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189 results for “sexual traits”
Data from: Genetics of decayed sexual traits in a parasitoid wasp with endosymbiont-induced asexuality
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Systematic review reveals multiple sexually antagonistic polymorphisms affecting human disease and complex traits
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Data from: Neutral and selection-driven decay of sexual traits in asexual stick insects
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Genetic variation for sexual dimorphism in developmental traits in Drosophila melanogaster
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Evolutionary tradeoffs between male secondary sexual traits revealed by a phylogeny of the hyperdiverse tribe Eumaeini (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae)
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Dietary stress increases the total opportunity for sexual selection and modifies selection on condition-dependent traits
<p>Although it is often expected that adverse environmental conditions depress the expression of condition-dependent sexually-selected traits, the full consequences of environmental change for the action of sexual selection, in terms of the opportunity for total sexual selection and patterns of phenotypic selection, are unknown. Here we show that dietary stress in guppies, <em>Poecilia reticulata</em>, reduces the expression of several sexually-selected traits and increases the opportunity for total sexual selection (standardized variance in reproductive success) in males. Furthermore, our results show that dietary stress modulates the relative importance of precopulatory (mating success) and postcopulatory (relative fertilization success) sexual selection, and that the form of multivariate sexual selection (linear vs. nonlinear) depends on dietary regime. Overall, our results are consistent with a pattern of heightened directional selection on condition-dependent sexually-selected traits under environmental stress, and underscore the importance of sexual selection in shaping adaptation in a changing world.</p>
Data from: Eutrophication and predation risk interact to affect sexual trait expression and mating success
Sexual traits are especially sensitive to low food resources. Other environmental parameters (e.g., predation) should also affect sexual trait expression by favoring investment in viability traits rather than sexual traits. We know surprisingly little about how predators alter investment in sexual traits, or how predator and resource environments interact to affect sexual trait investment. We explored how increasing phosphorous (P) availability, at a level mimicking cultural eutrophication, affects the development of sexual, non-sexual, and viability traits of amphipods in the presence and absence of predators. Sexual traits and growth were hyper-sensitive to low P compared to non-sexual traits. However, a key sexual trait responded to low P only when predator cues were absent. Furthermore, investment tradeoffs between sexual traits and growth only occurred when P was low. The phenotypic changes caused by predator cues and increased P availability resulted in higher male mating success. Thus, eutrophication not only affects sexual trait expression but also masks the tradeoff between traits with similar P demand. Sensitivity of sexually selected traits to changes in P, combined with the important roles these traits play in determining fitness and driving speciation, suggests that human-induced environmental change can greatly alter the evolutionary trajectories of populations.
Data from: Sexually selected traits evolve positive allometry when some matings occur irrespective of the trait
Positive allometry of secondary sexual traits (whereby larger individuals have disproportionally larger traits than smaller individuals) has been called one of the most pervasive and poorly understood regularities in the study of animal form and function. Its widespread occurrence is in contrast with theoretical predictions that it should evolve only under rather special circumstances.
Data from: Sexual traits are sensitive to genetic stress and predict extinction risk in the stalk-eyed fly, Diasemopsis meigenii
The handicap principle predicts that sexual traits are more susceptible to inbreeding depression than nonsexual traits. However, this hypothesis has received little testing and results are inconsistent. We used 11 generations of full-sibling mating to test the effect of inbreeding on sexual and nonsexual traits in the stalk-eyed fly Diasemopsis meigenii. Consistent with the theoretical predictions, the male sexual trait (eyespan) decreased more than nonsexual traits (female eyespan and male wing length), even after controlling for body size variation. In addition, male eyespan was a reliable predictor of line extinction, unlike other nonsexual traits. After 11 generations, inbred lines were crossed to generate inbred and outbred families. All morphological traits were larger in outbred individuals than inbred individuals. This heterosis was greater in male eyespan than in male wing length, but not female eyespan. The elevated response in male eyespan to genetic stress mirrored the result found using environmental stress during larval development and suggests that common mechanisms underlie the patterns observed. Overall, these results support the hypothesis that male sexual traits suffer more from inbreeding depression than nonsexual traits and are in line with predictions based on the handicap principle.
