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80 results for “mate signal”
Collective synchrony of mating signals modulated by ecological cues and social signals in bioluminescent sea fireflies
<p><span>Individuals often employ simple rules that can emergently synchronise behaviour. Some collective behaviours are intuitively beneficial, but others like mate signalling in leks occur across taxa despite theoretical individual costs. Whether disparate instances of synchronous signalling are similarly organised is unknown, largely due to challenges observing many individuals simultaneously. Recording field collectives and <em>ex situ</em> playback experiments, we describe principles of synchronous bioluminescent signals produced by marine ostracods (Crustacea; Luxorina) that seem behaviorally convergent with terrestrial fireflies, and with whom they last shared a common ancestor over 500 mya. Like synchronous fireflies, groups of signalling males use visual cues (intensity and duration of light) to decide when to signal. Individual ostracods also modulate their signal based on the distance to nearest neighbours. During peak darkness, luminescent "waves" of synchronous displays emerge and ripple across the sea floor every ~60 seconds, but such periodicity decays within and between nights after the full moon. Our data reveal these bioluminescent aggregations are sensitive to both ecological and social light sources. Because the function of collective signals is difficult to dissect, evolutionary convergence, like in the synchronous visual displays of diverse arthropods, provides natural replicates to understand the generalities that produce emergent group behaviour.</span></p>
Maternal effects on the advertisement signals and mate preferences of adult offspring in Enchenopa treehoppers (Hemiptera: Membracidae)
<p>We tested for maternal effects on the mating signals and mate preferences of adult offspring in a plant-feeding insect that communicates via plant-borne vibrational signals. We experimentally manipulated an aspect of the social environment experienced by egg-laying mothers: aggregation density. We detected a strong maternal effect in a male signal trait, with sons of mothers that experienced low aggregation density signaling more. We also detected a weak maternal effect on female mate preferences, with daughters of mothers that experienced low aggregation density being less selective. We discuss the evolutionary consequences of these maternal effects in terms of the signal-preference relationship; the maintenance of variation under selection; whether they may be beneficial for offspring; and potential mechanisms that may be involved in their expression.</p>
Developmental temperature alters the thermal sensitivity of courtship activity and signal-preference relationships, but not mating rates
<p><span>Mating behaviours are susceptible to novel or stressful thermal conditions, particularly for ectothermic organisms. One way to deal with changes in thermal conditions is to exhibit developmental plasticity, whereby the thermal sensitivity of mating behaviours depend on developmental conditions. </span></p> <p><span>We test how developmental temperature affects the thermal sensitivity of courtship behaviour and mating rates, as well as mating signal and preference coupling. </span></p> <p><span>We rear treehoppers under two temperature regimes and then test how a range of ambient temperature affects behaviours involved in the coordination of mating. We also test for sex-specific thermal sensitivity and developmental plasticity.</span></p> <p><span>We find developmental plasticity in the thermal sensitivity of courtship behaviour and mating signals for males. However, we found no developmental plasticity in females, and no change in the thermal sensitivity of mating rates.</span></p> <p><span>We discuss the implications of signal-preference decoupling for sexual selection, how reversible acclimation may drive sex-specific results, and the potential for mismatches between developmental and mating thermal environments under future climate change predictions. </span><span><br></span></p>
Data from: Simulated evolution of mating signal diversification in a primate radiation
<p>Divergence in allopatry and subsequent diversification of mating signals on secondary contact (reinforcement) is a major driver of phenotypic diversity. Observing this evolutionary process directly is often impossible, but simulated evolution can pinpoint key drivers of phenotypic variation. We developed evolutionary simulations in which mating signals, modelled as points in phenotype space, evolve across time under varying evolutionary scenarios. We model mate recognition signals in guenons, a primate radiation exhibiting colourful and diverse face patterns hypothesized to maintain reproductive isolation via mate choice. We simulate face pattern evolution across periods of allopatry and sympatry, identifying the role of key parameters in driving evolutionary endpoints. Results show that diversification in allopatry and assortative mate choice on secondary contact can induce rapid phenotypic diversification, resulting in distinctive (between species) and stereotyped (within species) face patterns, similar to extant guenons. Strong selection against hybrids is key to diversification, with even low levels of hybrid fitness often resulting in merged populations on secondary contact. Our results support a key role for reinforcement by assortative mating in the maintenance of species diversity and support the long-proposed prehistorical scenario for how such striking diversity was produced and maintained in perhaps the most colourful of all mammalian clades.</p>
Mate preferences act independently on different elements of visual signals in Heliconius butterflies
<p>Mating cues are often comprised of several elements, which can act independently, or in concert to attract a suitable partner. Individual elements may also function in other contexts, such as predator defence or camouflage. In <em>Heliconius</em> butterflies, wing patterns comprise several individual colour pattern elements, which advertise the butterflies' toxicity to predators. These wing patterns are also mating cues and males predominantly court females that possess the same wing pattern as their own. However, it is not known whether male preference is based on the full wing pattern or only individual pattern elements. We compared preferences of male <em>H. erato lativitta</em> between female models with the full wing pattern and those with some pattern elements removed. We found no differences in preference between the full wing pattern model and a model with pattern elements removed, indicating that the complete composition of all elements is not essential to the mating signal. Wing pattern preferences also contribute to pre-mating isolation between two other Heliconius taxa, <em>H. erato cyrbia</em> and <em>H. himera</em>, therefore, we next compared preferences for the same models in these species. <em>H. erato cyrbia</em> and <em>H. himera</em> strongly differed in preferences for the models, potentially providing a mechanism for how pre-mating isolation acts between these species. These findings suggest that contrasting levels of selective constraint act on elements across the wing pattern.</p>
