A Histological Study on Copulation Duration, Patterns of Sperm Transfer and Organization inside the Spermatheca of a Grasshopper, Dichromorpha viridis (Scudder)

1998 ◽  
pp. 139 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Johnson ◽  
M. Niedzlek-Feaver
Keyword(s):  
Histological Study ◽  
Sperm Transfer ◽  
Copulation Duration

scholarly journals Remote copulation: male adaptation to female cannibalism

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 512-515 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daiqin Li ◽  
Joelyn Oh ◽  
Simona Kralj-Fišer ◽  
Matjaž Kuntner
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Sperm Transfer ◽  
Copulation Duration ◽  
Sexual Cannibalism ◽  
Empirical Testing ◽  
Web Spider ◽  
Maladaptive Behaviour ◽  
Orb Web ◽  
Male Organ

Sexual cannibalism by females and associated male behaviours may be driven by sexual conflict. One such male behaviour is the eunuch phenomenon in spiders, caused by total genital emasculation, which is a seemingly maladaptive behaviour. Here, we provide the first empirical testing of an adaptive hypothesis to explain this behaviour, the remote copulation, in a highly sexually cannibalistic orb-web spider Nephilengys malabarensis . We demonstrate that sperm transfer continues from the severed male organ into female genitals after the male has been detached from copula. Remote copulation increases the total amount of sperm transferred, and thus probably enhances paternity. We conclude that the mechanism may have evolved in response to sexual cannibalism and female-controlled short copulation duration.

scholarly journals Increased copulation duration does not necessarily reflect a proportional increase in the number of transferred spermatozoa

2019 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom A. Weggelaar ◽  
Daniël Commandeur ◽  
Joris M. Koene
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Data ◽  
Linear Process ◽  
Sperm Transfer ◽  
Copulation Duration ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Classical Work ◽  
Duration Of Copulation ◽  
Proportional Increase ◽  
Selection Research ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Post-copulatory sexual selection research tends to focus on the numerous adaptations that have evolved to increase the chances of donated spermatozoa fertilizing oocytes. Even though fertilization obviously directly depends on the presence of sufficient, viable spermatozoa, the quantification of the sperm transfer process itself has not received the attention it deserves. Here, we present experimental work on a simultaneously hermaphroditic snail in combination with a review of the literature focussing on the relationship between the duration of copulation and the number of sperm that are transferred. Based on classical work, this relationship is often assumed to be linear, but as we show here this need not be the case. Both our experimental data and the reviewed literature indicate that there are clear instances where the process of sperm transfer is not a linear process, i.e., longer copulation duration does not necessarily imply more transfer of sperm. As we point out, there seems to be a bias in the literature towards investigating this in insects, but other animal groups in which this has been investigated do show similar relationships. To conclude, we discuss how the specific patterns of sperm transfer that have been reported can be biologically interpreted and we caution that simply using copulation duration as a proxy for the number of sperm transferred can be misleading.

scholarly journals A neuropeptide circuit that coordinates sperm transfer and copulation duration in Drosophila

2012 ◽  
Vol 109 (50) ◽  
pp. 20697-20702 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. D. Tayler ◽  
D. A. Pacheco ◽  
A. C. Hergarden ◽  
M. Murthy ◽  
D. J. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Sperm Transfer ◽  
Copulation Duration

scholarly journals Mating duration and prolonged post-copulatory associations in Arrenurus water mites (Actinotrichida: Parasitengonina: Hydrachnidiae)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariusz Wiecek ◽  
Jacek Dabert ◽  
Heather Proctor
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Sperm Transfer ◽  
Copulation Duration ◽  
Water Mites ◽  
Genital Morphology ◽  
Male Control ◽  
Mating Duration

Conflicts of interest between the sexes over control of mating can be reflected in various aspects of morphology and behaviour, including structure of genitalia and copulation duration. In Arrenurus water mites (Hydrachnidia: Arrenuridae) there are two main patterns of sperm transfer that differ in degree of potential male control of sperm uptake by females. In some species, males are equipped with an intromittent organ (the "petiole") that is used to forcefully insert sperm into the female reproductive tract. In others, males lack an intromittent organ and females appear to push sperm into their reproductive opening themselves. Theory suggests that the amount of time spent in courtship after sperm transfer should differ between males with and without an intromittent structure. We predicted that male Arrenurus able to push sperm into the female's reproductive tract (petiolate males) should spend less time courting females after transferring sperm than apetiolate males, which may have to "convince" females to take up their sperm. Here, we examined durations of mating for 10 species of Arrenurus with males that differ in genital morphology: six species with males equipped with a well developed petiole (= "petiolate" species) and four species with males that either completely lack a petiole or have a minute peg-like petiole that does not appear to function as an intromittent organ (= "apetiolate" species). We tested whether males of petiolate species spend less time in the stage of courtship that takes place after sperm transfer (= "post-transfer courtship") than apetiolate males. In contrast to our prediction, we found that species with well developed petioles spent significantly more time in post-transfer behaviours than species lacking petioles. The possible function of protracted post-transfer courtship in the genus Arrenurus is discussed.

Copulation duration does not predict sperm transfer in a marine hermaphrodite

2012 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
pp. 469-472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rolanda Lange ◽  
Joscha Beninde ◽  
Verena Reichel ◽  
Johanna Werminghausen ◽  
Tobias Gerlach ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sperm Transfer ◽  
Copulation Duration
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