Data from: Population demography and heterozygosity-fitness correlations in natural guppy populations: an examination using sexually selected fitness traits
Heterozygosity-fitness correlations (HFCs) have been examined in a wide diversity of contexts, and the results are often used to infer the role of inbreeding in natural populations. Although population demography, reflected in population-level genetic parameters such as allelic diversity or identity disequilibrium, is expected to play a role in the emergence and detectability of HFCs, direct comparisons of variation in HFCs across many populations of the same species, with different genetic histories, are rare. Here, we examined the relationship between individual microsatellite heterozygosity and a range of sexually selected traits in 660 male guppies from 22 natural populations in Trinidad. Similar to previous studies, observed HFCs were weak overall. However, variation in HFCs among populations was high for some traits (although these variances were not statistically different from zero). Population-level genetic parameters, specifically genetic diversity levels (number of alleles, observed/expected heterozygosity) and measures of identity disequilibrium (g2 and heterozygosity-heterozygosity correlations) were not associated with variation in population-level HFCs. This latter result indicates that these metrics do not necessarily provide a reliable predictor of HFC effect sizes across populations. Importantly, diversity and identity disequilibrium statistics were not correlated, providing empirical evidence that these metrics capture different essential characteristics of populations. A complex genetic architecture likely underpins multiple fitness traits, including those associated with male fitness, which may have reduced our ability to detect HFCs in guppy populations. Further advances in this field would benefit from additional research to determine the demographic contexts in which HFCs are most likely to occur.
Data from: Indirect genetic effects and sexual conflicts: Partner genotype influences multiple morphological and behavioural reproductive traits in a flatworm
The expression of an individual's phenotypic traits can be influenced by genes expressed in its social partners. Theoretical models predict that such indirect genetic effects (IGEs) on reproductive traits should play an important role in determining the evolutionary outcome of sexual conflict. However, empirical tests of (i) whether reproductive IGEs exist, (ii) how they vary among genotypes, and (iii) whether they are uniform for different types of reproductive traits are largely lacking. We addressed this in a series of experiments in the simultaneously hermaphroditic flatworm Macrostomum lignano. We found strong evidence for IGEs on both morphological and behavioural reproductive traits. Partner genotype had a significant impact on the testis size of focal individuals—varying up to 2.4-fold—suggesting that IGEs could mediate sexual conflicts that target the male sex function. We also found that time to first copulation was affected by a genotype × genotype interaction between mating partners, and that partner genotype affected the propensity to copulate and perform the postcopulatory suck behaviour, which may mediate conflicts over the fate of received ejaculate components. These findings provide clear empirical evidence for IGEs on multiple behavioural and morphological reproductive traits, which suggests that the evolutionary dynamics of these traits could be altered by genes contained in the social environment.
Data from: Condition dependence of a multicomponent sexual display trait in Drosophila serrata
Theory predicts that costly sexual displays should evolve condition dependence if the marginal fitness gain from trait exaggeration is greater for high- than for low-condition individuals and that the strength of condition dependence should increase with the strength of directional selection. While there is substantial support for the first prediction, evidence for the latter is much weaker. We undertook a quantitative test of this prediction for a multivariate sexual display consisting of a suite of contact pheromones termed "cuticular hydrocarbons" (CHCs) in Drosophila serrata. We performed a dietary manipulation of condition (i.e., the pool of metabolic resources available for allocation to fitness-enhancing traits) within a half-sibling breeding design, thereby also providing insight into the genetic basis of condition dependence. As predicted, the linear combination of CHCs under the strongest sexual selection from female mate preferences was unusually condition dependent relative to other CHC combinations within the population (P = .049). A significant positive correlation also existed between the strengths of condition dependence and sexual selection among different CHC blends (r = 0.482, P < .001). Finally, sires varied in their response to the dietary manipulation, demonstrating significant genetic variance in condition dependence. Our results are consistent with the evolution of heightened condition dependence of sexual displays in response to persistent sexual selection.
Data from: Selection for costly sexual traits results in a vacant mating niche and male dimorphism
The expected strong directional selection for traits that increase a male's mating ability conflicts with the frequent observation that within species, males may show extreme variation in sexual traits. These male reproductive polymorphisms are usually attributed to direct male-male competition. It is currently unclear, however, how directional selection for sexually selected traits may convert into disruptive selection, and if female preference for elaborate traits may be an alternative mechanism driving the evolution of male polymorphism. Here we explore this mechanism using the polyandric dwarf spider Oedothorax gibbosus as a model. We first show that males characterized by conspicuous cephalic structures serving as a nuptial feeding device ('gibbosus males') significantly outperform other males in siring offspring of previously fertilized females. However, significant costs in terms of development time of gibbosus males open a mating niche for an alternative male type lacking expensive secondary sexual traits. These 'tuberosus males' obtain virtually all fertilizations early in the breeding season. Individual-based simulations demonstrate a hitherto unknown general principle, by which males selected for high investment to attract females suffer constrained mating opportunities. This creates a vacant mating niche of unmated females for non-investing males and, consequently, disruptive selection on male secondary sexual traits.
