adopt alternative reproductive tactics to optimize their reproductive success. Two traits that significantly influence reproductive success are body size and coloration, as they can facilitate access to females through male contests or as female attractors. We investigated whether, and if so which mechanism of sexual selection contributes to the maintenance, and possibly even the establishment, of 2 almost discrete male morphs in the polyphenic black scavenger fly Sepsis thoracica (Diptera: Sepsidae): small and black, or large and amber. We performed 2 complementary laboratory experiments to evaluate the mating success of the different male morphs and the behaviors (of both males and females) presumably mediating their mating success. We found evidence for intraspecific disruptive sexual selection on male body size that is mediated by male–male interactions, and significant positive directional selection on body size that interacted with (directional) selection on coloration, likely contributing to the origin and/or maintenance of the threshold relationship between the 2 traits in this species. The simultaneous occurrence of disruptive selection and polyphenism in S. thoracica supports the role of sexual selection in the intraspecific diversification of coupled traits (here body size and coloration), which could be a speciation starting point.

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A study of the use of gas chromatography of cuticular hydrocarbons for identifying members of the Anopheles gambiae (Diptera: Culicidae) complex

Bulletin of Entomological Research ◽

10.1017/s0007485300040049 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 83 (4) ◽

pp. 613-624 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

P.J.M. Milligan ◽

A. Phillips ◽

G. Broomfield ◽

D.H. Molyneux ◽

Y. Touré ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gas Chromatography ◽

Anopheles Gambiae ◽

Cuticular Hydrocarbons ◽

Mate Recognition ◽

Sensu Stricto ◽

Small Sample ◽

Linear Discriminant ◽

Isolating Mechanisms ◽

In The Wild ◽

Rigorous Test

AbstractCuticular hydrocarbons were analysed by gas chromatography (GC) in 564 specimens of the Anopheles gambiae Giles complex from several West African sites, to determine whether individual A. gambiae sensu stricto and A. arabiensis Patton can be reliably identified, and to investigate the extent to which distinct chromosomal forms of A. gambiae sensu stricto, which are ecologically restricted as well as in some cases sexually isolated, can be distinguished by their cuticular hydrocarbons. Sympatric A. arabiensis and A. gambiae sensu stricto at Banambani, Mali could be distinguished with 90% correct identifications using the concentrations of four hydrocarbons in a linear discriminant function, but at a second site in Moribabougou, Mali, A. arabiensis was indistinguishable from a small sample of Bamako form of A. gambiae sensu stricto. Sympatric chromosomal forms of A. gambiae sensu stricto could be separated and clearest differences were found between the Mopti and Bamako forms. Direct gene flow between these forms has been found to be completely lacking despite partial intergradation of each form with the savanna form. Ethological isolating mechanisms between these forms have not however been demonstrated. Estimates of the rates of misclassification between the savanna form and the Mopti and Bamko forms reflect the degree of integradation observed amongst these forms by analysis of karyotype frequency in the wild. Discrimination was poor when an allopatric sample of the Mopti form was compared with other samples. An overall test shows that the proportion of correct classifications in discriminant analysis tends to be higher between sympatric than between allopatric populations; however, more extensive sampling would be needed for a rigorous test. The involvement of cuticular hydrocarbons in specific mate recognition systems is discussed.

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Studies on contact sex pheromones of the caridean shrimpPalaemonetes pugio: I. Cuticular hydrocarbons associated with mate recognition

Invertebrate Reproduction & Development ◽

10.1080/07924259.2009.9652295 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 53 (2) ◽

pp. 93-103 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

JODI L. CASKEY ◽

KARL H. HASENSTEIN ◽

RAYMOND T. BAUER

Keyword(s):

Cuticular Hydrocarbons ◽

Sex Pheromones ◽

Mate Recognition

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Assessing the intensity of sexual selection on male body mass and antler length in roe deer Capreolus capreolus: is bigger better in a weakly dimorphic species?