Collective synchrony of mating signals modulated by ecological cues and social signals in bioluminescent sea fireflies
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Mate preferences act independently on different elements of visual signals in Heliconius butterflies
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Effects of the maternal social environment on the mating signals and mate preferences of adult offspring in Enchenopa treehoppers
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Data from: Simulated evolution of mating signal diversification in a primate radiation
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Developmental temperature alters the thermal sensitivity of courtship activity and signal-preference relationships, but not mating rates
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Data from: Synchronized mating signals in a communication network: the challenge of avoiding predators while attracting mates
Conspicuous mating signals attract mates but also expose signalers to predators and parasites. Signal evolution, therefore, is driven by conflicting selective pressures from multiple receivers, both target and nontarget. Synchronization of mating signals, for example, is an evolutionary puzzle given the assumed high cost of reduced female attraction when signals overlap. Synchronization may be beneficial, however, if overlapping signals reduce attraction of nontarget receivers. We investigate how signal synchronization is shaped by the tradeoff between natural and sexual selection in two anuran species: pug-nosed tree frogs (<i>Smilisca sila</i>), in which males produce mating calls in near-perfect synchrony, and túngara frogs (<i>Engystomops pustulosus</i>), in which males alternate their calls. To examine the tradeoff imposed by signal synchronization, we conducted field and laboratory playback experiments on eavesdropping enemies (bats and midges) and target receivers (female frogs). Our results suggest that, while synchronization can be a general strategy for signalers to reduce their exposure to eavesdroppers, relaxed selection by females for unsynchronized calls is key to the evolution and maintenance of signal synchrony. This study highlights the role of relaxed selection in our understanding the origin of mating signals and displays.
Female mate preferences do not predict male sexual signals across populations
<p>New species can arise when female preferences and male sexual signals diverge across populations and thereby reduce mating between populations. Under this hypothesized mechanism for speciation, mate preferences and male signals should be correlated, but divergent, across populations. We evaluated this prediction using spadefoot toads (Spea multiplicata). We measured a sexually-selected male signal (call rate) for which female preferences are known to vary across populations in response to hybridization risk. Contrary to expectation, we found no correlation between male call rate and female preferences across populations. We discuss possible mechanisms of this pattern, including the effect of gene flow from heterospecifics on male call rate. Our results suggest that, even when populations vary in mating traits, the independent evolution of female preferences and male sexual signals might impede reproductive isolation between populations. </p>
Spoiled for choice: Number of signalers constrains mate choice based on acoustic signals
<p>In many taxa, receivers use signals to detect and discriminate among mates. Signal detection and discrimination thus has important fitness consequences for individuals. Noise is defined as any factor that prevents detection or discrimination of signals. The noise produced by groups of signaling animals is a well-known impediment to signal detection and discrimination in animals, but how many signals produce the emergent, masking effects of noise? This dataset was generated to explore how receivers discriminate among signals in noisy, multi-choice environments. Subjects were female Australian field crickets, <em>Teleogryllus oceanicus. </em>We performed a series of phonotaxis (movement toward sound) assays in which we manipulated the number of long chirps in the signal. First, we assessed female preferences for the number of long chirp pulses and found that receivers preferred more long chirp pulses to fewer. Then we gave receivers a choice between a preferred, 7-pulse signal and either 1, 3, 5, or 7 presentations of the non-preferred, 2-pulse signal ("the multi-choice experiment"). We observed the probability that subjects left the release point, the probability that subjects responded to playback, and the probability of choosing the preferred stimulus. We also recorded the subject's latency to leave the release point and the latency to respond to playback. Because the angular separation between speakers decreased with increasing number of playback speakers in the multi-choice experiment, we then conducted an experiment ("the angular separation experiment") to determine whether observed effects were due to the spatial configuration of speakers or due to the emergent noise of multiple playback speakers. </p>
Low toxicity crop fungicide (Fenbuconazole) impacts reproductive male quality signals leading to a reduction of mating success in a wild solitary bee
<p>Recent reports on bee health suggest that sub-lethal doses of pesticides have negative effects on wild bee reproduction and ultimately on their population growth.</p> <p>Females of the solitary horned mason bee, Osmia cornuta, evaluate thoracic vibrations and odours of males to assess male quality. When certain criteria are met, the female accepts the male and copulates. However, these signals were found to be modified by sub-lethal doses of pesticides in other hymenopterans. Here, we tested whether sub-lethal doses of a commonly used fungicide (Fenbuconazole) impact male quality signals and mating success in O. cornuta.</p> <p>Males exposed to Fenbuconazole exhibited reduced thoracic vibrations and an altered cuticular hydrocarbon profile compared to the control bees. Moreover, males exposed to the fungicide were less successful in mating than control males.</p> <p>Synthesis and applications: Our results indicate that a low toxicity fungicide can negatively affect male reproductive success by altering behavioural and chemical cues. This could explain the decreasing pollinator populations in a pesticide-polluted environment. This study highlights the need for a more comprehensive approach, including behaviour and chemical cues, when testing new pesticides and a more cautionary approach to the pesticides already used on crops.</p>
