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Lambert GA, Smiseth PT. Flexible females: nutritional state influences biparental cooperation in a burying beetle. Behav Ecol 2024; 35:arae009. [PMID: 38456179 PMCID: PMC10919768 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arae009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Revised: 02/06/2024] [Accepted: 02/23/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024] Open
Abstract
In species that provide biparental care, there is a sexual conflict between parents over how much each should contribute toward caring for their joint offspring. Theoretical models for the resolution of this conflict through behavioral negotiation between parents assume that parents cannot assess their partner's state directly but do so indirectly by monitoring their partner's contribution. Here, we test whether parents can assess their partner's state directly by investigating the effect of nutritional state on cooperation between parents in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. We used a two-by-two factorial design, in which a well-fed or food-deprived female was paired with a well-fed or food-deprived male. We found that females adjusted their level of care in response to both their own nutritional state and that of their partner and that these decisions were independent of their partner's contribution. We found no evidence that males responded directly to the nutritional state. Males instead responded indirectly based on the contribution of their partner. Our results suggest that parents are able to assess the state of their partner, in contrast to what has been assumed, and that these assessments play an important role in the mediation of sexual conflict between caring parents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia A Lambert
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Per T Smiseth
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK
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2
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Sahm J, Conrad T, Scheu L, Steiger S. Brood size, food availability, and body size affects male care decisions and offspring performance. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10183. [PMID: 37304360 PMCID: PMC10249043 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Revised: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Parental care strategies do not only vary greatly across species, but also within species there can be substantial between- and within-individual variation in parental care behavior. To better understand the evolution of care strategies, it is crucial to determine how and when parents modify their behavior in response to internal as well as environmental factors. Here, we investigated the effect of brood size, resource size and an individual's quality on care strategies of uniparental males and examined the downstream consequences on offspring performance in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. Burying beetles breed on small vertebrate cadavers and, on average, males invest much less in care than females. Nevertheless, we found that uniparentally caring males were responsive to their social and non-social environment and adjusted the amount as well as the type of care to the size of the brood, the size of the cadaver and their own body size. Additionally, we show that the care strategies affected offspring performance. Specifically, males that cared longer had larger and more surviving larvae. Our results add to our understanding of plastic parenting strategies by showing that even the sex that provides less care can evolve a very flexible care behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacqueline Sahm
- Department of Evolutionary Animal EcologyUniversity of BayreuthBayreuthGermany
| | - Taina Conrad
- Department of Evolutionary Animal EcologyUniversity of BayreuthBayreuthGermany
| | - Larissa Scheu
- Department of Evolutionary Animal EcologyUniversity of BayreuthBayreuthGermany
| | - Sandra Steiger
- Department of Evolutionary Animal EcologyUniversity of BayreuthBayreuthGermany
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3
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Detection of reproductive trade-offs is influenced by resource availability and maintenance: an experimental study in the burying beetle (Nicrophorus vespilloides). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-022-03184-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Life-history theory predicts trade-offs between investment in current versus future reproduction. However, many studies find no or even positive correlations among these traits. The absence of the trade-off may result from resource availability, as it influences resource allocation to different traits. In addition, since large amounts of resources require additional effort in processing, resource maintenance may affect the detection of reproductive trade-offs. Here, we carried out two breeding attempts to assess the effects of resource availability and maintenance on reproductive trade-offs for both sexes in the burying beetle (Nicrophorus vespilloides). In the first breeding attempt, we simultaneously manipulated carcass size (small versus large) and carcass preparation (non-prepared versus prepared). In the second breeding attempt, we provided parents with same-sized, non-prepared carcasses. For both breeding attempts, we monitored the main and interactive effects of carcass size and carcass preparation on parental effort and reproductive outcome. In the first breeding attempt, males gained more weight and provided more care as carcass size increased, whereas females gained more weight but did not change their care. In addition, when breeding on non-prepared versus prepared carcasses, both parents provided more care and gained more weight. In the second breeding attempt, with increased investment for the first breeding, parents did not show decreased investment for the second brood, vice versa. In contrast, males breeding on large or non-prepared carcasses gained more weight during the first breeding attempt, then provided more care in subsequent reproduction. There were no differences in subsequent female care among different treatments.
