Effects of testosterone supplementation on chemical signals of male Iberian wall lizards: consequences for female mate choice

Martı́n, José; López, Pílar; Gabirot, Marianne; Pilz, Kevin M.

doi:10.1007/s00265-007-0358-6

Cited by 24 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…Moreover, females prefer scent-marks of males that maintain higher levels of cholesta-5,7-dien-3-ol in secretions independently of the experimental manipulation (López and Martín, 2005a;Martín et al, 2007a). These results suggest that there might be a trade-off among increasing T levels to increase the amounts of chemical secretions produced, maintaining metabolism functions and producing chemosignals attractive for females (Folstad and Karter, 1992) (Fig.…”

Section: Reproductive Hormonesmentioning

confidence: 78%

“…Supplementation of T to male Iberian wall lizards, P. hispanica, increases detectability of males' scent by females (i.e. females show higher tongue-flick rates to femoral gland secretions of males with T implants in comparison with control males with empty implants) (Martín et al, 2007a). This might suggest that T increases the concentration of chemosignals in secretions.…”

Section: Reproductive Hormonesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This might suggest that T increases the concentration of chemosignals in secretions. However, supplemented T also induces changes in chemical composition of the femoral gland secretions, with T-males decreasing the relative proportions of cholesta-5,7-dien-3-ol (= provitamin D 3 ) allocated to secretions (Martín et al, 2007a). This change was explained because variations in T levels are implicated in lizards and other taxa in modulating immunity and lipid and steroid biochemistry (e.g.…”

Section: Reproductive Hormonesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent studies suggest that the information content of chemosignals may be reliable because it is based on physiologicaland endocrine-dependent relationships between the proportions of some chemical compounds in gland secretions and the characteristics (e.g. age, hormone levels, physiological health state, diet) of the producers (Alberts et al, 1992a;Kopena et al, 2011;Martín et al, 2007a). This reliability would confer chemosignals a useful role when lizards have to take behavioral decisions with reproductive consequences.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Condition-dependent chemosignals in reproductive behavior of lizards

Martı́n

López

2015

Hormones and Behavior

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This article is part of a Special Issue "Chemosignals and Reproduction". Many lizards have diverse glands that produce chemosignals used in intraspecific communication and that can have reproductive consequences. For example, information in chemosignals of male lizards can be used in intrasexual competition to identify and assess the fighting potential or dominance status of rival males either indirectly through territorial scent-marks or during agonistic encounters. Moreover, females of several lizard species "prefer" to establish or spend more time on areas scent-marked by males with compounds signaling a better health or body condition or a higher genetic compatibility, which can have consequences for their mating success and inter-sexual selection processes. We review here recent studies that suggest that the information content of chemosignals of lizards may be reliable because several physiological and endocrine processes would regulate the proportions of chemical compounds available for gland secretions. Because chemosignals are produced by the organism or come from the diet, they should reflect physiological changes, such as different hormonal levels (e.g. testosterone or corticosterone) or different health states (e.g. parasitic infections, immune response), and reflect the quality of the diet of an individual. More importantly, some compounds that may function as chemosignals also have other important functions in the organism (e.g. as antioxidants or regulating the immune system), so there could be trade-offs between allocating these compounds to attending physiological needs or to produce costly sexual "chemical ornaments". All these factors may contribute to maintain chemosignals as condition-dependent sexual signals, which can inform conspecifics on the characteristics and state of the sender and allow making behavioral decisions with reproductive consequences. To understand the evolution of chemical secretions of lizards as sexual signals and their relevance in reproduction, future studies should examine what information the signals are carrying, the physiological processes that can maintain the reliability of the message and how diverse behavioral responses to chemosignals may influence reproductive success.

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Section: Reproductive Hormonesmentioning

confidence: 78%

Section: Reproductive Hormonesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Reproductive Hormonesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Condition-dependent chemosignals in reproductive behavior of lizards

Martı́n

López

2015

Hormones and Behavior

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“…More recent work suggests female lizards may assess a variety of male traits in addition to territory (Calsbeek and Sinervo 2002;Martín et al 2007;Healey et al 2008;Kelso and Martins 2008;Karsten et al 2009;Bajer et al 2010). We used the eastern fence lizard, Sceloporus undulatus, as a model territorial species to test if and how females make mate choice decisions in the absence of territory cues.…”

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confidence: 99%

Female lizards discriminate between potential reproductive partners using multiple male traits when territory cues are absent

Swierk

Ridgway

Langkilde

2012

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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Female choice can powerfully influence the evolution of male phenotypes. In territorial species, it is challenging to determine the targets of female choice because male traits (e.g., behavior and morphology) are often correlated with territory. We sought to elucidate if and how females specifically evaluate male traits in a territorial species. In this study, we presented female fence lizards, Sceloporus undulatus, with two potential mates to examine mate choice in the absence of territory cues. Females associated more with males possessing better body condition, longer heads, and wider throat badges, and that performed more shudder behavior, which females responded to by approaching shuddering males and performing push-ups. A post hoc decision tree analysis suggests that the strongest predictor of female association was an overall quality index that incorporates all of these traits, rather than individual traits. Male snout-vent length, head width, abdominal badge width, and push-up behavior did not affect female association. Further research on why these traits, which are known to correlate with fitness, do not appear to be used by females when selecting mates would improve our understanding of the evolution of male traits. Our study reveals that females of this territorial species possess the ability to use multiple male traits interactively to make fitness-relevant mate choice decisions in the absence of direct territory cues.

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Immune activation affects chemical sexual ornaments of male Iberian wall lizards

López

Gabirot

Martı́n

2008

Naturwissenschaften

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Many animals use chemical signals in sexual selection, but it is not clear how these sexual traits might have evolved to signal honestly male condition. It is possible that there is a trade-off between maintaining the immune system and the elaboration of ornaments. We experimentally challenged the immune system of male Iberian wall lizards, Podarcis hispanica, with a bacterial antigen (lipopolysaccharide), without pathogenic effects, to explore whether the immune activation affected chemical ornaments. Immune activation resulted in decreased proportions of a major chemical in femoral secretions (cholesta-5,7-dien-3-ol = provitamin D(3)) known to be selected in scent of males by females and which active form (vitamin D) has a variety of important effects on immune system function. This result suggests the existence of a potential trade-off between physiological regulation of the immune system and the allocation of essential nutrients (vitamins) to sexual chemical ornaments in male lizards.

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Effects of testosterone supplementation on chemical signals of male Iberian wall lizards: consequences for female mate choice

Cited by 24 publications

References 44 publications

Condition-dependent chemosignals in reproductive behavior of lizards

Condition-dependent chemosignals in reproductive behavior of lizards

Female lizards discriminate between potential reproductive partners using multiple male traits when territory cues are absent

Immune activation affects chemical sexual ornaments of male Iberian wall lizards

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