Nonrandom mate choice by females of Drosophila pseudoobscura: a case of outbreeding avoidance?

1985 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 334-339 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Harmsen ◽  
L. R. McKay
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Assortative Mating ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Alternative Explanation ◽  
Random Mating ◽  
Drosophila Pseudoobscura ◽  
Positive Assortative Mating ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Different Strains

Relative mating success of genetically different males of Drosophila pseudoobscura was measured with five female strains using an experimental set-up consisting of a mating chamber containing 20 females of one strain and a total of 20 males of two different strains. No evidence was found indicating negative assortative mating, neither of the direct type, nor of the "rare male" type. Some strains, however, displayed strong positive assortative mating, as males of the same strain as the females were significantly more successful in obtaining copulations than were males of another strain present in the mating chambers. Deviations from random mating can be interpreted as the result of some males possessing higher levels of "vigour," but an alternative explanation is favoured, one involving female choice. Experimental results do indicate that the orange-eyed mutant flies, used as one of the male strains in all experiments, did have a relatively low level of courtship vigour, but not low enough to account for more than a small fraction of the differential mating success observed in some of the experiments.

scholarly journals Disentangling the mechanisms of mate choice in a captive koala population

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Parice A Brandies ◽  
Catherine E Grueber ◽  
Jamie A Ivy ◽  
Carolyn J Hogg ◽  
Professor K Belov
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Captive Breeding ◽  
Genetic Determinants ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Breeding Programs ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Captive Breeding Programs

Successful captive breeding programs are crucial to the long-term survival of threatened species. However, pair incompatibility limits sustainability of many captive populations. Understanding whether the drivers of this incompatibility are behavioural or genetic, or a combination of both, is crucial to improving breeding programs. We used twenty-eight years of pairing data from the San Diego Zoo koala colony, plus genetic analyses using both MHC-linked and non-MHC-linked microsatellite markers, to show that both behavioural and genetic determinants can influence mating success. Male age was reconfirmed to be a contributing factor to the likelihood of a pair copulating. Familiarity was also reconfirmed to increase the probability of a successful copulation. Our data provided evidence that females select mates based on MHC and genome-wide similarity. Male heterozygosity at class II MHC loci influenced both pre- and post-copulatory female choice. Genome-wide similarity and similarity at the MHCII DAB locus were also found to influence female choice at the post-copulatory level. Finally, certain MHC-linked alleles were associated with increased or decreased mating success. We predict that utilising a variety of behavioural and MHC-dependent mate choice mechanisms improves female fitness through increased reproductive success. This study highlights the complexity of mate choice mechanisms within a species and the importance of ascertaining mate choice mechanisms to improve the success of captive breeding programs.

Symmetrical and asymmetrical sexual isolation among laboratory strains of Drosophila ananassae

1985 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 405-409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bashisth N. Singh ◽  
Sujata Chatterjee
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Reproductive Isolation ◽  
Assortative Mating ◽  
Sexual Isolation ◽  
Drosophila Ananassae ◽  
Isofemale Lines ◽  
Male Choice ◽  
Positive Assortative Mating ◽  
Different Strains ◽  
Assortive Mating

Male-choice experiments using five isofemale lines of Drosophila ananassae originating from different localities were performed to study sexual isolation within the species. In most of the crosses homogamic matings outnumber heterogamic ones, and deviation from randomness is statistically significant in 11 of 20 crosses. This provides evidence for positive assortative mating within D. ananassae. Isolation indices range from −0.057 to 0.555. Eleven positive isolation indices are significantly greater than zero. Both types of sexual isolation, symmetrical and asymmetrical, have been observed among different strains. Thus the present results clearly indicate that the laboratory strains of D. ananassae have developed behavioural reproductive isolation as a result of genetic divergence.Key words: Drosophila, assortive mating, sexual selection, behaviour.

scholarly journals Disentangling the mechanisms of mate choice in a captive koala population

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Parice A Brandies ◽  
Catherine E Grueber ◽  
Jamie A Ivy ◽  
Carolyn J Hogg ◽  
Professor K Belov
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Captive Breeding ◽  
Genetic Determinants ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Breeding Programs ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Captive Breeding Programs

Successful captive breeding programs are crucial to the long-term survival of threatened species. However, pair incompatibility limits sustainability of many captive populations. Understanding whether the drivers of this incompatibility are behavioural or genetic, or a combination of both, is crucial to improving breeding programs. We used twenty-eight years of pairing data from the San Diego Zoo koala colony, plus genetic analyses using both MHC-linked and non-MHC-linked microsatellite markers, to show that both behavioural and genetic determinants can influence mating success. Male age was reconfirmed to be a contributing factor to the likelihood of a pair copulating. Familiarity was also reconfirmed to increase the probability of a successful copulation. Our data provided evidence that females select mates based on MHC and genome-wide similarity. Male heterozygosity at class II MHC loci influenced both pre- and post-copulatory female choice. Genome-wide similarity and similarity at the MHCII DAB locus were also found to influence female choice at the post-copulatory level. Finally, certain MHC-linked alleles were associated with increased or decreased mating success. We predict that utilising a variety of behavioural and MHC-dependent mate choice mechanisms improves female fitness through increased reproductive success. This study highlights the complexity of mate choice mechanisms within a species and the importance of ascertaining mate choice mechanisms to improve the success of captive breeding programs.

