Effects of male sexual harassment on female time budgets, feeding behavior, and metabolic rates in a tropical livebearing fish (Poecilia mexicana)

Köhler, Antonia; Hildenbrand, Philipp; Schleucher, Elke; Riesch, Rüdiger; Arias‐Rodríguez, Lenin; Streit, Bruno; Plath, Martin

doi:10.1007/s00265-011-1161-y

Cited by 31 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 73 publications

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“…Under these circumstances, mistaken mating attempts by males can be costly to females [75–79]. Costs such as energy investment to avoid males or actual injuries caused by males have caused females to change their association behavior to avoid harassment in closely related species [75–79]. Our data are consistent with this explanation.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

“…In contrast, sexual interference is a plausible explanation given the overall phenotypic similarity between these two taxa and the similar male mating tactics of forcing copulations. Under these circumstances, mistaken mating attempts by males can be costly to females [75–79]. Costs such as energy investment to avoid males or actual injuries caused by males have caused females to change their association behavior to avoid harassment in closely related species [75–79].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unfortunately, there are no known differences in predation pressure among our collecting localities [94]. Environmental resources can also affect fish pigmentation where pigments are directly obtained from the diet [48,54,55,75–79]. Unfortunately, this is not the case with melanin, a pigment that is not diet derived but is instead synthesized internally.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sympatry Predicts Spot Pigmentation Patterns and Female Association Behavior in the Livebearing Fish Poeciliopsis baenschi

et al. 2017

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In this study, we explored the possibility that differences in pigmentation patterns among populations of the fish Poeciliopsis baenschi were associated with the presence or absence of the closely related species P. turneri. If reproductive character displacement is responsible, spotting patterns in these two species should diverge in sympatry, but not allopatry. We predicted that female P. baenschi from sympatric sites should show a preference for associating with conspecifics vs. heterospecific males, but females from allopatric sites should show no such preferences. To evaluate these predictions, we compared spotting patterns and female association behaviors in populations of P. baenschi from Central Mexico. We found that both of our predictions were supported. Poeciliopsis baenschi that co-occured with P. turneri had spotting patterns significantly different than their counterparts from allopatric sites. Using a simultaneous choice test of video presentations of males, we also found that female P. baenschi from populations that co-occured with P. turneri spent significantly more time with males of their own species than with P. turneri males. In contrast, females from allopatric populations of P. baenschi showed no differences in the amount of time they spent with either conspecific or heterospecific males. Together, our results are consistent with the hypothesis that reproductive character displacement may be responsible for behavioral and spotting pattern differences in these populations of P. baenschi.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sympatry Predicts Spot Pigmentation Patterns and Female Association Behavior in the Livebearing Fish Poeciliopsis baenschi

et al. 2017

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“…Poecilia mexicana females in the wild spend considerably more time feeding than males [15], and males are usually lighter than samesized females [16,17]. Hence, one would expect the impact of darkness to be aggravated in females, and indeed, a sex-specific effect was found in our present study: darkness hampered the maturation of surface females but not males.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 64%

Speciation in caves: experimental evidence that permanent darkness promotes reproductive isolation

2011

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Divergent selection through biotic factors like predation or parasitism can promote reproductive isolation even in the absence of geographical barriers. On the other hand, evidence for a role of adaptation to abiotic factors during ecological speciation in animals is scant. In particular, the role played by perpetual darkness in establishing reproductive isolation in cave animals (troglobites) remains elusive. We focused on two reproductively isolated ecotypes (surface- and cave-dwelling) of the widespread livebearer Poecilia mexicana , and raised offspring of wild-caught females to sexual maturity in a 12-month common-garden experiment. Fish were reared in light or darkness combined with high- or low-food conditions. Females, but not males, of the surface ecotype suffered from almost complete reproductive failure in darkness, especially in the low-food treatment. Furthermore, surface fish suffered from a significantly higher rate of spontaneous, stress-related infection with bacterial columnaris disease. This experimental evidence for strong selection by permanent darkness on non-adapted surface-dwelling animals adds depth to our understanding of the selective forces establishing and maintaining reproductive isolation in cave faunas.

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“…All males had even less body fat when reared under common garden conditions than when collected from the wild, and this effect was particularly strong in cave mollies (CLA and CdA). Even though major differences between populations in sexual activity have a heritable component (Plath, 2008), laboratory‐reared fish are consistently more sexually active (Köhler et al. , 2011).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toxic hydrogen sulphide and dark caves: pronounced male life-history divergence among locally adapted Poecilia mexicana (Poeciliidae)

Riesch

Plath

Schlupp

2010

Journal of Evolutionary Biology

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Chronic environmental stress is known to induce evolutionary change. Here, we assessed male life‐history trait divergence in the neotropical fish Poecilia mexicana from a system that has been described to undergo incipient ecological speciation in adjacent, but reproductively isolated toxic/nontoxic and surface/cave habitats. Examining both field‐caught and common garden–reared specimens, we investigated the extent of differentiation and plasticity of life‐history strategies employed by male P. mexicana. We found strong site‐specific life‐history divergence in traits such as fat content, standard length and gonadosomatic index. The majority of site‐specific life‐history differences were also expressed under common garden–rearing conditions. We propose that apparent conservatism of male life histories is the result of other (genetically based) changes in physiology and behaviour between populations. Together with the results from previous studies, this is strong evidence for local adaptation as a result of ecologically based divergent selection.

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Effects of male sexual harassment on female time budgets, feeding behavior, and metabolic rates in a tropical livebearing fish (Poecilia mexicana)

Cited by 31 publications

References 73 publications

Sympatry Predicts Spot Pigmentation Patterns and Female Association Behavior in the Livebearing Fish Poeciliopsis baenschi

Sympatry Predicts Spot Pigmentation Patterns and Female Association Behavior in the Livebearing Fish Poeciliopsis baenschi

Speciation in caves: experimental evidence that permanent darkness promotes reproductive isolation

Toxic hydrogen sulphide and dark caves: pronounced male life-history divergence among locally adapted Poecilia mexicana (Poeciliidae)

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