Body size and lifespan are condition dependent in the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, but not sexually selected traits

McConnell, Murray W.; Judge, Kevin A.

doi:10.1007/s00265-018-2444-3

Cited by 10 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 56 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…with the observations that mass serves as a reliable proxy for overall stored resources in insects (e.g., Berger et al, 2012;McConnel and Judge, 2018), and that queen mass was a predictor of both the likelihood and onset of oviposition in our experiment (Supplementary Table 2)-these facts point to the significance of having adequate resources for the successful establishment of a termite colony. We found that a queen's likelihood of oviposition was significantly lower when her mate received an injection of Live-Sm.…”

Section: Checkpoint 2: Onset and Likelihood Of Ovipositionsupporting

confidence: 81%

Competing Physiological Demands During Incipient Colony Foundation in a Social Insect: Consequences of Pathogenic Stress

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The social nature of termites has allowed them to become an ecologically dominant taxon. However, their nesting and foraging habits (decayed wood and/or soil), combined with frequent social interactions, enhances the risk of pathogen transmission. New dispersing kings and queens are especially vulnerable to pathogens due to the metabolic demands of nest construction, courtship, mating, oogenesis, and parental care, all while mounting an immune response to novel pathogens encountered upon leaving the natal nest. To quantify differential allocation of resources during colony establishment in response to disease exposure, Zootermopsis angusticollis kings and queens were paired after one or both individuals received an injection of saline, heat-killed Serratia marcescens (ecologically relevant, Gram-negative, soil bacterium), a sub-lethal dose of live S. marcescens, or were left untreated. We then quantified several indices of fitness, including the survival of the reproductive pair, onset and likelihood of oviposition, number of eggs produced, and egg quality as a function of parental immunological treatment. Our results uncovered complex and dynamic interactions between these fitness measures and pathogenic stress. Overall, pathogenic stress reduced the survival of kings and queens, the likelihood of oviposition and egg total, but not the onset of oviposition or egg quality, indicating that, in the face of disease, queens "opt" to maintain offspring quality over quantity. These impacts appear to be context-dependent-modulated by colony of origin, sex, mass, and the presence of a mate-rather than absolute. The acquisition of resources prior to colony foundation, combined with the effects of pathogenic exposure, can dramatically limit the success of termites. Based on these empirical data, we have developed a conceptual model of the first 30 days of colony life, involving two successive fitness checkpoints, survival and oviposition, followed by an initial growth phase in which the first egg cohort is produced. In summary, we identified not only the intrinsic and extrinsic factors that influence successful termite colony foundation, but also the maternal and paternal pathogen-induced effects. Such effects alter resource allocation decisions of parents toward their offspring, with cascading consequences on colony fitness.

show abstract

Section: Checkpoint 2: Onset and Likelihood Of Ovipositionsupporting

confidence: 81%

Competing Physiological Demands During Incipient Colony Foundation in a Social Insect: Consequences of Pathogenic Stress

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…). Alternatively, in species that do not engage in fighting behaviors, larger individuals may live for longer (Ohgushi ; McConnell and Judge ). For example, larvae of the mealworm beetle ( Tenebrio molitor ) fed higher quality diets develop into larger and longer lived adults–‐however unlike the giraffe weevils, these larger males do not achieve increased copulation success (McConnell and Judge ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Directional selection on body size but no apparent survival cost to being large in wild New Zealand giraffe weevils

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

When an individual's reproductive success relies on winning fights to secure mating opportunities, bearing larger weapons is advantageous. However, sexual selection can be extremely complex, and over an animal's life the opportunity to mate is influenced by numerous factors. We studied a wild population of giraffe weevils (Lasiorhynchus barbicornis) that exhibit enormous intra and intersexual size variation. Males bear an elongated rostrum used as a weapon in fights for mating opportunities. However, small males also employ sneaking behavior as an alternative reproductive tactic. We investigated sexual selection on size by tracking individual males and females daily over two 30‐day periods to measure long‐term mating success. We also assessed how survival and recapture probabilities vary with sex and size to determine whether there might be a survival cost associated with size. We found evidence for directional selection on size through higher mating success, but no apparent survival trade‐off. Instead, larger individuals mate more often and have a higher survival probability, suggesting an accumulation of benefits to bigger individuals. Furthermore, we found evidence of size assortative mating where males appear to selectively mate with bigger females. Larger and more competitive males secure matings with larger females more frequently than smaller males, which may further increase their fitness.

show abstract

“…A study system to investigate male condition, copulatory courtship (via stroking), copulation duration, cryptic female choice, and fitness consequences is the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor . In this species, males produce pheromones before copulation to attract females (Hurd & Parry, 1991; McConnell & Judge, 2018; Rantala et al., 2003). Several results suggest that pheromones are affected by male condition (e.g., nutritional level) (Rantala et al., 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this species, males produce pheromones before copulation to attract females (Hurd & Parry, 1991;McConnell & Judge, 2018;Rantala et al, 2003). Several results suggest that pheromones are affected by male condition (e.g., nutritional level) (Rantala et al, 2003).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Condition‐dependent male copulatory courtship and its benefits for females

Cargnelutti

Ramírez²,

Cristancho

et al. 2021

Ecology and Evolution

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Sexual selection is responsible for the development of highly elaborated traits, known as secondary sexual characters (SSCs) (Andersson, 1994;Cotton et al., 2006; Darwin, 1871). These SSCs are used during courtship to persuade and stimulate females to mate using visual, auditory, tactile, and/or chemical signals (Andersson, 1994;Eberhard, 1996;Mitoyen et al., 2019). Theory indicates that these SSCs are used by females as indicators of male quality (Cotton et al., 2004;Grafen, 1990;Zahavi, 1975). The fundamental idea is that the cost of producing and maintaining SSCs depends directly on the condition of males, which can be defined as

show abstract

Body size and lifespan are condition dependent in the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, but not sexually selected traits

Cited by 10 publications

References 56 publications

Competing Physiological Demands During Incipient Colony Foundation in a Social Insect: Consequences of Pathogenic Stress

Competing Physiological Demands During Incipient Colony Foundation in a Social Insect: Consequences of Pathogenic Stress

Directional selection on body size but no apparent survival cost to being large in wild New Zealand giraffe weevils

Condition‐dependent male copulatory courtship and its benefits for females

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About