Significance statement
Resource availability and resource maintenance may affect the detection of reproductive trade-offs. Here, we simultaneously manipulated carcass size and carcass preparation to assess these effects. This is the first time that the effects of resource availability and resource maintenance on reproductive trade-offs have been separated in burying beetles. Our findings suggest that despite the increased costs of parental care and resource maintenance, parents breeding on large or non-prepared carcasses gained more benefits in terms of increased body weight by staying longer and feeding more from the carcasses. Such benefits gained during the first breeding attempt offset the costs of current reproduction to some degree and masked the reproductive trade-off between current and future reproduction in terms of parental care. These findings enhance the understanding of the effects of resource availability and maintenance on reproductive trade-offs.
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Ma L, Versteegh MA, Hammers M, Komdeur J. Sex-specific influence of communal breeding experience on parenting performance and fitness in a burying beetle. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:211179. [PMID: 35223054 PMCID: PMC8847889 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.211179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Communal breeding, wherein multiple conspecifics live and reproduce together, may generate short-term benefits in terms of defence and reproduction. However, its carry-over effects remain unclear. We experimentally tested the effects of communal breeding on parental care and reproduction in burying beetles (Nicrophorus vespilloides), which use carcasses as breeding resources and provide parental care to offspring. We subjected individuals to communal or non-communal breeding (i.e. pair breeding) during their first breeding event and to non-communal breeding during their second breeding event. We measured the parental care of individuals and of groups and the reproductive success of groups during both breeding events. In communal groups, large individuals became dominant and largely monopolized the carcass, whereas small individuals (i.e. subordinates) had restricted access to the carcass. At the first breeding event, large males in communal groups spent more time providing care than large males in non-communal groups, whereas such an effect was not observed for large females and small individuals. Reproductive successes were similar in communal and non-communal groups, indicating no short-term benefits of communal breeding in terms of reproduction. Compared with males from non-communal groups, males originating from communal groups produced a larger size of brood during their second breeding event, whereas such an effect was not observed for females. Our results demonstrate the sex-specific effects of communal breeding experience on parenting performance and fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Long Ma
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Maaike A. Versteegh
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Martijn Hammers
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
- Aeres University of Applied Sciences, Arboretum West 98, 1325 WB Almere, The Netherlands
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
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5
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Wang W, Ma L, Versteegh MA, Wu H, Komdeur J. Parental Care System and Brood Size Drive Sex Difference in Reproductive Allocation: An Experimental Study on Burying Beetles. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.739396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Life-history theory predicts that increased resource allocation in current reproduction comes at the cost of survival and future reproductive fitness. In taxa with biparental care, each parent can adjust investment on current reproduction according to changes in their partner’s effort, but these adjustments may be different for males and females as they may have different reproductive strategies. Numerous theoretical and empirical studies have proposed the mechanism underlying such adjustments. In addition, the value of the brood or litter (brood size) has also been suggested to affect the amount of care through manipulation of brood size. While the two conditions have been studied independently, the impact of their interplay on potential sex-dependent future reproductive performance remains largely unknown. In this study, we simultaneously manipulated both care system (removal of either parent vs. no removal) and brood size in a burying beetle (Nicrophorus vespilloides) to understand their joint effect on reproductive allocation and trade-off between current and future reproduction. Our results show that males compensated for mate loss by significantly increasing the level of care regardless of brood size, while females exhibited such compensation only for small brood size. Additionally, with an increase in allocation to current reproduction, males showed decreased parental investment during the subsequent breeding event as a pair. These findings imply a dual influence of parental care system and brood size on allocation in current reproduction. Moreover, the impact of such adjustments on sex-dependent differences in future reproduction (parental care, larvae number, and average larval mass at dispersal) is also demonstrated. Our findings enhance the understanding of sex roles in parental investment and highlight their importance as drivers of reproductive allocation.
