Counterstrategies by female frogs to sexual coercion by heterospecifics

Hettyey, Attila; Baksay, Sandra; Vági, Balázs; Hoi, Herbert

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.09.006

Cited by 18 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…In the R. esculenta complex, females are frequently amplexed by genetically incompatible males, and respond by reducing their clutch size by up to 40% (Roesli & Reyer, 2000; Tunner, 1974). A similar phenomenon has also recently been discovered in the closely related species R. dalmantina , in which females respond to matings with heterospecific males by reducing clutch size by up to 30% (Hettyey et al , 2009 a ; Hettyey & Pearman, 2003). Because a growing number of studies are finding that female fitness in anurans can be compromised as an outcome of mating with phenotypically or genetically inferior males (Bourne, 1993; Jaquiéry et al , 2010; Welch et al , 1998), closer inspection of female oviposition behaviour in species where males force copulation may reveal that clutch size adjustment is reasonably common among anurans.…”

Section: Evolution Of Sequential Polyandrysupporting

confidence: 74%

Evolutionary causes and consequences of sequential polyandry in anuran amphibians

Byrne

Roberts

2011

Biological Reviews

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Among anuran amphibians (frogs and toads), there are two types of polyandry: simultaneous polyandry, where sperm from multiple males compete to fertilize eggs, and sequential polyandry, where eggs from a single female are fertilized by multiple males in a series of temporally separate mating events, and sperm competition is absent. Here we review the occurrence of sequential polyandry in anuran amphibians, outline theoretical explanations for the evolution of this mating system and discuss potential evolutionary implications. Sequential polyandry has been reported in a limited number of anurans, but its widespread taxonomic and geographic distribution suggests it may be common. There have been no empirical studies that have explicitly investigated the evolutionary consequences of sequential polyandry in anurans, but species with this mating pattern share an array of behavioural, morphological and physiological characteristics, suggesting that there has been common sexual selection on their reproductive system. Sequential polyandry may have a number of adaptive benefits, including spreading the risk of brood failure in unpredictable environments, insuring against male infertility, or providing genetic benefits, either through good genes, intrinsic compatibility or genetic diversity effects. Anurans with sequential polyandry provide untapped opportunities for innovative research approaches that will contribute significantly to understanding anuran evolution and also, more broadly, to the development of sexual-selection and life-history theory.

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Section: Evolution Of Sequential Polyandrysupporting

confidence: 74%

Evolutionary causes and consequences of sequential polyandry in anuran amphibians

Byrne

Roberts

2011

Biological Reviews

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“…However, these categories should rather be seen as the two ends of a continuum [ 9 ]. High mating pressure on females, the short time-frame available for reproduction, scramble mating with associated sperm competition when females get amplexed by multiple males simultaneously, and stray sperm in aquatic environments presumably preclude the possibility of active female choice in explosively breeding species [ 10 ; but see 11 ]. In species with prolonged breeding, females might be able to selectively choose among available males due to the relaxed temporal constraints.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low reproductive skew despite high male-biased operational sex ratio in a glass frog with paternal care

et al. 2015

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BackgroundReproductive skew, the uneven distribution of reproductive success among individuals, is a common feature of many animal populations. Several scenarios have been proposed to favour either high or low levels of reproductive skew. Particularly a male-biased operational sex ratio and the asynchronous arrival of females is expected to cause high variation in reproductive success among males. Recently it has been suggested that the type of benefits provided by males (fixed vs. dilutable) could also strongly impact individual mating patterns, and thereby affecting reproductive skew. We tested this hypothesis in Hyalinobatrachium valerioi, a Neotropical glass frog with prolonged breeding and paternal care.ResultsWe monitored and genetically sampled a natural population in southwestern Costa Rica during the breeding season in 2012 and performed parentage analysis of adult frogs and tadpoles to investigate individual mating frequencies, possible mating preferences, and estimate reproductive skew in males and females. We identified a polygamous mating system, where high proportions of males (69 %) and females (94 %) reproduced successfully. The variance in male mating success could largely be attributed to differences in time spent calling at the reproductive site, but not to body size or relatedness. Female H. valerioi were not choosy and mated indiscriminately with available males.ConclusionsOur findings support the hypothesis that dilutable male benefits - such as parental care - can favour female polyandry and maintain low levels of reproductive skew among males within a population, even in the presence of direct male-male competition and a highly male-biased operational sex ratio. We hypothesize that low male reproductive skew might be a general characteristic in prolonged breeders with paternal care.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-015-0469-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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“…Males were classified as large when they exceeded the average ± SE population SUL of 55.06 ± 4.50 mm, and as small otherwise. We marked males individually by waist tagging (for a detailed description, see Hettyey et al, 2009a), and placed three small and three large males together with three females in each of seven round plastic tanks (55 cm diameter, 45 cm deep) covered with wire netting (1 × 1 cm mesh size) to prevent the animals from escaping. We filled the tanks with 15 cm of pond water and furnished them with a branch and reeds as egg laying substrate.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Male body size and parental relatedness but not nuptial colouration influence paternity success during scramble competition in Rana arvalis

Rausch

Sztatecsny

Jehle

et al. 2014

Behav

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Female mate choice promotes the development of male secondary sexual traits such as nuptial colouration, whereas scramble competition favours male traits which enhance their ability for access to females. In the explosively breeding moor frog (Rana arvalis), males express a conspicuous blue colouration during a short reproductive period characterised by scramble competition. In the present study we used controlled mating experiments and genetic markers to disentangle the effects of colouration, body size and pairwise genetic relatedness in determining paternity success. Males observed in amplexus with a female prior to spawning were larger than their competitors but did not differ from them in colouration. Polyandry occurred in 67% of the 18 analysed egg clutches, and amplecting males did not always achieve the highest siring success, most likely due to stray sperm. Successful mating pairs were characterised by higher genetic divergence between them than expected by chance. We confirm previous evidence that male nuptial colouration is not a trait selected by females, and provide evidence that male reproductive success is influenced by male size as well as genetic attributes.

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Counterstrategies by female frogs to sexual coercion by heterospecifics

Cited by 18 publications

References 60 publications

Evolutionary causes and consequences of sequential polyandry in anuran amphibians

Evolutionary causes and consequences of sequential polyandry in anuran amphibians

Low reproductive skew despite high male-biased operational sex ratio in a glass frog with paternal care

Male body size and parental relatedness but not nuptial colouration influence paternity success during scramble competition in Rana arvalis

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