Mate detection and seasonal variation in stick insect mating behaviour (Phamatodea: Clitarchus hookeri)

Behaviour ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 152 (10) ◽  
pp. 1325-1348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shelley S. Myers ◽  
Thomas R. Buckley ◽  
Gregory I. Holwell
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Variation ◽  
Mating Systems ◽  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Stick Insect ◽  
Scramble Competition ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Mate Searching ◽  
Natural Field ◽  
Behavioural Tests ◽  
Searching Ability

For animals that exhibit a scramble competition mating system, sexual selection pressures on mate searching ability are expected to be strong. Scramble competition mating systems evolve when populations provide females with equal accessibility to all male competitors, yet sex ratio and population density influences mating systems and varies seasonally. The stick insect species,Clitarchus hookeri, is frequently found in copula, yet very little is known about it’s mating behaviour. We preformed behavioural tests and assayed antennal sensory morphology to determine whether males used chemosensory cues to detect females. Through natural field observations we found populations to be significantly male-biased earlier in the season, while later, populations began to display equal sex ratios. With increasing female availability mating pair proportions steadily increased, while copulation duration declined. These results supportC. hookerias a scramble competitor, and demonstrate males may alter their behaviour in response to the seasonal variation in female density.

scholarly journals Nocturnal mating behaviour and dynamic male investment of copulation time in the southern blue-ringed octopus, Hapalochlaena maculosa (Cephalopoda: Octopodidae)

Behaviour ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 152 (14) ◽  
pp. 1883-1910 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Morse ◽  
Kyall R. Zenger ◽  
Mark I. McCormick ◽  
Mark G. Meekan ◽  
Christine L. Huffard
Keyword(s):  
Mating Systems ◽  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Female Size ◽  
Male Size ◽  
Male Preference ◽  
Video Footage ◽  
Mating History ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Strategic Allocation ◽  
Do So

The southern blue-ringed octopus,Hapalochlaena maculosaHoyle (1883), is a nocturnal species that exhibits a mating system in which females hold sperm from multiple males over a one to two month breeding window before laying a single egg clutch. Contrary to most studied animal mating systems where anisogamy exists, gamete package production is limited for both males and females of this species (approx. 50 spermatophores/eggs). This presents an animal model for studying aspects of sperm competition and dynamic mate choice behaviours. The present study reports on the mating behaviour ofH. maculosaobserved under laboratory conditions using infrared closed-circuit television video footage. Rates of male copulation attempts increased with male size, while female receptivity to mating attempts increased with female size, resulting in larger animals of both sexes gaining more copulations and spending more time per day in copulation. There was some evidence of female preference of larger males, but no male preference of females based on measured morphological traits. Both sexes terminated copulations in equal frequencies but male-terminated copulations were significantly shorter in duration. Males were more likely to terminate copulation early with females they had previously mated with, however were less likely to do so if the female had recently mated with a different male. Among male-terminated copulations, males mated for longer with females that had previously mated with other males in the trial. Male–male mounts were as common as male–female mounts, suggesting that maleH. maculosaare not able to discriminate the sex of conspecifics. These findings suggest male strategic allocation of spermatophores based female mating history is an important factor influencing mating behaviours of this species.

scholarly journals Mating behaviour of the lizard Ameiva ameiva in Brazil

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
RENAN AUGUSTO RAMALHO
Keyword(s):  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Reproductive Behaviour ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Head Bobbing

The courtship and copulation behaviours of the lizard Ameiva ameiva is described from field observations made at various locations in Brazil. In males, the main behaviours observed during one observation of courtship were head bobbing, circling and walking over the females, rubbing his body against the female, mounting, and dismounting. Females generally remain passive throughout courtship. The reproductive behaviour of A. ameiva resembles that of other teiids, however males exhibit some behavioural peculiarities, such as circling the female to restrict her movements, no cloacal rubbing against the ground, and no biting during copulation.

scholarly journals Males, but not females, perform strategic mate searching movements between host plants in a leaf beetle with scramble competition polygyny

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 5828-5836 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danilo G. Muniz ◽  
Martha L. Baena ◽  
Rogelio Macías-Ordóñez ◽  
Glauco Machado
Keyword(s):  
Host Plants ◽  
Leaf Beetle ◽  
Scramble Competition ◽  
Mate Searching

Male phenotype and sperm number in the guppy (Poecilia reticulata)

2001 ◽  
Vol 79 (10) ◽  
pp. 1891-1896 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trevor E Pitcher ◽  
Jonathan P Evans
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Mating Systems ◽  
Poecilia Reticulata ◽  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Colour Pattern ◽  
River Population ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Male Phenotype ◽  
Colour Patterns