Data from: Early life and transgenerational stressors impact secondary sexual traits and fitness
Developmental stress from early life challenges impacts adult phenotype across a range of species. However, the potential transgenerational consequences for adult phenotype are largely unknown. Additionally, the possible impacts of natural hatch/birth order and natal brood composition in unmanipulated broods/litters on adult performance has been understudied. This experiment takes a novel approach to studying developmental stress by integrating and assessing multiple potential stressors and multiple secondary sexual traits simultaneously in order to determine how these influence both social and genetic reproductive success. Male zebra finches were colony-reared on high- or low-quality diets; as adults, they reproduced competitively on an intermediate diet. Male visual ornaments (beak color and cheek patch size) were found to be reliable signals of developmental stress, since they showed high sensitivity to multiple early conditions and predicted reproductive success. Contrary to the nutritional stress hypothesis, early diet did not impact song traits investigated. Male reproductive success was impacted by diet history, male hatch order, and natal brood traits of males' fathers, with daughter and son production sensitive to different subsets of identified reproductive stressors. Notably, diet influenced only son production and the hatch orders of males and their fathers influenced only daughter production. Findings suggest that the sexes respond differently to early life conditions, which may influence subsequent sex allocation patterns. Despite good general correspondence in patterns of social and genetic reproductive success, males that sired one or more extra-pair offspring achieved higher fitness through greater son production.
Data from: Release from intralocus sexual conflict? Evolved loss of a male sexual trait demasculinises female gene expression
The loss of sexual ornaments is observed across taxa, and pleiotropic effects of such losses provide an opportunity to gain insight into underlying dynamics of sex-biased gene expression and intralocus sexual conflict (IASC). We investigated this in a Hawaiian field cricket, Teleogryllus oceanicus, in which an X-linked genotype (flatwing) feminises males' wings and eliminates their ability to produce sexually selected songs. We profiled adult gene expression across somatic and reproductive tissues of both sexes. Despite the feminising effect of flatwing on male wings, we found no evidence of feminised gene expression in males. Instead, female transcriptomes were more strongly affected by flatwing than males', and exhibited demasculinised gene expression. These findings are consistent with a relaxation of IASC constraining female gene expression through loss of a male sexual ornament. In a follow-up experiment we found reduced testes mass in flatwing males, whereas female carriers showed no reduction in egg production. In contrast, female carriers exhibited greater measures of body condition. Our results suggest sex-limited phenotypic expression offers only partial resolution to intralocus sexual conflict, owing to pleiotropic effects of the loci involved. Benefits conferred by release from intralocus conflict could help explain widespread loss of sexual ornaments across taxa.
Individual and synergistic effects of male external genital traits in sexual selection
Male genital traits exhibit extraordinary inter-specific phenotypic variation. This remarkable and general evolutionary trend is widely considered to be the result of sexual selection. However, we still do not have a good understanding of whether or how individual genital traits function in different competitive arenas (episodes of sexual selection), or how different genital traits may interact to influence competitive outcomes. Here, we use an experimental approach based on high-precision laser phenotypic engineering to address these outstanding questions, focusing on three distinct sets of micron-scale external (non-intromittent) genital spines in male Drosophila kikkawai Burla (Diptera: Drosophilidae). Elimination of the large pair of spines on the male secondary claspers sharply reduced male ability to copulate, yet elimination of the other sets of spines on the primary and secondary claspers had no significant effects on copulation probability. Intriguingly, both the large spines on the secondary claspers and the cluster of spines on the primary claspers were found to independently promote male competitive fertilization success. Moreover, when large and small secondary clasper spines were simultaneously shortened in individual males, these males suffered greater reductions in fertilization success relative to males whose traits were altered individually, providing evidence for synergistic effects of external genital traits on fertilization success. Overall, the results are significant in demonstrating that a given genital trait (the large spines on the secondary claspers) can function in different episodes of sexual selection, and distinct genital traits may interact in sexual selection. The results offer an important contribution to evolutionary biology by demonstrating an understudied selective mechanism, operating via subtle trait interactions in a post-insemination context, by which genital traits may be co-evolving.