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6
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Ratz T, Stenson S, Smiseth PT. Offspring beg more toward larger females in a burying beetle. Behav Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/araa078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Offspring of many animals beg for food from parents. Begging is often costly, and offspring should seek to reduce such costs to maximize their returns on begging. Whenever multiple adults provide care for a joint brood, as in species where multiple females breed communally, offspring should beg toward the parent that provisions the most food. Here, we investigate whether larvae spend more time begging toward larger females in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. Prior work on this species shows that larger females provision more food than smaller ones, suggesting that larvae would benefit by preferentially begging toward larger females. To test for such a preference, we provided experimental broods with a simultaneous choice between two dead females: a smaller and a larger one. Larvae spent more time begging toward larger females. We next examined the behavioral mechanism for why larvae begged more toward larger females. Larvae spent more time in close contact with larger females over smaller ones, whereas there was no evidence that larvae begged more when in close contact with larger females. Thus, larvae begged more toward the larger female simply as a consequence of spending more time close to larger females. Our findings have important implications for our understanding of parent–offspring communication by showing that offspring can choose between parents based on parental attributes, such as body size, reflecting how much food parents are likely to provision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tom Ratz
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Sophie Stenson
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Per T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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7
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Suzuki S. Biparental negotiation or larval begging? Determinant of male provisioning in a burying beetle (Nicrophorus quadripunctatus). BEHAVIOUR 2020. [DOI: 10.1163/1568539x-bja10020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
In species showing biparental care, parents often adjust their level of care facultatively. Partners can potentially monitor each other directly (modify their effort sequentially in direct response to the prior effort of their mate) or indirectly (parents modify their effort through the begging rates of their offspring). This study examined whether partner negotiation or begging by larvae best explains male provisioning in Nicrophorus quadripunctatus. The frequency of males approaching larvae to feed did not increase with either female removal or female handicapping. However, larval begging toward males increased with female removal, but not with female handicapping. This suggests that larvae are not affected by the change of female investment in care but larvae reacted to the absence of a female parent. Although larvae begged more towards the male when the female was removed, my findings show that males did not respond by increasing their care, which suggests that males are insensitive to variation in their partner’s state or offspring behaviour in N. quadripunctatus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seizi Suzuki
- Department of Ecology and Systematics, Graduate School of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Kitaku kita 9 Nishi 9,Sapporo 060-8589, Japan
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8
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Schedwill P, Paschkewitz S, Teubner H, Steinmetz N, Nehring V. From the host's point of view: Effects of variation in burying beetle brood care and brood size on the interaction with parasitic mites. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0228047. [PMID: 31961905 PMCID: PMC6974135 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0228047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2019] [Accepted: 01/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The fitness and virulence of parasites is often determined by how many resources they can wrangle out of their hosts. Host defenses that help to keep resources from the parasites will then reduce virulence and parasite fitness. Here, we study whether host brood care and brood size regulation can protect host fitness and harm a parasite. We use the biparental brood-caring burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides and its phoretic Poecilochirus carabi mites as a model. Since paternal brood care does not seem to benefit the offspring in a clean laboratory setting, the male presence has been suggested to strengthen the defense against parasites. We manipulated male presence and found no effect on the fitness of the parasitic mites or the beetle offspring. We further manipulated beetle brood size and found larger broods to reduce parasite fitness. The specific pattern we observed suggests that beetle larvae are strong competitors and consume the carrion resource before all parasites develop. They thus starve the parasites. These results shed new light on the observation that the parasites appear to reduce host brood size early on–potentially to avert later competition their offspring might have to face.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petra Schedwill
- Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, Institute of Biology I, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Sophia Paschkewitz
- Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, Institute of Biology I, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Heide Teubner
- Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, Institute of Biology I, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Nadine Steinmetz
- Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, Institute of Biology I, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Volker Nehring
- Evolutionary Biology & Ecology, Institute of Biology I, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- * E-mail:
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9
