Behind closed doors: use of visual cover by courting male three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus

Dzieweczynski, Teresa L.; Rowland, William J.

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2003.08.024

Cited by 41 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 18 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…For example, swordtail (Xiphophorus birchmanni) males (Poeciliidae) court females more intensely in the presence of a male audience, suggesting that male courtship in that species has a dual function in mate attraction and to deter rivals (Fisher and Rosenthal 2006), while male sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) court females less in the portion of a test tank in which an audience male is visible (Dzieweczynski and Rowland 2004). When Atlantic molly (Poecilia mexicana) males were given a choice between two females in a visual simultaneous choice test, and another (audience) male was presented visually during the second part of the trials, males reduced their sexual activity and spent significantly less time in association with the initially preferred female but more time near the initially rejected female (Plath et al 2008a, b).…”

Section: Mate Choice In Front Of An Audiencementioning

confidence: 99%

Misleading mollies: surface- but not cave-dwelling Poecilia mexicana males deceive competitors about mating preferences

et al. 2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Individuals providing misleading information to conspecifics may benefit from deception at the receiver's expense. A recent study (Plath et al., Curr Biol 18:1138-1141, 2008c suggested that male Atlantic mollies (Poecilia mexicana) deceive rival males about their preferred mate. Here, we contrasted potentially deceptive behavior in surface-dwelling P. mexicana males to males of the cave form of that species (the cave molly). Unlike many other cavefishes, cave mollies have retained functional eyes and readily respond to visual stimuli. Males could interact freely with two females (large and small), and an audience male was visually presented during the second part of the tests. When observed during mate choice, males reduced their mating activity, but this reduction was significantly weaker in cave mollies. Overall, the expression of mating preferences (determined through frequencies of nipping and thrusting) declined in front of an audience; again, this effect was significantly weaker in the cave form. Reduced sexual activity and reduced expression of mating preferences can be interpreted as an attempt of the focal male to avoid unintended interception of information by the rival male. Surface but not cave molly males directed their first sexual interaction (when being observed by the rival male) towards the initially non-preferred female, suggesting that surface-dwelling males deceive rival males about their mating preferences. Deception by the focal males may be an adaptation to avoid sperm competition, since other males in their social environment may use public information and copy the focal male's mate choice. It seems that sending deceptive signals is evolutionarily regressed in the cave molly, since mate choice copying is unlikely to occur under naturally dark conditions, and also the potential to deceive rivals about mating preferences is probably very limited.

show abstract

Section: Mate Choice In Front Of An Audiencementioning

confidence: 99%

Misleading mollies: surface- but not cave-dwelling Poecilia mexicana males deceive competitors about mating preferences

et al. 2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, audience effects-while well documented in fish-usually causes males to reduce, rather than increase, their courtship rate (Dzieweczynski and Rowland 2004;Ziege et al 2009). We did not measure courtship here, but the observation that spawning frequency was equal among treatments suggests that any audience-related changes in male behavior do not have any effect on female spawning rate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Do female zebrafish withhold reproductive resources for future mating opportunities?

Vaughan

Thom

2012

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Because polyandry often confers substantial direct and indirect benefits, females might be advantaged if they limit their reproductive investment in a single male when additional partners are available. We tested whether females of the externally fertilizing zebrafish Danio rerio would withhold more of their clutch when immediate further matings were likely. We tested females in three treatments: overnight visual and olfactory exposure to either a single male, two males, or three males. Females were then allowed to mate with one of the males; in the two-male and threemale treatments, the additional males remained in visual and olfactory contact to simulate a high likelihood of additional mating. Available clutch was measured by leaving females to spawn with two novel males for an additional 60 min. In contrast to our expectations, females did not release a greater proportion of their clutch when only a single male was present. Instead, females in the single male treatment released significantly fewer eggs per spawning event and significantly fewer eggs over the full 70 min of the trial. The hypothesis that females adjust current reproductive investment support in relation to the likely availability of mating partners is not supported. Instead, females appear to lay fewer eggs when only one male is available, most likely as a result of physiological stimulation of oocyte maturation, or in response to the likely fertilization capacity of a single individual.

show abstract

“…Therefore, we have proposed that visual stimulation is crucial to establishing social relationships in sticklebacks. The prominent role of vision in the exploration of environment and successful courting was highlighted in this species (Wootton 1976;Dzieweczynski, Rowland 2004). The large optic tectum lobes and large retinal surface together with the ability to distinguish colors and shapes, support the important role of vision in sticklebacks (Cronly-Dillon, Sharma 1968;Wootton 1976).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental influence on maturation and dominance relationships in the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus L.): temperature competes with photoperiod for primacy

Sokołowska

Kulczykowska

2009

Oceanological and Hydrobiological Studies

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In this study, the influence of a combination of different photoperiods and temperatures on the final maturation and social interactions in three-spined sticklebacks was investigated. Water temperature appears to be the principal signal affecting gonadal development and breeding activity of sticklebacks in pre-spawning and spawning periods. Males can mature independently of photoperiod and a stimulatory effect of high temperature is not diminished by light deprivation. On the other hand, low temperature can inhibit the development of secondary sexual characters in males exposed to long day or constant light. In females, lighting seems to be more decisive for 1 Corresponding author: ewasokol@iopan.gda.pl

show abstract

Behind closed doors: use of visual cover by courting male three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus

Cited by 41 publications

References 18 publications

Misleading mollies: surface- but not cave-dwelling Poecilia mexicana males deceive competitors about mating preferences

Misleading mollies: surface- but not cave-dwelling Poecilia mexicana males deceive competitors about mating preferences

Do female zebrafish withhold reproductive resources for future mating opportunities?

Environmental influence on maturation and dominance relationships in the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus L.): temperature competes with photoperiod for primacy

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About