Satellites and Transients: Ecological Constraints On Alternative Mating Tactics in Male Grasshoppers

AbstractAlternative tactics of male mating behaviour, broadly classifiable as "dominant/ territorial" versus "subordinate/non-territorial", have now been described for numerous species. Furthermore, across diverse taxa the mating tactics of subordinate/non-territorial males often appear as one of two distinct types, satellite or transient behaviour. Despite general recognition of this dichotomy, though, little effort has been made to identify the circumstances under which one of these behaviours is adopted over the other. We compared the mating systems of two congeneric species of desert grasshoppers (genus Ligurotettix) to investigate specifically the role of resource dispersion in shaping the behaviour of subordinate males. The utility of the comparative approach derives from two basic similarities between the species: both Ligurotettix coquilletti and Ligurotettix planum feed almost exclusively on a single host plant species, and the majority of males in both species defend individual host plants to gain access to females. However, the two species are associated with host plants that are dispersed very differently; i.e., L. coquilletti encounter a small number of large plants and L. planum a large number of small ones. In L. coquilletti, subordinate males, individuals noted by their lack of success in aggression and in obtaining matings, were characterized as satellites that remained silent on host plants defended by territorial males. Subordinate males in L. planum, however, were transients that sang regularly but moved frequently among different host plants. We propose that this behavioural discrepancy results from (1) the large difference between the number of potential female encounter sites (i.e., individual host plants) available to the males of the two species and (2) the large difference between the sizes of resource patches defended by the two species, which influences the ability of dominant males to eject subordinates.

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Size-dependent male mating tactics and their morphological correlates in Poecilia gillii

Biological Journal of the Linnean Society ◽

10.1093/biolinnean/blaa151 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 131 (4) ◽

pp. 880-897

Author(s):

Andrew I Furness ◽

Andres Hagmayer ◽

Bart J A Pollux

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Reproductive Strategies ◽

Mating Behaviour ◽

A Priori ◽

Male Mating ◽

Mating Tactics ◽

Male Size ◽

Size Dependent ◽

Chemical Factors ◽

Size And Morphology

Abstract Male alternative reproductive strategies are found in some species of most major animal taxa but are especially widespread in fishes. Mature males of the shortfin molly, Poecilia gillii, display extensive variation in size and morphology. We devised a field test of a priori hypotheses regarding the interrelationships between male size, coloration, morphology and mating tactics. Males did not occur in discrete size classes, but instead occurred in a size and morphological continuum. Large males exhibited darker and more orange-coloured dorsal and caudal fins, whereas small males exhibited lighter and more inconspicuous fin coloration. Furthermore, larger males had proportionately deeper bodies, larger dorsal and caudal fins and shorter gonopodia than smaller males. Our field study of male mating behaviour revealed a lack of courtship in this species, and similar levels of mating attempts (gonopodial thrusts) irrespective of male size. Instead, small males were significantly more likely to chase females than were large males. In contrast, large males exhibited higher rates of gonoporal nibbling (a likely means by which males determine, through chemical factors, whether a female is carrying fertilizable ova) and higher likelihood of chasing other males away. In total, we found evidence for the predicted associations between male size, coloration, morphology and mating behaviour. These associations appear likely to maximize mating success for males of a given body size and phenotype.

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Alternative mating tactics in the New Zealand fur seal (Arctocephalus forsteri): when non-territorial males are successful too

Australian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1071/zo09024 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 57 (6) ◽

pp. 409 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

A. K. Caudron ◽

S. S. Negro ◽

M. Fowler ◽

L. Boren ◽

P. Poncin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Reproductive Success ◽

Social Rank ◽

Necessary Condition ◽

Male Mating ◽

Alternative Mating Tactics ◽

Alternative Tactics ◽

Mating Tactics ◽

Fur Seal ◽

New Zealand Fur Seal

In polygynous mammals, the status of many males does not allow them to have a high social rank and theory predicts selection for alternative mating tactics. Alternative tactics were suggested to explain discrepancies between mating and paternity successes in several pinniped species. However, information on alternative tactics in fur seals is limited. Here, we focus on the polygynous New Zealand fur seal, Arctocephalus forsteri, predicting that competition for females is likely to cause a diversification of male mating tactics and that non-territorial tactics can yield reproductive success. We describe the behaviour of 38 males in a medium to large colony. Paternity success was assessed using CERVUS and PASOS, from a pool of 82 pups sampled at the study site and at neighbouring breeding areas. To see whether size is correlated with mating tactic, the length of 17 males was estimated using photogrammetry. Cluster analysis identified three male behavioural profiles: one corresponding to large territorial males and two illustrating alternative tactics employed by smaller non-territorial males. Of the 13 pups born at the study site that were assigned a father, eight were sired by three territorial males and five were sired by non-territorial males. Our study highlights that holding a territory is not a necessary condition for reproductive success in all otariids.