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Dang V, Cohanim AB, Fontana S, Privman E, Wang J. Has gene expression neofunctionalization in the fire ant antennae contributed to queen discrimination behavior? Ecol Evol 2019; 9:12754-12766. [PMID: 31788211 PMCID: PMC6875580 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2019] [Revised: 09/18/2019] [Accepted: 09/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Queen discrimination behavior in the fire ant Solenopsis invicta maintains its two types of societies: colonies with one (monogyne) or many (polygyne) queens, yet the underlying genetic mechanism is poorly understood. This behavior is controlled by two supergene alleles, SB and Sb, with ~600 genes. Polygyne workers, having either the SB/SB or SB/Sb genotype, accept additional SB/Sb queens into their colonies but kill SB/SB queens. In contrast, monogyne workers, all SB/SB, reject all additional queens regardless of genotype. Because the SB and Sb alleles have suppressed recombination, determining which genes within the supergene mediate this differential worker behavior is difficult. We hypothesized that the alternate worker genotypes sense queens differently because of the evolution of differential expression of key genes in their main sensory organ, the antennae. To identify such genes, we sequenced RNA from four replicates of pooled antennae from three classes of workers: monogyne SB/SB, polygyne SB/SB, and polygyne SB/Sb. We identified 81 differentially expressed protein-coding genes with 13 encoding potential chemical metabolism or perception proteins. We focused on the two odorant perception genes: an odorant receptor SiOR463 and an odorant-binding protein SiOBP12. We found that SiOR463 has been lost in the Sb genome. In contrast, SiOBP12 has an Sb-specific duplication, SiOBP12b', which is expressed in the SB/Sb worker antennae, while both paralogs are expressed in the body. Comparisons with another fire ant species revealed that SiOBP12b' antennal expression is specific to S. invicta and suggests that queen discrimination may have evolved, in part, through expression neofunctionalization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Viet‐Dai Dang
- Biodiversity Research CenterAcademia SinicaTaipeiTaiwan
- Biodiversity Taiwan International Graduate Program, Biodiversity Research CenterAcademia SinicaTaipeiTaiwan
- Department of Life ScienceNational Taiwan Normal UniversityTaipeiTaiwan
- Department of ZoologySouthern Institute of EcologyVietnam Academy of Science and TechnologyHochiminhVietnam
| | - Amir B. Cohanim
- Department of Evolutionary and Environmental BiologyInstitute of EvolutionUniversity of HaifaHaifaIsrael
| | - Silvia Fontana
- Biodiversity Research CenterAcademia SinicaTaipeiTaiwan
- Biodiversity Taiwan International Graduate Program, Biodiversity Research CenterAcademia SinicaTaipeiTaiwan
- Department of Life ScienceNational Taiwan Normal UniversityTaipeiTaiwan
| | - Eyal Privman
- Department of Evolutionary and Environmental BiologyInstitute of EvolutionUniversity of HaifaHaifaIsrael
| | - John Wang
- Biodiversity Research CenterAcademia SinicaTaipeiTaiwan
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10
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Smiseth PT. Coordination, Cooperation, and Conflict Between Caring Parents in Burying Beetles. Front Ecol Evol 2019. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2019.00397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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11
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Robart AR, Sinervo B. Females increase parental care, but not fecundity, when mated to high-quality males in a biparental fish. Anim Behav 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2018.11.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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12
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Miller M, Ratz T, Richardson J, Smiseth PT. Interplay between age-based competitive asymmetries within the brood and direct competition between inbred and outbred offspring in a burying beetle. J Evol Biol 2018; 32:89-99. [PMID: 30414330 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2018] [Revised: 10/30/2018] [Accepted: 11/04/2018] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Theory suggests that intraspecific competition associated with direct competition between inbred and outbred individuals should be an important determinant of the severity of inbreeding depression. The reason is that, if outbred individuals are stronger competitors than inbred ones, direct competition should have a disproportionate effect on the fitness of inbred individuals. However, an individual's competitive ability is not only determined by its inbreeding status but also by competitive asymmetries that are independent of an individual's inbreeding status. When this is the case, such competitive asymmetries may shape the outcome of direct competition between inbred and outbred individuals. Here, we investigate the interface between age-based competitive asymmetries within broods and direct competition between inbred and outbred offspring in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. We found that inbred offspring had lower survival than outbred ones confirming that there was inbreeding depression. Furthermore, seniors (older larvae) grew to a larger size and had higher survival than juniors (younger larvae), confirming that there were age-based competitive asymmetries. Nevertheless, there was no evidence that direct competition between inbred and outbred larvae exacerbated inbreeding depression, no evidence that inbreeding depression was more severe in juniors and no evidence that inbred juniors suffered disproportionately due to competition from outbred seniors. Our results suggest that direct competition between inbred and outbred individuals does not necessarily exacerbate inbreeding depression and that inbred individuals are not always more sensitive to poor and stressful conditions than outbred ones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mhairi Miller
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.,Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park, UK
| | - Tom Ratz
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Jon Richardson
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Per T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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13
