Mate Guarding in the Cricket Gryllodes sigillatus: Influence of Multiple Potential Partners

Abstract

There are several hypotheses as to the function of postcopulatory mate guarding. Control over the mate‐guarding period by either sex could potentially influence relative reproductive success. Mate‐guarding behaviour in Gryllodes sigillatus was studied under several conditions: 1. undisturbed pairs; 2. pairs with a single male intruder; 3. pairs exposed acoustically, visually and olfactorily to several other males; 4. pairs exposed freely to several other males; and 5. pairs exposed freely to several other females. The results provide support for the spermatophore retention and rival defence hypotheses. The efficacy of mate guarding was not compromised by the pair being in acoustic, visual and olfactory contact with several other males. Once pairs were exposed to free contact with several other males, the spermatophore retention time by the female declined significantly, indicating that the mate guarder’s efficiency declines under competition from several rivals. In pairs exposed to contact with several females after mating, the mate‐guarding period and spermatophore retention time declined as the mate guarder abandoned the mated female and pursued the other females. Termination of the effective mate‐guarding period by either sex seems to be influenced by the number of other potential partners present.

No Coolidge Effect in Decorated Crickets

“…In light of the experimental design, this difference is not entirely surprising. Although males had ad libitum access to food and water throughout the mating trials, most males chose to remain in close association with females rather than eating or drinking, presumably to engage in post‐copulatory mate guarding (Sakaluk 1991; Frankino & Sakaluk 1994; Bateman & MacFadyen 1999). Thus, males likely had fewer resources available with which to produce a second spermatophore.…”

Sexual Conflict and Cryptic Female Choice in the Black Field Cricket, Teleogryllus Commodus

“…Following spermatophore transfer, males in several field cricket species engage in post-copulatory mate guarding (Alcock 1994). The guarding male directs aggressive behavior towards intruding males to prevent the female from remating (Simmons 1986(Simmons , 1990Sakaluk 1991;Simmons 1991;Wynn and Vahed 2004) or to allow the guarding male to secure additional matings (Bateman and MacFadyen 1999). Aggression towards females has sometimes been interpreted as a by-product of this process (Simmons 1986).…”

“…Alternatively, aggression could be selected for if it prolongs spermatophore attachment time (Loher and Rence 1978;Evans 1988;Hockham and Vahed 1997;Bateman and MacFadyen 1999;Bateman et al 2001). Several authors have proposed that male behavior during post-copulatory guarding might allow females to assess a male's health and vigor, such that vigilant or vigorous guards, being the most desirable mates, signal their genetic superiority by their ability to harass females (Thornhill and Alcock 1983;Simmons 1986Simmons , 1990Simmons , 1991Hockham and Vahed 1997).…”

The intensity of pre- and post-copulatory mate guarding in relation to spermatophore transfer in the cricket Gryllus bimaculatus

“…Post-copulatory mate guarding intensity was found to be initially high following copulation, before declining and then increasing to be high just before the male re-entered courtship. We propose that this pattern may be explained by the interaction between two of the three hypotheses for the function of post-copulatory mate guarding in gryllid crickets: ejaculate protection and spermatophore renewal (Sakaluk 1991;Bateman and MacFadyen 1999). The relative importance of each of these strategies is likely to alter over the guarding period as the benefits of each strategy change in value.…”

“…Post-copulatory mate guarding has been well documented in gryllid crickets (Simmons 1990;Sakaluk 1991;Hockham and Vahed 1997;Bateman and Macfadyen 1999;Wynn and Vahed 2004;Bussiere et al 2006;Parker 2009). The occurrence of pre-copulatory mate guarding in gryllids, however, appears to have been largely overlooked.…”