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Alternative mating tactics and male mating success in two species of fiddler crab

Behaviour ◽

10.1163/1568539x-00003386 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 153 (12) ◽

pp. 1403-1418 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Miranda L. Dyson ◽

Patricia R.Y. Backwell

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Mating Success ◽

Fiddler Crab ◽

Male Mating ◽

Male Mating Success ◽

Alternative Tactics ◽

Mating Tactics ◽

Male Size ◽

Selection Gradients ◽

Uca Annulipes

The use of alternative male mating tactics can determine the strength of sexual selection on male traits and have implications for sexual dimorphism. We examined size-based mating success in two species of fiddler crabs where males use each of two alternative tactics to obtain matings. InUca annulipes, larger males were more successful when using the primary mating tactic (burrow mating) but the full size range of males mated when using the secondary tactic (surface mating). InUca urvillei, both burrow and surface mating males were larger than the average sized male in the population. Standardised directional selection gradients indicated that selection on male size was stronger inU. urvilleithanU. annulipes, reflecting the differences between species in male mating success. Our results also showed that sexual size dimorphism was greater in the species with stronger sexual selection on male size than in the species with weaker sexual selection.

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Effects of body size on male mating tactics and paternity in black bears, Ursus americanus

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z03-111 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 81 (7) ◽

pp. 1257-1268 ◽

Cited By ~ 48

Author(s):

Adrienne I Kovach ◽

Roger A Powell

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Reproductive Success ◽

Dna Analysis ◽

Ursus Americanus ◽

Mating Behaviour ◽

Black Bear ◽

Lifetime Reproductive Success ◽

Male Reproductive Success ◽

Male Mating ◽

Mating Tactics

The reproductive behaviour of large, solitary mammals is difficult to study. Owing to their secretive nature and wide-ranging habits, aspects of male mating behaviour are poorly documented in solitary than in social species. We used radiotelemetry and microsatellite DNA analysis to investigate the influence of body size on male mating tactics and short-term reproductive success in the black bear, Ursus americanus, a solitary carnivore. We investigated male ranging behaviour and documented male encounters with breeding females to determine whether males employed conditional mating tactics according to their body sizes. We found that male home-range sizes were not positively associated with body size, but encounter rates with breeding females were. Although all males searched widely for females, mating access appeared to be largely determined by fighting ability. Large males encountered more breeding females and had more frequent encounters during the females' estimated receptive periods than did small- and medium-sized males. Paternity was highly skewed toward the three dominant males who fathered 91% of the cubs sampled during the 3-year study. Paternity was correlated with the frequency of male encounters during female receptive periods. Male encounters, however, overestimated the success of medium-sized males and underestimated the overall variance in male reproductive success. Multiple paternity occurred in two of seven litters, indicating that sperm competition is important in black bear mating behaviour. Implications for male lifetime reproductive success are discussed.

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Multiple mating and cooperative breeding in polygynandrous alpine accentors. II. Male mating tactics

Animal Behaviour ◽

10.1006/anbe.1997.0599 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 55 (2) ◽

pp. 277-289 ◽

Cited By ~ 24

Author(s):

MASAHIKO NAKAMURA

Keyword(s):

Cooperative Breeding ◽

Multiple Mating ◽

Male Mating ◽

Mating Tactics

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Fertilization dynamics of sperm from different male mating tactics in bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus)

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z05-164 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 83 (12) ◽

pp. 1638-1642 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Albrecht I Schulte-Hostedde ◽

Gary Burness

Keyword(s):

Sperm Competition ◽

Lepomis Macrochirus ◽

Fertilization Success ◽

Male Mating ◽

Motile Sperm ◽

Mating Tactics ◽

Sperm Activation ◽

Competition Theory ◽

Sperm Density ◽

Over Time

Sperm competition results in the evolution of ejaculate characteristics such as high sperm density, high motility, and fast sperm swimming speed. A fundamental assumption of sperm competition theory is that ejaculates with high motility and fast-swimming sperm have an advantage with respect to fertilization success. We tested this assumption by studying the fertilization dynamics of alternative mating tactics (cuckolders and parentals) of male bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus Rafinesque, 1819). Sneakers (cuckolders) have faster swimming sperm and a higher proportion of motile sperm immediately following sperm activation than do parentals; however, these variables decline more quickly over time in sneaker sperm than in the sperm of parental males. We used a controlled fertilization experiment to test the prediction that parental males will have higher fertilization success than sneakers late in the sperm activation cycle because of the reduced rate of decline in ejaculate quality over time. We found that as the time from sperm activation increases parental sperm fertilizes more eggs than the sperm of sneakers. Our results support the idea that fertilization success is higher when ejaculates contain a higher proportion of either motile sperm or faster swimming sperm, all else being equal. In addition, after controlling for time from sperm activation, we found a significant bias in fertilization success toward parental males, suggesting that cryptic female choice might play a role in fertilization dynamics.

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