Different preference functions act in unison: mate choice and risk-taking behaviour in the Atlantic molly (Poecilia mexicana)

Sommer-Trembo, Carolin; Schreier, Michael; Plath, Martin

doi:10.1007/s10164-020-00643-5

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…In P. mexicana, essentially the same pattern is found (Jordan et al, 2006;Plath et al, 2004;Sommer-Trembo et al, 2020;Zimmer et al, 2018). Together, these studies mirror more general findings in the family of Livebearing fishes, where on average females prefer more ornamented, larger males (Rios-Cardenas & Morris, 2011).…”

Section: Overall Mate Choice and Side Biasessupporting

confidence: 81%

“…Males show preference for sexual females over Amazon mollies (Schlupp et al., 1994), P. latipinna females show a preference for larger mates (Gabor & Page, 2003; Ptacek & Travis, 1997; Witte & Ryan, 1998), and more symmetrical males (Schlüter et al., 1998). In P. mexicana , essentially the same pattern is found (Jordan et al., 2006; Plath et al., 2004; Sommer‐Trembo et al., 2020; Zimmer et al., 2018). Together, these studies mirror more general findings in the family of Livebearing fishes, where on average females prefer more ornamented, larger males (Rios‐Cardenas & Morris, 2011).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 60%

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Absence of female preference and the origin of a unisexual species, the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa)

Smith,

Berbel‐Filho,

Spikes

et al. 2024

Ethology

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The role of hybridization as a formative process in evolution has received much attention in the past few decades. A particularly fascinating outcome of hybrid speciation is the formation of asexual hybrid species. The Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa) is such a hybrid and originated from a P. mexicana mother and a P. latipinna father. Consequently, a heterospecific mating must have occurred leading to the Amazon molly, indicating a breakdown of any potential prezygotic isolation between parental species. Here we studied the female mate preferences of extant P. mexicana and P. latipinna from several populations using standard binary choice tests with males of both sexual species that were matched for size. Poecilia mexicana and P. latipinna can be crossed in the lab, however, the offspring are not asexual, but sexual F1s. In our study, we generated F1s and tested their mating preferences with sexual males of both P. mexicana and P. latipinna against F1 males. Overall, our results show that in extant P. mexicana and P. latipinna no female preference for conspecific males was detectable. Consequently, heterospecific matings are possible and not hindered by any apparent behavioral prezygotic isolation. If female preferences in these species were comparable around the time the Amazon molly originated as a hybrid species ca. 100,000 years ago, matings leading to hybrids would be very likely. F1 females also have no discernable mating preferences for either sexual males or F1 males. Such lack of prezygotic behavioral isolation could potentially lead to F2 individuals, backcrosses, and introgression.

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Section: Overall Mate Choice and Side Biasessupporting

confidence: 81%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 60%

Absence of female preference and the origin of a unisexual species, the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa)

Smith,

Berbel‐Filho,

Spikes

et al. 2024

Ethology

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“…However, individuals were not in physical contact with each other in our choice experiments; therefore, male aggression may not be the only factor. Females could also exert a preference for bolder males with higher risk-taking tendencies [ 81 , 95 , 96 ]. Previous studies with the zebrafish lines have indicated that control line fish are bolder than the large-harvested line fish [ 60 , 61 ], and this difference in personality could explain why the former were preferred.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Size Selective Harvesting Does Not Result in Reproductive Isolation among Experimental Lines of Zebrafish, Danio rerio: Implications for Managing Harvest-Induced Evolution

Roy

Fromm

Sbragaglia

et al. 2021

Biology

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Size-selective mortality is common in fish stocks. Positive size-selection happens in fisheries where larger size classes are preferentially targeted while gape-limited natural predation may cause negative size-selection for smaller size classes. As body size and correlated behavioural traits are sexually selected, harvest-induced trait changes may promote prezygotic reproductive barriers among selection lines experiencing differential size-selective mortality. To investigate this, we used three experimental lines of zebrafish (Danio rerio) exposed to positive (large-harvested), negative (small-harvested) and random (control line) size-selective mortality for five generations. We tested prezygotic preferences through choice tests and spawning trials. In the preference tests without controlling for body size, we found that females of all lines preferred males of the generally larger small-harvested line. When the body size of stimulus fish was statistically controlled, this preference disappeared and a weak evidence of line-assortative preference emerged, but only among large-harvested line fish. In subsequent spawning trials, we did not find evidence for line-assortative reproductive allocation in any of the lines. Our study suggests that size-selection due to fisheries or natural predation does not result in reproductive isolation. Gene flow between wild-populations and populations adapted to size-selected mortality may happen during secondary contact which can speed up trait recovery.

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“…To maximize reproductive success, males are predicted to choose females with personality traits that can result in higher reproductive success, for example, higher activity level. Choosiness regarding personality may also depend on the choosers' own personality type [34]. In addition, personality may covary with body size [35,36], and thus these two phenotypic traits may interact to in uence mate choice in both sexes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Male Mate Choice in Mosquitofish: Personality Outweighs Body Size

Zhang

Cui

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Background Despite its important implications in behavioural and evolutionary ecology, male mate choice has been little studied, and the relative contribution of personality and morphological traits remains largely unknown. Using standard two-choice mating trials, we studied whether personality traits (i.e. shyness and activity) and body size of both sexes affect mate choice in male mosquitofish Gambusia affinis. Results Both shyness and activity in males were significantly repeatable and constituted a behavioural syndrome. No overall directional preference for large (or small) females with the same activity levels was detected because larger males preferred larger females and smaller males chose smaller females. However, males spent more time associating with active females regardless of their body lengths and had an enhanced preference for inactive females when they increased activity levels. We also found that more proactive (bolder and more active) males had stronger preferences for more active females. Conclusions Our study supports the importance of body size in male mate choice but highlights that personality traits may outweigh body size preferences when males choose mating partners.

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Different preference functions act in unison: mate choice and risk-taking behaviour in the Atlantic molly (Poecilia mexicana)

Cited by 7 publications

References 56 publications

Absence of female preference and the origin of a unisexual species, the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa)

Absence of female preference and the origin of a unisexual species, the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa)

Size Selective Harvesting Does Not Result in Reproductive Isolation among Experimental Lines of Zebrafish, Danio rerio: Implications for Managing Harvest-Induced Evolution

Male Mate Choice in Mosquitofish: Personality Outweighs Body Size

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