Data from: Evolutionary optimum for male sexual traits characterized using the multivariate Robertson–Price Identity
Phenotypes tend to remain relatively constant in natural populations, suggesting a limit to trait evolution. Although stationary phenotypes suggest stabilizing selection, directional selection is more commonly reported. However, selection on phenotypes will have no evolutionary consequence if the traits do not genetically covary with fitness, a covariance known as the Robertson–Price Identity. The nature of this genetic covariance determines if phenotypes will evolve directionally or whether they reside at an evolutionary optimum. Here, we show how a set of traits can be shown to be under net stabilizing selection through an application of the multivariate Robertson–Price Identity. We characterize how a suite of male sexual displays genetically covaries with fitness in a population of Drosophila serrata. Despite strong directional sexual selection on these phenotypes directly and significant genetic variance in them, little genetic covariance was detected with overall fitness. Instead, genetic analysis of trait deviations showed substantial stabilizing selection on the genetic variance of these traits with respect to overall fitness, indicating that they reside at an evolutionary optimum. In the presence of widespread pleiotropy, stabilizing selection on focal traits will arise through the net effects of selection on other, often unmeasured, traits and will tend to be stronger on trait combinations than single traits. Such selection may be difficult to detect in phenotypic analyses if the environmental covariance between the traits and fitness obscures the underlying genetic associations. The genetic analysis of trait deviations provides a way of detecting the missing stabilizing selection inferred by recent metaanalyses.
Data from: Changes in sexual signals are greater than changes in ecological traits in a dichromatic group of fishes
Understanding the mechanisms by which phenotypic divergence occurs is central to speciation research. These mechanisms can be revealed by measuring differences in traits that are subject to different selection pressures; greater influence of different types of selection can be inferred from greater divergence in associated traits. Here, we address the potential roles of natural and sexual selection in promoting phenotypic divergence between species of snubnose darters by comparing differences in body shape, an ecologically relevant trait, and male color, a sexual signal. Body shape was measured using geometric morphometrics, and male color was measured using digital photography and visual system-dependent color values. Differences in male color are larger than differences in body shape across 8 allopatric, phylogenetically independent species pairs. While this does not exclude the action of divergent natural selection, our results suggest a relatively more important role for sexual selection in promoting recent divergence in darters. Variation in the relative differences between male color and body shape across species pairs reflects the continuous nature of speciation mechanisms, ranging from ecological speciation to speciation by sexual selection alone.
Data from: Condition-dependent expression of pre- and postcopulatory sexual traits in guppies
Female choice can impose persistent directional selection on male sexually selected traits, yet such traits often exhibit high levels of phenotypic variation. One explanation for this paradox is that if sexually selected traits are costly, only the fittest males are able to acquire and allocate the resources required for their expression. Furthermore, because male condition is dependent on resource allocation, condition dependence in sexual traits is expected to underlie trade-offs between reproduction and other life-history functions. In this study we test these ideas by experimentally manipulating diet quality (carotenoid levels) and quantity in the guppy (Poecilia reticulata), a livebearing freshwater fish that is an important model for understanding relationships between pre- and post-copulatory sexually selected traits. Specifically, we test for condition dependence in the expression of pre- and postcopulatory sexual traits (behavior, ornamentation, sperm traits) and determine whether diet manipulation mediates relationships among these traits. Consistent with prior work we found a significant effect of diet quantity on the expression of both pre- and postcopulatory male traits; diet-restricted males performed fewer sexual behaviors and exhibited significant reductions in color ornamentation, sperm quality, sperm number, and sperm length than those fed ad libitum. However, contrary to our expectations, we found no significant effect of carotenoid manipulation on the expression of any of these traits, and no evidence for a trade-off in resource allocation between pre- and postcopulatory episodes of sexual selection. Our results further underscore the sensitivity of behavioral, ornamental, and ejaculate traits to dietary stress, and highlight the important role of condition dependence in maintaining the high variability in male sexual traits.
Fig. 2 in Sexual Size Dimorphism in Ground Beetle Carabus cumanus Fischer von Waldheim, 1823 (Coleoptera, Carabidae) and its Variation in Different Traits
Fig. 2. Descriptive statistics of morphometric traits in C. cumanus: a - elytra length, b - elytra width, c - pronotum length, d - pronotum width, e - head length, f - distance between eyes (Mean, Mean±2*SE, Mean±SD, - Outliers, * Extremes, f - females, m - males, 1 - steppe slope, 2 - flood plain forest)
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