Mate Choice and Copulation Frequency in the Burying BeetleNicrophorus quadripunctatus(Coleoptera: Silphidae): Effect of Male Body Size and Presence of a Rival

It is widely assumed that there exists a competition between males for mating and that females prefer males with elaborate male traits. Further, such traits are considered to be synonymous with high quality in terms of benefits to females. The number and duration of copulations and the frequency of mate refusal between large and smallNicrophorus quadripunctatusmales were examined both for single males and for two males competing. The number of copulations was not affected by the size of the male or by the presence of a rival, but there was a significant interaction such that large males increased their number of copulations when a small rival was present. Copulation duration was not affected by male size but was shortened by a rival male. Females rejected copulation attempts of small males more often than of large males, whether the males were alone or paired with a rival. These results suggest that large males have two advantages: they win contests between males and are preferred by females.

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Mating system, mate choice and parental care in a bark beetle

Bulletin of Entomological Research ◽

10.1017/s0007485317000311 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 107 (5) ◽

pp. 611-619 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

O. Baruch ◽

Z. Mendel ◽

I. Scharf ◽

A. R Harari

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Reproductive Success ◽

Mate Choice ◽

Parental Care ◽

Mating System ◽

Assortative Mating ◽

Bark Beetle ◽

Biparental Care ◽

Male Body ◽

Male Body Size

AbstractThe cypress bark beetle,Phloeosinus armatus, is a common element of the dying cypress tree system in East-Mediterranean countries. Adult beetles congregate for breeding on this ephemeral resource. We studied three traits that characterize this beetle's sexual behavior and linked them to its reproductive success: mating system, mate choice, and parental care. We found that the females are the ‘pioneering sex’, excavating the mating chamber. The average female is slightly larger than the male, and female and male body size is correlated, demonstrating size-assortative mating. The time it takes for a male to enter the mating chamber is positively correlated with female size and negatively correlated with its own size, which is perhaps responsible for this assortative mating. Males remain in the gallery during the period of oviposition, gradually leaving soon after the eggs hatch. The number of eggs laid and tunnel length are positively correlated with male body size. Finally, in the presence of both parents, more eggs are laid than when the female alone is present, demonstrating the important contribution of biparental care for reproductive success. We suggest that the interaction between a monogamous mating system, assortative mating, and biparental care contributes to reproductive success.

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Male size and reproductive performance in three species of livebearing fishes (Gambusia spp.): a systematic review and meta-analysis

10.32942/osf.io/59vp4 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Bora Kim ◽

Nicholas Patrick Moran ◽

Klaus Reinhold ◽

Alfredo Sánchez-Tójar

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Sexual Selection ◽

Body Size ◽

Confidence Interval ◽

Reproductive Performance ◽

Female Choice ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Male Body ◽

Male Size ◽

Male Body Size

1. The genus Gambusia represents approximately 45 species of polyandrous livebearing fishes with reversed sexual size dimorphism (i.e. males smaller than females) and with copulation predominantly via male coercion. Male body size has been suggested as an important sexually selected trait, but despite abundant research, evidence for sexual selection on male body size in this genus is mixed. 2. Studies have found that large males have an advantage in both male-male competition and female choice, but that small males perform sneaky copulations better and at higher frequency and thus may sire more offspring in this coercive mating system. Here, we synthesized this discrepant body of evidence in the primary literature. 3. Using pre-registered methods and hypotheses, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis combining published (n = 19 studies, k = 106 effect sizes) and unpublished data (n = 17, k = 242) to test whether there is overall selection on male body size across studies in Gambusia. We also tested several specific hypotheses to understand sources of heterogeneity across effects. 4. Meta-analysis revealed an overall positive correlation between male size and reproductive performance (r = 0.23, 95% confidence interval: 0.10 – 0.35, n = 36, k = 348, 4514 males, three Gambusia species). Despite high heterogeneity, the large-male advantage appeared robust across all measures studied (i.e. female choice, mating success, paternity, sperm quantity and quality), but was considerably larger for female choice (r = 0.43, 95% confidence interval: 0.28 – 0.59, n = 14, k = 43). Meta-regressions found several important factors explaining heterogeneity across effects, including type of sperm characteristic, male-to-female ratio, female reproductive status, and environmental conditions. We found evidence of publication bias; however, its effect on our estimates was attenuated by including a substantial amount of unpublished effects, highlighting the importance of unpublished (open) data for more accurate meta-analytic estimates. 5. In addition to positive selection on male size, our study suggests that we need to rethink the role and form of sexual selection in Gambusia and, more broadly, to consider the ecological factors that affect reproductive behaviour in livebearing fishes.