The idea that female mate choice might be adaptive is relatively easy to understand in species with resource-based mating systems in which females gain access to a territory, food, or other forms of parental care from the males with whom they mate. In contrast, the evolution of female mate choice in species exhibiting resource-free mating systems remains controversial. One such species in which males contribute nothing but sperm during mating is the guppy (Poecilia reticulata). Here, we examined whether female guppies can obtain information on male fertility (i.e., direct fertility benefits) via cues used during mate choice. Specifically, we examined whether male guppy colour patterns, body size, and mating behaviour signal their functional fertility, that is, their ability to supply a large number of sperm at copulation. We found significant correlations between male phenotype parameters and the number of sperm in male guppies originating from two wild Trinidadian populations. There were, however, significant interpopulation differences with respect to which traits were good predictors of sperm load. In the low-predation Paria River population, larger males and males with relatively more carotenoid colouration had significantly larger sperm loads, but mating behaviour (i.e., sigmoids) and melanin colouration were not good predictors of sperm load. In the high-predation Tacarigua River population, larger males, males that displayed more, and males with less yellow colouration had significantly more sperm, but other colour pattern components (area of orange and black colouration) were not good predictors of sperm load. Overall, our results suggest that there is the potential for direct fertility benefits through mate choice in the promiscuous, non-resource-based mating system of the guppy.

EMERGENCE AND CALLING RHYTHMS, AND MATING BEHAVIOUR OF THE ORANGE WHEAT BLOSSOM MIDGE, SITODIPLOSIS MOSELLANA (GÉHIN) (DIPTERA: CECIDOMYIIDAE)

1992 ◽  
Vol 124 (3) ◽  
pp. 501-507 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth A. Pivnick ◽  
Edith Labbé
Keyword(s):  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Daily Rhythm ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Late Afternoon ◽  
Sitodiplosis Mosellana ◽  
Calling Behaviour ◽  
Early Evening ◽  
Wing Vibration ◽  
Wheat Blossom Midge

AbstractIn laboratory and field observations, male and female orange wheat blossom midge, Sitodiplosis mosellana (Géhin), emerged in late afternoon and early evening, with males emerging 1–2 h before females on average within a given day. Under laboratory conditions, males also emerged on average 0–3 days before females in three different experiments. Within 1 h of emergence, virgin females began to extend their ovipositors much of the time. This behaviour ceased upon mating, and was presumed to be calling behaviour: behaviour associated with pheromone release. Calling behaviour exhibited a daily rhythm both under controlled and field conditions. Females gradually increased the time spent calling in the last few hours of the photophase and called more than two-thirds of the time during the scotophase. Mating was preceded by wing vibration in the male prior to and during a walking approach. Receptive females spread their wings which facilitated mating. Mean duration of mating was 171 ± 15 s (±SE).

scholarly journals Male mating behaviour and mating systems of bees: an overview

Apidologie ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 145-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert John Paxton
Keyword(s):  
Mating Systems ◽  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Male Mating

scholarly journals Mating behaviour of Simulium erythrocephalum (De Geer, 1776) (Diptera: Simuliidae) in Zaragoza (Spain)

2018 ◽  
pp. 129-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier Alfonso Garza-Hernández ◽  
Antonio De la Mora-Covarrubias ◽  
Ignacio Ruiz-Arrondo
Keyword(s):  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Natural Habitat ◽  
Activity Period ◽  
General Knowledge ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Mating Activity ◽  
First Report ◽  
Human Host ◽  
Host Seeking ◽  
Copulation Behaviour

Simulium erythrocephalum (De Geer, 1776) es una especie altamente antropofílica responsable de brotes de mosca negra en España. Así, se realizaron observaciones sobre el comportamiento de apareamiento de S. erythrocephalum en condiciones naturales en España, incluyendo la formación de enjambres, el reconocimiento, abordaje y la finalización de la cópula y el comportamiento post cópula. Los resultados obtenidos demostraron que la actividad de cópula tiene lugar durante la tarde. Observamos como el ser humano representa un marcador de orientación atractivo para los enjambres de machos, cuya formación está relacionada con el período de actividad de búsqueda de hospedador por parte de las hembras. Este estudio representa el primer estudio sobre el comportamiento de cópula de simúlidos en España, ampliando el conocimiento general sobre este comportamiento en las moscas negras. Simulium erythrocephalum (De Geer, 1776) is a highly anthropophilic species that is responsible for blackfly outbreaks in Spain. Thus, field observations of the mating behaviour, including swarm formation, recognition and chasing, copulation, termination of copulation and post-copulation behaviour of S. erythrocephalum were conducted in a natural habitat in Spain. The obtained results demonstrated that mating activity occurs during the evening hours. We observed the human host represents an attractive orientation marker of male swarms, whose formation is related to the host-seeking activity period of females. This study represents the first report about the mating behaviour of Simuliidae species in Spain, increasing the general knowledge about this behaviour of blackflies.

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