scholarly journals Copula duration and sperm economy in the large thistle aphid, Uroleucon cirsii (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

2003 ◽  
Vol 100 (1) ◽  
pp. 201-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joachim L. DAGG
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Demont ◽  
Paul I Ward ◽  
Wolf U Blanckenhorn ◽  
Stefan Lüpold ◽  
Oliver Y Martin ◽  
...  

Abstract Precise mechanisms underlying sperm storage and utilization are largely unknown, and data directly linking stored sperm to paternity remain scarce. We used competitive microsatellite PCR to study the effects of female morphology, copula duration and oviposition on the proportion of stored sperm provided by the second of two copulating males (S2) in Scathophaga stercoraria (Diptera: Scathophagidae), the classic model for sperm competition studies. We genotyped all offspring from potentially mixed-paternity clutches to establish the relationship between a second male’s stored sperm (S2) and paternity success (P2). We found consistent skew in sperm storage across the three female spermathecae, with relatively more second-male sperm stored in the singlet spermatheca than in the doublet spermathecae. S2 generally decreased with increasing spermathecal size, consistent with either heightened first-male storage in larger spermathecae, or less efficient sperm displacement in them. Additionally, copula duration and several two-way interactions influenced S2, highlighting the complexity of postcopulatory processes and sperm storage. Importantly, S2 and P2 were strongly correlated. Manipulation of the timing of oviposition strongly influenced observed sperm-storage patterns, with higher S2 when females laid no eggs before being sacrificed than when they oviposited between copulations, an observation consistent with adaptive plasticity in insemination. Our results identified multiple factors influencing sperm storage, nevertheless suggesting that the proportion of stored sperm is strongly linked to paternity (i.e., a fair raffle). Even more detailed data in this vein are needed to evaluate the general importance of sperm competition relative to cryptic female choice in postcopulatory sexual selection.


Nature ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 370 (6484) ◽  
pp. 53-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. A. Parker ◽  
L. W. Simmons
Keyword(s):  

2019 ◽  
Vol 112 (6) ◽  
pp. 2842-2849 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saleh Mohammad Adnan ◽  
Iffat Farhana ◽  
Jess R Inskeep ◽  
Polychronis Rempoulakis ◽  
Phillip W Taylor

Abstract Queensland fruit flies Bactrocera tryoni (‘Q-fly’) have long adult prereproductive development periods, which can present challenges for sterile insect technique (SIT) programs. Holding the sterile flies in release facilities is expensive for control programs. Alternatively, releases of sexually immature males can lead to substantial mortality of sterile males before they mature. Recent studies have reported effectiveness of dietary supplementation with a mosquito larvicide (NOMOZ) that contains S-methoprene, a juvenile hormone analogue, for accelerating sexual development of fertile Q-fly males. However, it is not known whether effects on sterile flies are comparable to effects on fertile flies, or whether effects of methoprene-containing larvicide are comparable to effects of analytical standard methoprene such has been used in most studies. Here we address both knowledge gaps, investigating the effects of analytical standard methoprene and NOMOZ mixed with food and provided for 48 h following emergence on sexual development and longevity of fertile and sterile Q-flies. Compared with controls, fertile and sterile male Q-flies that were provided diets supplemented with methoprene from either source exhibited substantially accelerated sexual development by 2–3 d and longer mating duration. Unlike males, females did not respond to methoprene treatment. Although fertile and sterile flies were generally similar in sexual development and response to methoprene treatment, sterile flies of both sexes tended to have shorter copula duration than fertile flies. Neither methoprene supplements nor sterilization affected longevity of flies. The present study confirms effectiveness of dietary methoprene supplements in accelerating sexual development of both fertile and sterile male (but not female) Q-flies, and also confirms that low-cost mosquito larvicides that contain methoprene can achieve effects similar to those for high-cost analytical grade methoprene as prerelease supplements for Q-fly SIT.


Ethology ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 116 (11) ◽  
pp. 1118-1126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yvonne Teuschl ◽  
Constanze Reim ◽  
Barbara Meister ◽  
Jacqueline Egger ◽  
Wolf U. Blanckenhorn

2010 ◽  
Vol 56 (12) ◽  
pp. 1755-1762 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana Pérez-Staples ◽  
Christopher W. Weldon ◽  
Preethi Radhakrishnan ◽  
John Prenter ◽  
Phillip W. Taylor

2015 ◽  
Vol 185 (3) ◽  
pp. 406-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Abe ◽  
Yoshitaka Kamimura

1999 ◽  
Vol 92 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott A. Field ◽  
Phillip W. Taylor ◽  
Boaz Yuval
Keyword(s):  

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