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A genetic analysis of body size in pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha)

Genome ◽

10.1139/g88-006 ◽

1988 ◽

Vol 30 (1) ◽

pp. 31-35 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Terry D. Beacham ◽

Clyde B. Murray

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Genetic Analysis ◽

Pink Salmon ◽

Oncorhynchus Gorbuscha ◽

Male Body ◽

Male Size ◽

Pink Salmon Oncorhynchus Gorbuscha ◽

Male Body Size ◽

Size Classes ◽

Heritability Estimates

Two small-sized and two large-sized male pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) were mated to each of four females, producing eight families sired by small males and eight sired by large males. The juveniles were reared for 500 d after fry emergence. Juvenile weight in the two male size classes was similar until the spring of the year of maturity, when juveniles sired by large males grew faster than those sired by small ones. Heritability estimates of weight based upon the dam component of variance increased during 500 d of rearing from 0.4 to 0.8. Heritability of weight based upon the sire component of variance generally ranged between 0.1 and 0.3. The large variation in male body size in spawning pink salmon populations may have resulted from different male breeding strategies.Key words: heritability, salmon, body size.

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Mate choice and mate competition influence male body size in Japanese medaka

Animal Behaviour ◽

10.1006/anbe.1997.0682 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 55 (5) ◽

pp. 1151-1163 ◽

Cited By ~ 75

Author(s):

R.D. HOWARD ◽

R.S. MARTENS ◽

S.A. INNIS ◽

J.M. DRNEVICH ◽

J. HALE

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Mate Choice ◽

Japanese Medaka ◽

Mate Competition ◽

Male Body ◽

Male Body Size

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Mate choice in field crickets: can females acoustically detect male body size?

Journal of Ethology ◽

10.1007/s10164-009-0166-8 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 141-151 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

L. Verburgt ◽

J. W. H. Ferguson

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Mate Choice ◽

Male Body ◽

Male Body Size ◽

Field Crickets

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Does divergence in female mate choice affect male size distributions in two cave fish populations?

Biology Letters ◽

10.1098/rsbl.2008.0259 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 4 (5) ◽

pp. 452-454 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

Michael Tobler ◽

Ingo Schlupp ◽

Martin Plath

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Body Size ◽

Mate Choice ◽

Female Choice ◽

Female Mate Choice ◽

Female Preference ◽

Large Male ◽

Male Body ◽

Male Size ◽

Female Mate

Sexual selection by female choice can maintain male traits that are counter selected by natural selection. Alteration of the potential for sexual selection can thus lead to shifts in the expression of male traits. We investigated female mate choice for large male body size in a fish ( Poecilia mexicana ) that, besides surface streams, also inhabits two caves. All four populations investigated, exhibited an ancestral visual preference for large males. However, only one of the cave populations also expressed this female preference in darkness. Hence, the lack of expression of female preference in darkness in the other cave population leads to relaxation of sexual selection for large male body size. While P. mexicana populations with size-specific female mate choice are characterized by a pronounced male size variation, the absence of female choice in one cave coincides with the absence of large bodied males in that population. Our results suggest that population differences in the potential for sexual selection may affect male trait variation.

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Copulation duration and probability of insemination in Anthocoris whitei (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae) as a function of male body size

The Canadian Entomologist ◽

10.4039/ent133109-1 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 133 (1) ◽

pp. 109-117 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

David R. Horton ◽

Tamera M. Lewis ◽

Tonya Hinojosa

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Relative Size ◽

Copulation Duration ◽

Male Body ◽

Male Size ◽

Male And Female ◽

Female Body Size ◽

Duration Of Copulation ◽

Two Temperatures ◽

Increasing Temperature

AbstractThe influence of male and female body size on copulation duration and probability of insemination was determined for Anthocoris whitei Reuter allowed to mate at two temperatures. Copulation duration decreased significantly with increasing male length or increasing relative size (male length divided by female length). Female length had no effect on copulation duration. We interrupted copulation at 20 or 40 min at both 25 and 15 °C to determine the interacting effects of male size, temperature, and copulation duration on probability of insemination. Insemination probabilities increased with increasing male size, increasing temperature, and increased duration of copulation. Large males were more successful than small males at inseminating females at cool temperatures and for severely shortened copulations. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that males of this species experience physical difficulties either in achieving intromission or in forcing sperm through the aedeagus, and that larger body size in males lessens these difficulties.

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