Does body size affect fitness the same way in males and females? A test of multiple fitness components

Smith, Ashlee N.; Belk, Mark C.

doi:10.1093/biolinnean/bly025

Cited by 7 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Multigenerational effects in burying beetles (genus: Nicrophorus) are well established [11,33,52,[65][66][67][68]. Most of these studies investigate the relationship between maternal size and offspring size [11,33,52,65,66,73]. However, none of these studies investigated whether size related multigenerational effects affect offspring lifetime fitness.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In at least one species, parents also cull the brood according to their competitive environment so that they raise fewer, larger offspring when competition for carcasses is high, and more, smaller offspring when competition is low [39]. Body size is important for competitive interactions because inter-and intraspecific competition for carcasses can be intense [57][58][59][60], and body size generally determines the winners of competitions in both males and females [35,57,[61][62][63][64][65]. However, the importance of body size to fitness is poorly known in most species of burying beetles (see [33,65]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Body size is important for competitive interactions because inter-and intraspecific competition for carcasses can be intense [57][58][59][60], and body size generally determines the winners of competitions in both males and females [35,57,[61][62][63][64][65]. However, the importance of body size to fitness is poorly known in most species of burying beetles (see [33,65]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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No evidence for increased fitness of offspring from multigenerational effects of parental size or natal carcass size in the burying beetle Nicrophorus marginatus

Damron

Momcilovitch

et al. 2021

PLoS ONE

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Multigenerational effects (often called maternal effects) are components of the offspring phenotype that result from the parental phenotype and the parental environment as opposed to heritable genetic effects. Multigenerational effects are widespread in nature and are often studied because of their potentially important effects on offspring traits. Although multigenerational effects are commonly observed, few studies have addressed whether they affect offspring fitness. In this study we assess the effect of potential multigenerational effects of parental body size and natal carcass size on lifetime fitness in the burying beetle, Nicrophorus marginatus (Coleoptera; Silphidae). Lifespan, total number of offspring, and number of offspring in the first reproductive bout were not significantly related to parental body size or natal carcass size. However, current carcass size used for reproduction was a significant predictor for lifetime number of offspring and number of offspring in the first brood. We find no evidence that multigenerational effects from larger parents or larger natal carcasses contribute to increased fitness of offspring.

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Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

No evidence for increased fitness of offspring from multigenerational effects of parental size or natal carcass size in the burying beetle Nicrophorus marginatus

Damron

Momcilovitch

et al. 2021

PLoS ONE

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show abstract

“…Female reproductive allocation is relatively easy to quantify because it can be summarized in measures of clutch size or brood mass (Ghalambor, Reznick, & Walker, ). However, patterns of reproductive allocation in females do not necessarily predict patterns of reproductive allocation in males (Smith & Belk, ; Smith, Creighton, & Belk, ). Male reproductive allocation is more complex and comprises multiple factors, including display rate, investment in pigmentation, and activity rate, in addition to the more intuitive measure of testes mass (Gale, Johnson, Schaalje, & Belk, ; Godin, ; Kawase, Hayashi, Matsumoto, & Takegaki, ; Money, Ingley, & Johnson, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Testes mass in the livebearing fish Brachyrhaphis rhabdophora (Poeciliidae) varies hypoallometrically with body size but not between predation environments

Brown

Gale

Johnson

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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In this study, we considered potential causes of variation in testis size in the livebearing fish Brachyrhaphis rhabdophora. We evaluated variation in testes mass among individual males and among populations that occupy different selective environments. First, we predicted that small males should allocate more to testes mass than large males (i.e., hypoallometric pattern) based on a sperm competition argument. Second, based on life history theory and associated differences in mortality rates between populations that coexist with many fish predators and those with few predators, we predicted that males in high‐predation environments should allocate more to testes mass than males in habitats with few predators. Our results showed that small males allocated proportionally more to testes mass than larger males (slope of testes mass to body mass was hypoallometric). However, there was no effect of predator environment on testes mass independent of body size differences. In this system, size‐specific patterns of reproductive allocation in males (hypoallometry) differ from that seen in females (hyperallometry). Allocation to testes mass may respond to differences in mortality rate through selection on body size.

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Revisiting the ecology and evolution of burying beetle behavior (Staphylinidae: Silphinae)

Potticary,

Belk,

Creighton

et al. 2024

Ecology and Evolution

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Investigating fundamental processes in biology requires the ability to ground broad questions in species‐specific natural history. This is particularly true in the study of behavior because an organism's experience of the environment will influence the expression of behavior and the opportunity for selection. Here, we provide a review of the natural history and behavior of burying beetles of the genus Nicrophorus to provide the groundwork for comparative work that showcases their remarkable behavioral and ecological diversity. Burying beetles have long fascinated scientists because of their well‐developed parenting behavior, exhibiting extended post‐hatching care of offspring that varies extensively within and across taxa. Despite the burgeoning success of burying beetles as a model system for the study of behavioral evolution, there has not been a review of their behavior, ecology, and evolution in over 25 years. To address this gap, we leverage a developing community of researchers who have contributed to a detailed knowledge of burying beetles to highlight the utility of Nicrophorus for investigating the causes and consequences of social and behavioral evolution.

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Does body size affect fitness the same way in males and females? A test of multiple fitness components

Cited by 7 publications

References 47 publications

No evidence for increased fitness of offspring from multigenerational effects of parental size or natal carcass size in the burying beetle Nicrophorus marginatus

No evidence for increased fitness of offspring from multigenerational effects of parental size or natal carcass size in the burying beetle Nicrophorus marginatus

Testes mass in the livebearing fish Brachyrhaphis rhabdophora (Poeciliidae) varies hypoallometrically with body size but not between predation environments

Revisiting the ecology and evolution of burying beetle behavior (Staphylinidae: Silphinae)

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