scholarly journals Female mate choice across spatial scales: influence of lek and male attributes on mating success of blue-crowned manakins

2009 ◽  
Vol 276 (1663) ◽  
pp. 1875-1881 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renata Durães ◽  
Bette A. Loiselle ◽  
Patricia G. Parker ◽  
John G. Blake
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Genetic Quality ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Genetic Benefits

Lekking males compete for females within and among leks, yet female choice is expected to work differently at each of these spatial scales. We used paternity analyses to examine how lek versus male attributes influence mate choice in the blue-crowned manakin Lepidothrix coronata . We tested the hypotheses that females prefer (i) to mate at larger leks where a larger number of potential mates can be assessed, (ii) to mate with unrelated or highly heterozygous males expected to produce high-quality offspring, (iii) to mate with males that display at higher rates, and that (iv) display honestly reflects male genetic quality. Our results show that (i) males at larger leks are not more likely to sire young, although females nesting close to small leks travel further to reach larger leks, (ii) siring males are not less related to females or more heterozygous than expected, (iii) within a lek, high-display males are more likely to sire young, and (iv) both male heterozygosity and display rate increased with lek size, and as a result display does not reliably reflect male genetic quality across leks. We suggest that female mate choice in this species is probably driven by a Fisherian process rather than adaptive genetic benefits.

Look ahead mate selection schemes for multi-breed beef populations

2002 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Hayes ◽  
R.K. Shepherd ◽  
S. Newman
Keyword(s):  
Assortative Mating ◽  
Maternal Effects ◽  
Mate Selection ◽  
Selection Index ◽  
Random Mating ◽  
Breeding Value ◽  
Look Ahead ◽  
Positive Assortative Mating ◽  
Closed Populations ◽  
Positive Significant Correlation

AbstractLook ahead mate selection (LAMS) schemes have been proposed to improve longer-term genetic merit when both selection and crossbreeding are important. We investigate the performance of a LAMS scheme which includes both predicted progeny merit and predicted grandprogeny merit in a mate selection index (MSI). Simulation of a multi-breed beef population, with additive breeding values, direct and maternal breed effects and direct and maternal heterosis was used to compare response from the LAMS scheme to mate selection on progeny merit only (PROG), selection on estimated breeding value (EBV) followed by random mating (RAND) and a structured crossbreeding scheme (CROSS). An additional strategy, LAMS + CO, was similar to LAMS but included a negative weighting on the coancestry of selected animals in the MSI to reduce inbreeding. LAMS gave up to 3% greater response in generation eight than PROG, 4·5% greater response than RAND, and 15% greater response than CROSS. Results from LAMS + CO were very similar to LAMS but inbreeding was 11% less from LAMS + CO at generation eight. The advantage of LAMS and LAMS + CO over PROG in later generations was hypothesized to be the result of positive assortative mating and greater use of maternal effects. Evidence to support the hypothesis of assortative mating was a positive significant correlation of EBVs of mates (sires and dams) in LAMS and LAMS + CO but not in PROG. Strategies PROG, LAMS and LAMS + CO all created closed populations of animals with optimum composite breed proportions.

scholarly journals Positive assortative mating between recently described sympatric morphs of Icelandic sticklebacks

2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 250-252 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gudbjörg Á Ólafsdóttir ◽  
Michael G Ritchie ◽  
Sigurdur S Snorrason
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Reproductive Isolation ◽  
Assortative Mating ◽  
Gasterosteus Aculeatus ◽  
Sympatric Speciation ◽  
Threespine Stickleback ◽  
Positive Assortative Mating ◽  
Important Character ◽  
Nest Type ◽  
Sympatric Morphs

Recently, models of sympatric speciation have suggested that assortative mating can develop between sympatric morphs due to divergence in an ecologically important character. For example, in sympatric pairs of threespine stickleback ( Gasterosteus aculeatus L.) size-assortative mating seems to be instrumental in reproductive isolation. Here, we examine courtship behaviour and assortative mating of newly described sympatric stickleback morphs in Lake Thingvallavatn, Iceland. We find that the two morphs show strong positive assortative mating. However, the mechanism involved in mate choice does not seem to be as straightforward as in other similar systems of sympatric stickleback morphs and may involve variation in nest type.

scholarly journals Disentangling the mechanisms of mate choice in a captive koala population

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e5438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Parice A. Brandies ◽  
Catherine E. Grueber ◽  
Jamie A. Ivy ◽  
Carolyn J. Hogg ◽  
Katherine Belov
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Mhc Class Ii ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Captive Breeding ◽  
Class Ii ◽  
Breeding Programs ◽  
Male Age ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Captive Breeding Programs

