When bats are boxing: aggressive behaviour and communication in male Seba's short-tailed fruit bat

Fernandez, Ahana Aurora; Fasel, Nicolas; Knörnschild, Mirjam; Richner, Heinz

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2014.10.011

Cited by 50 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…The adult males compete for territories to increase their reproductive success by having regular access to harem females (Fasel et al, 2016;Knörnschild et al, 2014). The disputes among males involve the use of wings for boxing, and the larger males can have an advantage in keeping their territories (within the roost) against other males (Fernandez, Fasel, Knörnschild, & Richner, 2014). Because the models do not discriminate between death and emigration, one might consider that the males that cannot establish a harem territory within a roost might leave it to try again elsewhere.…”

Section: Body Size and Condition Predicting Survivalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual asymmetry as a predictor of fitness in the batCarollia perspicillata

Monteiro

Mellado

Nogueira

et al. 2019

J of Evolutionary Biology

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The measurement of fitness in wild populations is a challenging task, and a number of proxies have been proposed with different degrees of success. Developmental instability/stability (DI) is an organismal property associated with variance in bilateral asymmetry (fluctuating asymmetry—FA) and a correlated effect on fitness. This study provides evidence to corroborate the hypothesis that asymmetry partly reflects DI and is correlated with a reduction in fitness measured by survival and reproduction in bats. We studied two colonies of the bat Carollia perspicillata in southeastern Brazil over 5 years, marking and recapturing individuals. Gaussian mixture models for signed Forearm Asymmetry (ForA) distribution indicated that ~20% of asymmetry variation was due to DI heterogeneity among individuals. ForA, body condition (Scaled Mass Index—SMI) and Forearm Length (ForL) were used as predictors of survival probability in Cormack‐Jolly‐Seber models. Asymmetry was negatively associated with survival, whereas SMI and ForL were positively associated. The male C. perspicillata defend sites within the roost that are favoured by female harems, but there are mating opportunities for bachelor males, leading to both territorial disputes and sperm competition. As predicted by sexual selection, ForA was negatively associated with relative Testicle Length, a measure of reproductive potential. In females, ForA was negatively associated with the probability of two pregnancies (as opposed to one) in a given breeding season. The effect magnitudes and directions of associations suggest that asymmetry, even though not perfectly reflecting DI variation, is a useful predictor for fitness components in C. perspicillata.

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Section: Body Size and Condition Predicting Survivalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual asymmetry as a predictor of fitness in the batCarollia perspicillata

Monteiro

Mellado

Nogueira

et al. 2019

J of Evolutionary Biology

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“…The causes for switching of social position are not clear, but males of different social status do not differ in age, basal blood testosterone and cortisol; in testes volume; or in body mass or size (NF unpublished data). Harem males perform courtship displays and aggressive behaviours (Fernandez et al 2014;Knörnschild et al 2014) with short rest and foraging periods (Porter 1978;Fleming 1988). Bachelor males do not control a territory and gather at daytime in unstable bachelor groups.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alternative reproductive tactics, sperm mobility and oxidative stress in Carollia perspicillata (Seba’s short-tailed bat)

Fasel

Wesseling

Fernandez

et al. 2016

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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In social systems with alternative reproductive tactics, sneakers face a higher level of sperm competition than harem males and hence are predicted to allocate more resources to ejaculates. Antioxidants can protect sperm against oxidative stress, and thus, their allocation to the ejaculate may depend on mating tactic. In this study on the frugivorous bat Carollia perspicillata, we assessed, for harem and sneaker males, four sperm mobility traits, blood and ejaculate markers of the redox balance and the ejaculate to blood ratios of the redox markers. Under higher sperm competition, sneaker males should allocate proportionally more antioxidant resources to the protection of sperm than harem males. In contrast, harem males should favour pre-copulatory functions, which comprise the protection of blood. We found significantly higher sperm velocity and sperm survival in sneakers. There was no correlation between sperm mobility and sperm enzymatic antioxidant activity or ejaculate levels of lipid peroxidation (oxidative damage). Ejaculate levels of lipid peroxidation and sperm survival showed a significantly positive correlation, which could be attributed to the role of reactive oxygen species for sperm capacitation. Harem and sneaker males showed similar levels of redox balance markers in ejaculate and blood. However, harem males showed a higher ratio of oxidized over reduced glutathione in blood, which may indicate higher cellular stress due to higher metabolism. Overall, our findings suggest that sneakers of C. perspicillata compensate for a higher level of sperm competition by higher sperm mobility. Significance statementIn social systems with alternative reproductive tactics, sneakers face higher level of sperm competition than harem males and hence are predicted to allocate more resources to ejaculates. Antioxidants can protect sperm against oxidative stress, and thus, their allocation to the ejaculate may depend on mating tactic. In this study on the frugivorous bat Carollia perspicillata, we found sperm swimming significantly faster and longer in sneaker males compared to harem males. However, traits other than the investigated antioxidant may favour higher sperm mobility. Measured redox pattern in blood of harem males may indicate higher cellular stress due to higher metabolism. Our results provide support to the current sperm competition models at the intraspecific level, which is still debated for internal fertilizers. This study contributes to better understanding the trade-offs and adaptations resulting from alternative reproductive tactics in mammals.

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“…Like many species, A. pisonii males engage in ritualistic aggression following a stereotypical sequential assessment model where individuals vary their behavior during an interaction from low to high cost until a winner emerges, allowing opponents to avoid physical injury by determining the likely winner of a fight without physical confrontation [15,16]. Animals use this type of behavior for a variety of vital functions, from courtship [17][18][19] and territory defense [20,21] to the establishment of social hierarchies [22][23][24][25]. In A. pisonii, this behavior allows for the low-cost establishment of a social hierarchy based on size and sex that provides for effective division of resources [16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual Morphology and Habitat Structure Alter Social Interactions in a Range-Shifting Species

et al. 2019

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Ecosystem engineers that serve as foundation species shape the ecology and behavior of the species which depend on them. As species shift their geographic ranges into ecosystems they have not previously inhabited, it is important to understand how interactions with novel foundation species alter their behavior. By employing behavioral assays and morphological analyses, we examined how individual morphology and foundation species structure impact the ritualistic aggression behavior of the range shifting mangrove tree crab Aratus pisonii between its historic and colonized habitats. Structure of the foundation species of the colonized salt marsh ecosystem increases the incidence and risk of this behavior over the historic mangrove habitat, potentially negating benefits of ritualizing aggression. Further, docks within the salt marsh, which are structurally analogous to mangroves, mitigate some, but not all, of the increased costs of performing ritualized aggression. Crabs in the salt marsh also had relatively larger claws than conspecifics from the dock and mangrove habitats, which has implications for the risk and outcomes of ritualized interactions. These changes to morphology and behavior highlight the impacts that foundation species structure can have on the morphology, ecology, and behavior of organisms and the importance of studying these impacts in range shifting species.

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When bats are boxing: aggressive behaviour and communication in male Seba's short-tailed fruit bat

Cited by 50 publications

References 69 publications

Individual asymmetry as a predictor of fitness in the batCarollia perspicillata

Individual asymmetry as a predictor of fitness in the batCarollia perspicillata

Alternative reproductive tactics, sperm mobility and oxidative stress in Carollia perspicillata (Seba’s short-tailed bat)

Individual Morphology and Habitat Structure Alter Social Interactions in a Range-Shifting Species

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