Sex starved: Do resource-limited males ensure fertilization success at the expense of precopulatory mating success?

Zenobia Lewis; Hiroko Sasaki; Takahisa Miyatake

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.12.001

Sex starved: Do resource-limited males ensure fertilization success at the expense of precopulatory mating success?

Zenobia Lewis, Hiroko Sasaki, Takahisa Miyatake

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

22 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Theory predicts trade-offs between investment in various life history traits, and it is also now generally accepted that reproduction is costly for males. Males must therefore optimize resource allocation across several episodes of reproduction, and this includes investment in both pre- and postcopulatory fitness components. We investigated this in the sperm-polymorphic Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella. Resource-limited males were smaller, and had decreased precopulatory mating success, measured as lifetime number of matings. However, they transferred similar numbers of fertile sperm as males reared under high-quality larval conditions, and more nonfertile sperm. By mating less frequently, resource-limited males may allocate sufficient resources to the matings they achieve to ensure fertilization success under sperm competition.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	579-583
Number of pages	5
Journal	Animal Behaviour
Volume	81
Issue number	3
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.12.001
Publication status	Published - Mar 2011

Keywords

Indian meal moth
Lepidoptera
Plodia interpunctella
Sexual selection
Sperm competition
Sperm polymorphism
Trade-off

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Animal Science and Zoology

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10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.12.001

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title = "Sex starved: Do resource-limited males ensure fertilization success at the expense of precopulatory mating success?",

abstract = "Theory predicts trade-offs between investment in various life history traits, and it is also now generally accepted that reproduction is costly for males. Males must therefore optimize resource allocation across several episodes of reproduction, and this includes investment in both pre- and postcopulatory fitness components. We investigated this in the sperm-polymorphic Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella. Resource-limited males were smaller, and had decreased precopulatory mating success, measured as lifetime number of matings. However, they transferred similar numbers of fertile sperm as males reared under high-quality larval conditions, and more nonfertile sperm. By mating less frequently, resource-limited males may allocate sufficient resources to the matings they achieve to ensure fertilization success under sperm competition.",

keywords = "Indian meal moth, Lepidoptera, Plodia interpunctella, Sexual selection, Sperm competition, Sperm polymorphism, Trade-off",

author = "Zenobia Lewis and Hiroko Sasaki and Takahisa Miyatake",

note = "Funding Information: We thank David Hosken and four anonymous referees whose comments greatly improved the manuscript, and Tom Price for help with statistical analyses. Z.L. thanks the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science for funding (grant no. P08087 ), and T.M. thanks KAKENHI (grant no. 19370011 ).",

year = "2011",

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doi = "10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.12.001",

language = "English",

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T2 - Do resource-limited males ensure fertilization success at the expense of precopulatory mating success?

AU - Lewis, Zenobia

AU - Sasaki, Hiroko

AU - Miyatake, Takahisa

N1 - Funding Information: We thank David Hosken and four anonymous referees whose comments greatly improved the manuscript, and Tom Price for help with statistical analyses. Z.L. thanks the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science for funding (grant no. P08087 ), and T.M. thanks KAKENHI (grant no. 19370011 ).

PY - 2011/3

Y1 - 2011/3

N2 - Theory predicts trade-offs between investment in various life history traits, and it is also now generally accepted that reproduction is costly for males. Males must therefore optimize resource allocation across several episodes of reproduction, and this includes investment in both pre- and postcopulatory fitness components. We investigated this in the sperm-polymorphic Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella. Resource-limited males were smaller, and had decreased precopulatory mating success, measured as lifetime number of matings. However, they transferred similar numbers of fertile sperm as males reared under high-quality larval conditions, and more nonfertile sperm. By mating less frequently, resource-limited males may allocate sufficient resources to the matings they achieve to ensure fertilization success under sperm competition.

AB - Theory predicts trade-offs between investment in various life history traits, and it is also now generally accepted that reproduction is costly for males. Males must therefore optimize resource allocation across several episodes of reproduction, and this includes investment in both pre- and postcopulatory fitness components. We investigated this in the sperm-polymorphic Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella. Resource-limited males were smaller, and had decreased precopulatory mating success, measured as lifetime number of matings. However, they transferred similar numbers of fertile sperm as males reared under high-quality larval conditions, and more nonfertile sperm. By mating less frequently, resource-limited males may allocate sufficient resources to the matings they achieve to ensure fertilization success under sperm competition.

KW - Indian meal moth

KW - Lepidoptera

KW - Plodia interpunctella

KW - Sexual selection

KW - Sperm competition

KW - Sperm polymorphism

KW - Trade-off

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Sex starved: Do resource-limited males ensure fertilization success at the expense of precopulatory mating success?

Abstract

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

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