Mating tactics in external fertilizers when sperm is limited

Shapiro, Douglas Y.; Giraldeau, Luc‐Alain

doi:10.1093/beheco/7.1.19

Cited by 47 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Mating strategies of species differ and these questions may be inter-related with spawning behaviour, such as breeder dominance, spawning shoal structure, promiscuity, and fertilization tactics (Stockley et al, 1997;Takborsky, 1998). Although to assess mating strategies in wild spawning assemblages is important, it is beyond the scope of this contribution and in itself is a relatively unstudied area of fishery science (Shapiro and Giraldeau, 1996). This contribution will focus on male reproductive potential with the intention of developing an index or measure of reproductive potential that could be used in place of male spawning stock biomass in stock-recruitment studies (Marshall et al, 1998;Cardinale and Arrhenius, 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimation of Male Reproductive Success of Marine Fisheries

Trippel¹

2003

J. Northw. Atl. Fish. Sci.

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The subject of reproductive potential of fish populations is dominated by studies on the female gender. Studies on male reproduction are relatively few, but have increased in number during the previous decade. The objectives of this contribution were to describe and quantify the reproductive traits that make up the viable sperm production of a population. Some of these reproductive traits were easily measured from wild fish (e.g., mature testes weight), and others were more easily measured on captive fish (e.g., fertilization potential and sperm motility). Results of laboratory and field studies were then integrated to generate estimates of viable sperm production of a fish stock. A number of experimental protocols have been employed over the years to assess male fertility. The strengths and weaknesses of the different experimental approaches were reviewed and appropriate recommendations given towards establishing standardized protocols. Although the review is broad in nature, and includes references to a number of marine fishes, it concentrated on exploited species that occur in the North Atlantic and Baltic Sea within the taxonomic groups gadoidae, pleuronectoidae and clupeidae (Clupeiformes). In addition, published data on male reproductive traits of species in these taxa were tabulated and summarized. The terms of interest included sex ratio, maturity state, testes weight, sperm fertilization potential (artificial fertilization and paired mating), sperm density, sperm motility and paternal effects on early life history traits.An equation for determinate spawners was described that quantifies a population's viable sperm production using data on adult body characteristics and associated quantity and quality of sperm. The equation was used to establish time series of viable sperm production for Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) of Newfoundland and Labrador. Results indicated on average 1 600 billion viable sperm were released to produce one recruit at age 3 years but with substantial variation among years in relation to changes in stock composition and growth as well as stock size. Distinct peaks in the number of viable sperm in 1981 and 1986 corresponded to distinct peaks in the number of age 3 recruits in those same years.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimation of Male Reproductive Success of Marine Fisheries

Trippel¹

2003

J. Northw. Atl. Fish. Sci.

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“…One of the explanations suggested for this behavior was that mating with larger males, which produce relatively more sperm, reduces the risk of infertility (Skinner and Watt 2007). Fertility assurance-a particular risk for aquatic external fertilizers (Shapiro and Giraldeau 1996)-can also be achieved by mating with multiple males, which is one of the reasons we predicted that females would withhold eggs when other Number of eggs (± SE) released by females in both the first 10 min with the test male (black bars) and the subsequent 60 min with the stock males (gray bars) by treatment group. After controlling for standard length, females in the single male treatment released significantly fewer eggs over the full 70 min of the trial than did females in the two treatments with male observers present.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the wild, it is a group spawning species and multiply-sired clutches are likely to be common, as multiple males will attempt to spawn simultaneously with a female (Spence et al 2008), and multiple paternity has been recorded in laboratory conditions . Although it has not yet been determined whether females benefit from polyandry in this species, as external fertilizers, they are likely to be particularly susceptible to the risk of unfertilized eggs (Shapiro and Giraldeau 1996). Mating with multiple males is likely to increase fertilization rate, as it does in some other externally fertilizing species (Byrne and Whiting 2008) though the opposite effect has also been reported (Byrne and Roberts 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Do female zebrafish withhold reproductive resources for future mating opportunities?

Vaughan

Thom

2012

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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Because polyandry often confers substantial direct and indirect benefits, females might be advantaged if they limit their reproductive investment in a single male when additional partners are available. We tested whether females of the externally fertilizing zebrafish Danio rerio would withhold more of their clutch when immediate further matings were likely. We tested females in three treatments: overnight visual and olfactory exposure to either a single male, two males, or three males. Females were then allowed to mate with one of the males; in the two-male and threemale treatments, the additional males remained in visual and olfactory contact to simulate a high likelihood of additional mating. Available clutch was measured by leaving females to spawn with two novel males for an additional 60 min. In contrast to our expectations, females did not release a greater proportion of their clutch when only a single male was present. Instead, females in the single male treatment released significantly fewer eggs per spawning event and significantly fewer eggs over the full 70 min of the trial. The hypothesis that females adjust current reproductive investment support in relation to the likely availability of mating partners is not supported. Instead, females appear to lay fewer eggs when only one male is available, most likely as a result of physiological stimulation of oocyte maturation, or in response to the likely fertilization capacity of a single individual.

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“…Sperm allocation models have been developed in the context of limits on sperm production and repeat mating interval (Shapiro & Giraldeau 1996) and the risk and intensity of sperm competition (Parker et al 1996(Parker et al , 1997. Incorrect sperm allocation strategies by males may reduce total sperm expenditure per egg.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simultaneous mating with multiple males reduces fertilization success in the myobatrachid frogCrinia georgiana

Byrne

Roberts

1999

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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Approximately 50% of matings in the frog Crinia georgiana involve two or more males. We report reduced fertilization success as a major cost of mating with multiple males. For single-male matings, fertilization success was consistently high averaging 96%. Only 68% of eggs were fertilized when females were amplexed by two males and this dropped to 64% when females were amplexed by three to ¢ve males. Multiple regression analysis revealed the reduction in fertilization success was signi¢-cantly related to the number of amplectant males but not to clutch size or three measures of water quality (depth, temperature and oxygen concentration) at the site of oviposition. The most likely cause of reduced fertilization success is struggles amongst males which interfere with e¡ective sperm transfer.

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Mating tactics in external fertilizers when sperm is limited

Cited by 47 publications

References 25 publications

Estimation of Male Reproductive Success of Marine Fisheries

Estimation of Male Reproductive Success of Marine Fisheries

Do female zebrafish withhold reproductive resources for future mating opportunities?

Simultaneous mating with multiple males reduces fertilization success in the myobatrachid frogCrinia georgiana

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