Data from: Increased signal complexity is associated with increased mating success
<p>The evolution of complex signaling has often been explored by testing multiple functional hypotheses that vary in their underlying assumptions about how independent signal components provide selective benefits to offset the costs of their production. In the present study, we take a different approach to exploring the function of complexity per se. We test the hypothesis that increased vibratory signal complexity – based on both proportional and temporal patterning - provides selective benefits to courting male <em>Schizocosa stridulans</em> wolf spiders. In support of this hypothesis, all of our quantified metrics of vibratory signal complexity predicted the copulation success of male <em>S. stridulans</em>. The rate of visual signaling, which is mechanistically tied to vibratory signal production, was also associated with mating success. We additionally found evidence that males can dynamically adjust the complexity of their signaling. Together, our results suggest that complexity per se may be a target of female choice.</p>
Can you hear/see me? Multisensory integration of signals does not always facilitate mate choice
<p>Females of many species choose mates using multiple sensory modalities. Multimodal noise may arise, however, in dense aggregations of animals communicating via multiple sensory modalities. Some evidence suggests multimodal signals may not always improve receiver decision-making performance. When sensory systems process input from multimodal signal sources, multimodal noise may arise and potentially complicate decision-making due to the demands on cognitive integration tasks. We tested female túngara frog, <em>Physalaemus </em>(=<em>Engystomops</em>) <em>pustulosus</em>, responses to male mating signals in noise from multiple sensory modalities (acoustic and visual). Noise treatments were partitioned into three categories: acoustic, visual, and multimodal. We used natural calls from conspecifics and heterospecifics for acoustic noise. Robotic frogs were employed as either visual signal components (synchronous vocal sac inflation with call) or visual noise (asynchronous vocal sac inflation with call). Females expressed a preference for the typically more attractive call in the presence of unimodal noise. However, during multimodal signal and noise treatments (robofrogs employed with background noise), females failed to express a preference for the typically attractive call in the presence of conspecific chorus noise. We found that social context and temporal synchrony of multimodal signaling components are important for multimodal communication. Our results demonstrate that multimodal signals have the potential to increase the complexity of the sensory scene and reduce the efficacy of female decision making.</p>
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder: mate choice in glow-worms depends on perceived, not emitted signals
While the strength of sexual signals is important in mate attraction, the ability to accurately compare signals may also have a major effect on mate choice. Large distances between competitors may reduce competition, as accurate comparison of signals becomes harder. This may be advantageous to weak signallers and detrimental to stronger signallers. We create a mathematical model examining optimal distance from stronger competitors for sexual signallers and test its predictions using the common glow-worm (Lampyris noctiluca). Female glow-worms are flightless and attract males by glowing. Males prefer the brightest female if two females are close to each other. Our model gave different predictions depending on whether searchers fly or not. The model and experiment showed that weak signallers should move away from competitors and strong signallers should move closet to weaker competitors when searchers fly. In contrast, the model predicted that the distance between competing signallers has no effect when searchers do not fly. This reveals an unexpected spatial competition between strong and weak signallers. We conclude that while signal strength is important in sexual selection, location in relation to others is similarly important as ornamentation in determining the result of mate attraction.
Data from: Variation in the strength of female mate preference for male size supports the signal reliability hypothesis
<p>Both sexually selected traits and mate preferences for these traits can be condition dependent, yet how variation in preferred traits could select for condition dependent preferences has rarely been examined. The signal reliability hypothesis predicts that mate preferences vary across environments in relation to the reliability of the information preferred traits provide in those environments. Extensive variation in copy number of the <em>mc4r</em> gene on Y chromosome is correlated with adult male size in <em>Xiphophorus multilineatus</em>, when males stop growing. This genetic variation allowed us to use a split-sibling design to show that male size is more variable, and thus likely to provide reliable information about male genotype, when males were reared in a warm as compared to cold environment. Females reared in the warm environment had stronger mate preferences for male size. Understanding how the reliability of male traits can select for conditional variation in the strength of the female mate preferences will further our discovery of adaptive mate preferences. For example, the relationship between the strength of a female's mate preference and their growth rates supports previous work hypothesizing disassortative mating in relation to growth rates to mitigate a documented growth-mortality tradeoff in this species.</p>
Data from: Temperature coupling of mate attraction signals and female mate preferences in four populations of Enchenopa treehoppers (Hemiptera: Membracidae)
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Can you hear/see me? Multisensory integration of signals does not always facilitate mate choice
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