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Richardson J, Smiseth PT. Effects of variation in resource acquisition during different stages of the life cycle on life-history traits and trade-offs in a burying beetle. J Evol Biol 2018; 32:19-30. [PMID: 30311711 PMCID: PMC7379983 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2018] [Revised: 09/24/2018] [Accepted: 10/09/2018] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Individual variation in resource acquisition should have consequences for life‐history traits and trade‐offs between them because such variation determines how many resources can be allocated to different life‐history functions, such as growth, survival and reproduction. Since resource acquisition can vary across an individual's life cycle, the consequences for life‐history traits and trade‐offs may depend on when during the life cycle resources are limited. We tested for differential and/or interactive effects of variation in resource acquisition in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. We designed an experiment in which individuals acquired high or low amounts of resources across three stages of the life cycle: larval development, prior to breeding and the onset of breeding in a fully crossed design. Resource acquisition during larval development and prior to breeding affected egg size and offspring survival, respectively. Meanwhile, resource acquisition at the onset of breeding affected size and number of both eggs and offspring. In addition, there were interactive effects between resource acquisition at different stages on egg size and offspring survival. However, only when females acquired few resources at the onset of breeding was there evidence for a trade‐off between offspring size and number. Our results demonstrate that individual variation in resource acquisition during different stages of the life cycle has important consequences for life‐history traits but limited effects on trade‐offs. This suggests that in species that acquire a fixed‐sized resource at the onset of breeding, the size of this resource has larger effects on life‐history trade‐offs than resources acquired at earlier stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jon Richardson
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Per T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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14
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Smiseth PT, Royle NJ. The resolution of conflict in families. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2018; 28:8-12. [PMID: 30551771 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2018.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2018] [Revised: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 03/12/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The emergence of family groups is associated with conflict over the allocation of food or other limited resources. Understanding the mechanisms mediating the resolution of such conflict is a major aim in behavioral ecology. Most empirical work on familial conflict has focused on birds. Here, we highlight how recent work on insects provides new and exciting insights into how such conflict is resolved. This work shows that conflict resolution can be more complex than traditionally envisioned, often involving multiple mechanisms. For example, it shows that the resolution of sexual conflict involves a combination of behavioral negotiation, direct assessment of partner's state, and manipulation using anti-aphrodisiacs or prenatal maternal effects. Furthermore, it highlights that there is a shift from the traditional emphasis on conflict (and competition) to a greater emphasis on the balance between conflict on the one hand and cooperation on the other.
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Affiliation(s)
- P T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK.
| | - N J Royle
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn TR10 9EZ, UK
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15
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Pilakouta N, Hanlon EJH, Smiseth PT. Biparental care is more than the sum of its parts: experimental evidence for synergistic effects on offspring fitness. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:20180875. [PMID: 30068674 PMCID: PMC6111165 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.0875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2018] [Accepted: 07/09/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite an extensive body of theoretical and empirical literature on biparental cooperation, it is still unclear whether offspring fare equally, better or worse when receiving care by two parents versus a single parent. Some models predict that parents should withhold the amount of care they provide due to sexual conflict, thereby shifting as much of the workload as possible to their partner. This conflict should lead to offspring faring worse with two parents. Yet, other models predict that when parents care for their offspring together, their individual contributions can have synergistic (more than additive) effects on offspring fitness. Under this scenario, biparental cooperation should lead to offspring faring better with two parents. We address this fundamental question using a unique experimental design where we compared offspring fitness when the two parents worked together (biparental treatment) and when they worked separately (uniparental treatment), while keeping constant the amount of resources and number of offspring per parent across treatments. This made it possible to directly compare the biparental treatment to the sum of the male and female contributions in the uniparental treatment. Our main finding was that offspring grew larger and were more likely to survive to adulthood when reared by both parents than a single parent. This is the first empirical evidence for a synergistic effect of biparental cooperation on offspring fitness and could provide novel insights into the conditions favouring the evolution of biparental cooperation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Pilakouta
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | | | - Per T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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16
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Paquet M, Drummond H, Smiseth PT. Offspring are predisposed to beg more towards females in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. Anim Behav 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2018.05.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
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17
