Female pipefish can detect the immune status of their mates

Abstract

Given the ubiquity of the parasites and their important fitness consequences on mate and offspring condition, selection for the ability to distinguish healthy from parasitized potential mates is a key process to enhance Darwinian fitness. In this study, we experimentally evaluated how the immunological experience of two potential partners influences mate choice, using the sex-role-reversed pipefish Syngnathus typhle. We exposed S. typhle to immune challenges with heat-killed Vibrio bacteria and investigated whether the activation of the immune system determined mate preferences. Our results demonstrate that the immune status of the potential partners influenced female mate preference, such that females that were exposed to an immune challenge became choosy and favored unchallenged males. Males, however, did not show any preferences for female immune status. In this context, we discuss mate choice decisions and behavioral plasticity as a complex result of immune challenge, severity of infection, as well as trans-generational effects.

Effect of egg cannibalism on mating preferences and reproductive fitness of Menochilus sexmaculatus Fabricius (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)

“…The copyright holder for this preprint this version posted March 15, 2020. ; https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.03.14.991695 doi: bioRxiv preprint et al, 2016), immunity (Landis et al, 2015;Iglesias-Carrasco et al, 2017), sperm quality and quantity (Pizzari and Birkhead, 2002;Jones and Elgar, 2004). Of these, the latter three are especially known to be modulated by diet (Lewis and Wedell, 2007;Chang et al, 2008).…”

Does the female seahorse still prefer her mating partner after a period of separation?

“…Although high sexual fidelity of H. erectus was observed, once her partner's health decreased, the female would switch mates based on the observation that three females ( i.e ., B1F9, B3F4 and B2F8) switched their partners they selected in BE1 to other new males because of their partners' poor health status. Similarly, in other Syngnathidae species, such as the pipefish Syngnathus typhle , females had little favour for males that were challenged by pathogenic bacteria (Landis et al ., 2015). The findings in H. erectus and S. typhle suggest that female Syngnathidae species are able to evaluate the health status of their mates to some extent.…”

Effect of egg cannibalism on mating preferences and reproductive fitness ofMenochilus sexmaculatusFabricius (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)

“…An individual’s mate preference is thus a result of a combination of multiple traits including the quality of their potential mate (Hebets et al, 2008; Schultzhaus et al, 2017). Quality of the individual is known to be affected by multiple factors such as age (Avent et al, 2008; Anjos-Duarte et al, 2011), size (Downhower and Brown, 1980; Tina and Muramatsu, 2015; Locatello et al, 2016), immunity (Landis et al, 2015; Iglesias-Carrasco et al, 2017), sperm quality and quantity (Pizzari and Birkhead, 2002; Jones and Elgar, 2004). Of these, the latter three are especially known to be modulated by diet (Lewis and Wedell, 2007; Chang et al, 2008).…”