Successful captive breeding programs are crucial to the long-term survival of many threatened species. However, pair incompatibility (breeding failure) limits sustainability of many captive populations. Understanding whether the drivers of this incompatibility are behavioral, genetic, or a combination of both, is crucial to improving breeding programs. We used 28 years of pairing data from the San Diego Zoo koala colony, plus genetic analyses using both major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-linked and non-MHC-linked microsatellite markers, to show that both genetic and non-genetic factors can influence mating success. Male age was reconfirmed to be a contributing factor to the likelihood of a koala pair copulating. This trend could also be related to a pair’s age difference, which was highly correlated with male age in our dataset. Familiarity was reconfirmed to increase the probability of a successful copulation. Our data provided evidence that females select mates based on MHC and genome-wide similarity. Male heterozygosity at MHC class II loci was associated with both pre- and post-copulatory female choice. Genome-wide similarity, and similarity at the MHC class II DAB locus, were also associated with female choice at the post-copulatory level. Finally, certain MHC-linked alleles were associated with either increased or decreased mating success. We predict that utilizing a variety of behavioral and MHC-dependent mate choice mechanisms improves female fitness through increased reproductive success. This study highlights the complexity of mate choice mechanisms in a species, and the importance of ascertaining mate choice mechanisms to improve the success of captive breeding programs.

Courtship Feeding and Mate Choice in Thynnine Wasps (Hymenoptera, Tiphiidae)

1987 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 451 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Alcock ◽  
DT Gwynne
Keyword(s):  
Body Weight ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Assortative Mating ◽  
Courtship Feeding ◽  
Positive Assortative Mating ◽  
Males And Females

Females of two species of thynnine wasps, Megalothynnus klugii and Macrothynnus sp., attract mates while perched upright on vegetation close to the ground. When given an experimental choice between two females of different sizes, males of M. klugii carry off and copulate with the larger female significantly more often than they do the smaller one. No such preference was exhibited by males of Macrothynnus sp. Females of both species resist being removed from their calling perches and large males succeed more often than small ones in carrying away very large females. Despite mechanisms allowing a preference for large partners by both males and females in M. klugii, there is no evidence, in nature, of positive assortative mating according to body weight in this species. Various conditions, especially a scarcity of fertilisable females, may severely limit the choice of mates by males of these wasps.

scholarly journals Divergent Selection and Then What Not: The Conundrum of Missing Reproductive Isolation in Misty Lake and Stream Stickleback

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katja Räsänen ◽  
Matthieu Delcourt ◽  
Lauren J. Chapman ◽  
Andrew P. Hendry
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Reproductive Isolation ◽  
Assortative Mating ◽  
Gasterosteus Aculeatus ◽  
Common Garden ◽  
Adaptive Divergence ◽  
Apparent Lack ◽  
Divergent Natural Selection ◽  
Inlet Stream ◽  
Positive Assortative Mating

In ecological speciation, reproductive isolation evolves as a consequence of adaptation to different selective environments. A frequent contributor to this process is the evolution of positive assortative mate choice between ecotypes. We tested this expectation for lake and inlet stream threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) from the Misty system (Vancouver Island, Canada), which show strong genetically based adaptive divergence and little genetic exchange in nature. This, and work on other stickleback systems, led us to expect positive assortative mating. Yet, our standard “no-choice” laboratory experiment on common-garden fish revealed no evidence for this—despite divergence in traits typically mediating assortative mating in stickleback. These results remind us that divergent natural selection may not inevitably lead to the evolution of positive assortative mate choice. The apparent lack of strong and symmetric reproductive barriers in this system presents a conundrum: why are such barriers not evident despite strong adaptive divergence and low gene flow in nature?

scholarly journals Mate choice confers direct benefits to females ofAnastrepha fraterculus(Diptera: Tephritidae)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guillermo E. Bachmann ◽  
Francisco Devescovi ◽  
Ana L. Nussenbaum ◽  
Fabián H. Milla ◽  
Todd E. Shelly ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Mating System ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Male Mating Success ◽  
Lek Mating ◽  
Direct Benefits ◽  
Tephritid Fruit Flies

AbstractExposure to plant compounds and analogues of juvenile hormone (JH) increase male mating success in several species of tephritid fruit flies. Most of these species exhibit a lek mating system, characterized by active female choice. Although the pattern of enhanced male mating success is evident, few studies have investigated what benefits, if any, females gain via choice of exposed males in the lek mating system. In the South American fruit fly,Anastrepha fraterculus, females mate preferentially with males that were exposed to volatiles released by guava fruit or treated with methoprene (a JH analogue). Here, we tested the hypothesis that female choice confers direct fitness benefits in terms of fecundity and fertility. We first carried out mate choice experiments presenting females with males treated and non-treated with guava volatiles or, alternatively, treated and non-treated with methoprene. After we confirm female preference for treated males, we compared the fecundity and fertility between females mated with treated males and non-treated ones. We found thatA. fraterculusfemales that mated with males exposed to guava volatiles showed higher fecundity than females mated to non-exposed males. On the other hand, females that mated methoprene-treated males showed no evidence of direct benefits. Our findings represent the first evidence of a direct benefit associated to female preference for males that were exposed to host fruit odors in tephritid fruit flies. Differences between the two treatments are discussed in evolutionary and pest management terms.

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