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Smith AN, Belk MC. Does body size affect fitness the same way in males and females? A test of multiple fitness components. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/bly025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ashlee N Smith
- Biology Department, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA
| | - Mark C Belk
- Biology Department, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA
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18
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Ratz T, Smiseth PT. Flexible parents: joint effects of handicapping and brood size manipulation on female parental care in
Nicrophorus vespilloides. J Evol Biol 2018; 31:646-656. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.13254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2017] [Revised: 02/08/2018] [Accepted: 02/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tom Ratz
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology University of Edinburgh Edinburgh UK
| | - Per T. Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology University of Edinburgh Edinburgh UK
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Decreasing parental task specialization promotes conditional cooperation. Sci Rep 2017; 7:6565. [PMID: 28747694 PMCID: PMC5529357 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-06667-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2017] [Accepted: 06/14/2017] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
How much to invest in parental care and by who remain puzzling questions fomented by a sexual conflict between parents. Negotiation that facilitates coordinated parental behaviour may be key to ease this costly conflict. However, understanding cooperation requires that the temporal and sex-specific variation in parental care, as well as its multivariate nature is considered. Using a biparental bird species and repeated sampling of behavioural activities throughout a major part of reproduction, we show a clear division of tasks between males and females in provisioning, brooding and foraging. Such behavioural specializations fade with increasing nestling age, which stimulates the degree of alternated feeding visits, as a recently promoted form of conditional cooperation. However, such cooperation is thought to benefit offspring development, which is not supported by our data. Thus, from a proximate point of view, conditional cooperation via alternation critically depends on the division of parental tasks, while the ultimate benefits have yet to be shown.
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Females manipulate behavior of caring males via prenatal maternal effects. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:6800-6805. [PMID: 28607046 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1619759114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In species with biparental care, there is sexual conflict as each parent is under selection to minimize its personal effort by shifting as much as possible of the workload over to the other parent. Most theoretical and empirical work on the resolution of this conflict has focused on strategies used by both parents, such as negotiation. However, because females produce the eggs, this might afford females with an ability to manipulate male behavior via maternal effects that alter offspring phenotypes. To test this hypothesis, we manipulated the prenatal conditions (i.e., presence or absence of the male), performed a cross-fostering experiment, and monitored the subsequent effects of prenatal conditions on offspring and parental performance in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides We found that offspring were smaller at hatching when females laid eggs in presence of a male, suggesting that females invest less in eggs when expecting male assistance. Furthermore, broods laid in the presence of a male gained more weight during parental care, and they did so at the expense of male weight gain. Contrary to our expectations, males cared less for broods laid in the presence of a male. Our results provide experimental evidence that females can alter male behavior during breeding by adjusting maternal effects according to prenatal conditions. However, rather than increasing the male's parental effort, females appeared to suppress the male's food consumption, thereby leaving more food for their brood.
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Paquet M, Wotherspoon R, Smiseth PT. Caring males do not respond to cues about losses in paternity in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.03.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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22
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Pilakouta N, Smiseth PT. Female mating preferences for outbred versus inbred males are conditional upon the female's own inbreeding status. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.11.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
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Pilakouta N, Smiseth PT. Maternal effects alter the severity of inbreeding depression in the offspring. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 283:rspb.2016.1023. [PMID: 27629026 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.1023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2016] [Accepted: 08/23/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
A maternal effect is a causal influence of the maternal phenotype on the offspring phenotype over and above any direct effects of genes. There is abundant evidence that maternal effects can have a major impact on offspring fitness. Yet, no previous study has investigated the potential role of maternal effects in influencing the severity of inbreeding depression in the offspring. Inbreeding depression is a reduction in the fitness of inbred offspring relative to outbred offspring. Here, we tested whether maternal effects due to body size alter the magnitude of inbreeding depression in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides We found that inbreeding depression in larval survival was more severe for offspring of large females than offspring of small females. This might be due to differences in how small and large females invest in an inbred brood because of their different prospects for future breeding opportunities. To our knowledge, this is the first evidence for a causal effect of the maternal phenotype on the severity of inbreeding depression in the offspring. In natural populations that are subject to inbreeding, maternal effects may drive variation in inbreeding depression and therefore contribute to variation in the strength and direction of selection for inbreeding avoidance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Pilakouta
