Differential Allocation Revisited: When Should Mate Quality Affect Parental Investment?

In the context of social evolution, the ecological drivers of selection are the phenotypes of other individuals. The social environment can thus evolve, potentially changing the adaptive value for different social strategies. Different branches of evolutionary biology have traditionally focused on different aspects of these feedbacks. Here, we synthesize behavioral ecology theory concerning evolutionarily stable strategies when fitness is frequency dependent with quantitative genetic models providing statistical descriptions of evolutionary responses to social selection. Using path analyses, we review how social interactions influence the strength of selection and how social responsiveness, social impact, and non‐random social assortment affect responses to social selection. We then detail how the frequency‐dependent nature of social interactions fits into this framework and how it imposes selection on traits mediating social responsiveness, social impact, and social assortment, further affecting evolutionary dynamics. Throughout, we discuss the parameters in quantitative genetics models of social evolution from a behavioral ecology perspective and identify their statistical counterparts in empirical studies. This integration of behavioral ecology and quantitative genetic perspectives should lead to greater clarity in the generation of hypotheses and more focused empirical research regarding evolutionary pathways and feedbacks inherent in specific social interactions.

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“…For example,

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could represent a sexual ornament in a male that induces a female to differentially increase her care (

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in their joint offspring (see Haaland et al. 2017). Trait

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will increase a male's fitness indirectly through its effects on his female partner.…”

Section: The Social Evolution Path Diagrammentioning

confidence: 99%

Pathways to social evolution and their evolutionary feedbacks

2020

Self Cite

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“…These maternal adjustments in reproductive effort can come in the form of ‘differential allocation’ (DA) or ‘reproductive compensation’ (RC). The differential allocation hypothesis (DAH) predicts that when mating with high‐quality males (typically attractive), females should increase their investment in offspring if the cost of reproducing is high (Haaland, Wright, Kuijper, & Ratikainen, ). However, increased maternal investment may also occur when a female mates with unattractive or non‐preferred males as a form of reproductive compensation that helps buffer offspring from the disadvantageous characteristics they may inherit from their father (Gowaty et al, ).…”

Section: Beyond Sperm: Role Of Mate Quality and Selection In Offsprinmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interplay between paternal germline and maternal effects in shaping development: The overlooked importance of behavioural ecology

Champagne

2019

Functional Ecology

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Environmental conditions can have a lasting epigenetic impact on development, and there is increasing evidence that these effects can be transmitted across generations. Evidence for parental transmission of epigenetic variation to offspring has been primarily focused on paternal epigenetic influences induced by a male's experience of nutritional, social and toxicological exposures. There is an assumption in the literature that paternal influence on offspring in non‐biparental species is mediated exclusively through epigenetic transmission via the germline. However, integration of concepts from behavioural ecology into the study of parental transmission of environmental effects reveals the importance of mating tactics and maternal–paternal interplay in shaping resource allocation towards offspring in considering the mechanism(s) of epigenetic transmission. This paper describes the current state of knowledge regarding paternal epigenetic germline effects, the interplay between maternal and paternal influences and the importance of considering the complex nature of reproduction when predicting the transmission of phenotype across generations. Further, this paper highlights how incorporating concepts from behavioural ecology into the study of epigenetic transmission can refine predictions of phenotypes that emerge and create a more integrated notion of development and inheritance. It is proposed that theoretical and methodological approaches that consider the impact of reproductive context, which include mating dynamics, fertility, variation in parental life history and assessment of maternal effects, could improve the predictions made within studies of paternal epigenetic effects on offspring development. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.

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“…Changes in allocation patterns as a function of mate quality have been discussed as differential allocation when females invest more when mated with high‐quality males or reproductive compensation when females invest more when mated with low‐quality males. Although, more recent work has considered them as ends of a continuum (Haaland, Wright, Kuijper, & Ratikainen, ; Harris & Uller, ; Kindsvater & Alonzo, ; Ratikainen & Kokko, ). These effects can manifest as changes in fecundity, offspring characteristics, or both.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Age at mating and male quality influence female patterns of reproductive investment and survival

Wilson

Walker

2019

Ecology and Evolution

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The trade‐off between the allocation of resources toward somatic maintenance or reproduction is one of the fundamentals of life history theory and predicts that females invest in offspring at the expense of their longevity or vice versa. Mate quality may also affect life history trade‐offs through mechanisms of sexual conflict; however, few studies have examined the interaction between mate quality and age at first mating in reproductive decisions. Using house crickets ( Acheta domesticus ), this study examines how survival and reproductive trade‐offs change based on females’ age at first reproduction and exposure to males of varying size. Females were exposed to either a large (presumably high‐quality) or small male at an early (young), middle (intermediate), or advanced (old) age, and longevity and reproductive investment were subsequently tracked. Females mated at a young age had the largest number of eggs but the shortest total lifespans while females mated at older ages produced fewer eggs but had longer total lifespans. The trade‐off between age at first mating and eggs laid appears to be mediated through higher egg‐laying rates and shorter postmating lifespans in females mated later in life. Exposure to small males resulted in shorter lifespans and higher egg‐laying rates for all females indicating that male manipulation of females, presumably through spermatophore contents, varies with male size in this species. Together, these data strongly support a trade‐off between age at first reproduction and lifespan and support the role of sexual conflict in shaping patterns of reproduction.

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Differential Allocation Revisited: When Should Mate Quality Affect Parental Investment?

Cited by 28 publications

References 32 publications

Pathways to social evolution and their evolutionary feedbacks

Pathways to social evolution and their evolutionary feedbacks

Interplay between paternal germline and maternal effects in shaping development: The overlooked importance of behavioural ecology

Age at mating and male quality influence female patterns of reproductive investment and survival

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