Oikos ◽

10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18312.x ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 119 (9) ◽

pp. 1484-1492 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Cécile Vanpé ◽

Jean-Michel Gaillard ◽

Petter Kjellander ◽

Olof Liberg ◽

Daniel Delorme ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Body Mass ◽

Roe Deer ◽

Capreolus Capreolus ◽

Male Body ◽

Dimorphic Species

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Speed and accuracy in nest-mate recognition: a hover wasp prioritizes face recognition over colony odour cues to minimize intrusion by outsiders

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2014.2750 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 282 (1802) ◽

pp. 20142750 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

D. Baracchi ◽

I. Petrocelli ◽

L. Chittka ◽

G. Ricciardi ◽

S. Turillazzi

Keyword(s):

Visual Cues ◽

Cuticular Hydrocarbon ◽

Mate Recognition ◽

Social Wasp ◽

False Alarms ◽

Nest Mate ◽

Colony Odour ◽

Sensory Modalities ◽

Chemical Profiles ◽

Serious Injury

Social insects have evolved sophisticated recognition systems enabling them to accept nest-mates but reject alien conspecifics. In the social wasp, Liostenogaster flavolineata (Stenogastrinae), individuals differ in their cuticular hydrocarbon profiles according to colony membership; each female also possesses a unique (visual) facial pattern. This species represents a unique model to understand how vision and olfaction are integrated and the extent to which wasps prioritize one channel over the other to discriminate aliens and nest-mates. Liostenogaster flavolineata females are able to discriminate between alien and nest-mate females using facial patterns or chemical cues in isolation. However, the two sensory modalities are not equally efficient in the discrimination of ‘friend’ from ‘foe’. Visual cues induce an increased number of erroneous attacks on nest-mates (false alarms), but such attacks are quickly aborted and never result in serious injury. Odour cues, presented in isolation, result in an increased number of misses: erroneous acceptances of outsiders. Interestingly, wasps take the relative efficiencies of the two sensory modalities into account when making rapid decisions about colony membership of an individual: chemical profiles are entirely ignored when the visual and chemical stimuli are presented together. Thus, wasps adopt a strategy to ‘err on the safe side’ by memorizing individual faces to recognize colony members, and disregarding odour cues to minimize the risk of intrusion from colony outsiders.

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Mate Recognition and Sex Differences in Cuticular Hydrocarbons of the Diurnal Firefly Ellychnia corrusca (Coleoptera: Lampyridae)

Annals of the Entomological Society of America ◽

10.1603/008.103.0116 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 103 (1) ◽

pp. 128-133 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Qing-Lei Ming ◽

Sara M. Lewis

Keyword(s):

Sex Differences ◽

Cuticular Hydrocarbons ◽

Mate Recognition

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The quantitative genetics of sexual selection in the dung fly Sepsis cynipsea

Behaviour ◽

10.1163/156853904322981888 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 141 (3) ◽

pp. 327-341 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Wolf Blanckenhorn ◽

Claudia Mühlhäuser

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Body Size ◽

Genetic Correlation ◽

Quantitative Genetics ◽

Sexual Conflict ◽

Good Genes ◽

Male Body ◽

Selection Models ◽

Sexually Selected Traits ◽

Mating Cost

AbstractIn the common dung or black scavenger fly Sepsis cynipsea (Diptera: Sepsidae) several morphological and behavioural male and female traits interact during mating. Previous studies show that males attempt to mount females without courtship, females use vigorous shaking behaviour in response to male mounting, the duration of shaking is an indicator of both direct and indirect female choice and sexual conflict, and larger males enjoy a mating advantage. We conducted a quantitative genetic paternal half sib study to investigate the genetic underpinnings of these traits, notably body size (the preferred trait) and the associated female preference, and to assess the relative importance of various models generally proposed to account for the evolution of sexually selected traits. Several morphological traits and female shaking duration were heritable, thus meeting a key requirement of all sexual selection models. In contrast, two traits indicative of male persistence in mating were not. Male longevity was also heritable and negatively correlated with his mating effort, suggesting a mating cost. However, the crucial genetic correlation between male body size and female shaking duration, predicted to be negative by both 'good genes' and Fisherian models and positive by the sexual conflict (or chase-away) model, was zero. This could be because of low power, or because of constraints imposed by the genetic correlation structure. Based on our rsults we conclude that discriminating sexual selection models by sole means of quantitative genetics is difficult, if not impossible.

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