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Per T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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24
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Pilakouta N, Halford C, Rácz R, Smiseth PT. Effects of Prior Contest Experience and Contest Outcome on Female Reproductive Decisions and Offspring Fitness. Am Nat 2016; 188:319-28. [DOI: 10.1086/687392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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25
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Andrews CP, Kruuk LEB, Smiseth PT. Evolution of elaborate parental care: phenotypic and genetic correlations between parent and offspring traits. Behav Ecol 2016; 28:39-48. [PMID: 28127224 PMCID: PMC5255903 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arw129] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2015] [Revised: 07/08/2016] [Accepted: 07/22/2016] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Although the evolution of parental care is a central topic in behavioral ecology, we know relatively little about how complex forms of care evolve. We studied elaborate parental care in the burying beetle N. vespilloides. Our results suggest that females differ in their parental quality, that some parental behaviors enhance offspring growth while others enhance offspring survival, and that there is little genetic variation in parental and offspring behaviors. Twitter: @persmiseth The evolution of elaborate forms of parental care is an important topic in behavioral ecology, yet the factors shaping the evolution of complex suites of parental and offspring traits are poorly understood. Here, we use a multivariate quantitative genetic approach to study phenotypic and genetic correlations between parental and offspring traits in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. To this end, we recorded 2 prenatal traits (clutch size and egg size), 2 postnatal parental behaviors (direct care directed toward larvae and indirect care directed toward resource maintenance), 1 offspring behavior (begging), and 2 measures of breeding success (larval dispersal mass and number of dispersing larvae). Females breeding on larger carcasses provided less direct care but produced larger larvae than females breeding on smaller carcasses. Furthermore, there were positive phenotypic correlations between clutch size, direct, and indirect care. Both egg size and direct care were positively correlated with dispersal mass, whereas clutch size was negatively correlated with dispersal mass. Clutch size and number of dispersed larvae showed genetic variance both in terms of differences between populations of origin and significant heritabilities. However, we found no evidence of genetic variance underlying other parental or offspring traits. Our results suggest that correlations between suites of parental traits are driven by variation in individual quality rather than trade-offs, that some parental traits promote offspring growth while others increase the number of offspring produced, and that parental and offspring traits might respond slowly to selection due to low levels of additive genetic variance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clare P Andrews
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK,; Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK, and
| | - Loeske E B Kruuk
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK,; Division of Ecology, Evolution and Genetics, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Per T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh , Charlotte Auerbach Road, Edinburgh EH9 3FL , UK
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Pilakouta N, Sieber DJ, Smiseth PT. Sibling competition does not exacerbate inbreeding depression in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. J Evol Biol 2016; 29:704-10. [PMID: 26709848 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2015] [Revised: 12/18/2015] [Accepted: 12/21/2015] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Inbreeding results from matings between relatives and can cause a reduction in offspring fitness, known as inbreeding depression. Previous work has shown that a wide range of environmental stresses, such as extreme temperatures, starvation and parasitism, can exacerbate inbreeding depression. It has recently been argued that stresses due to intraspecific competition should have a stronger effect on the severity of inbreeding depression than stresses due to harsh physical conditions. Here, we tested whether an increase in the intensity of sibling competition can exacerbate inbreeding depression in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. We used a 2 × 3 factorial design with offspring inbreeding status (outbred or inbred) and brood size (5, 20, or 40 larvae) as the two factors. We found a main effect of inbreeding status, as inbred larvae had lower survival than outbred larvae, and a main effect of brood size, as larvae in large broods had lower survival and mass than larvae in medium-sized broods. However, there was no effect of the interaction between inbreeding status and brood size, suggesting that sibling competition did not influence the severity of inbreeding depression. Since we focused on sibling competition within homogeneous broods of either inbred or outbred larvae, we cannot rule out possible effects of sibling competition on inbreeding depression in mixed paternity broods comprising of both inbred and outbred offspring. More information on whether and when sibling competition might influence inbreeding depression can help advance our understanding of the causes underlying variation in the severity of inbreeding depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- N Pilakouta
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - D J Sieber
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - P T Smiseth
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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Pilakouta N, Richardson J, Smiseth PT. If you eat, I eat: resolution of sexual conflict over consumption from a shared resource. Anim Behav 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.10.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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