Population models of sperm-dependent parthenogenesis

Schley, David; Doncaster, C. Patrick; Sluckin, T. J.

doi:10.1016/j.jtbi.2004.04.031

Cited by 37 publications

(60 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…A model by Schley et al (2004) showed that asexual gynogenetic species could outcompete sexuals to extinction when they occupied the same ecological niche. However, if such extinctions took place within the context of a metapopulation, it is possible that colonization of patches could sustain the detrimental asexual behaviour.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The 'short-sightedness' of asexual reproduction is present in a particularly intriguing and fast-acting form in gynogenetic species (also known as sperm-dependent parthenogenesis, Beukeboom & Vrijenhoek (1998), Schley et al (2004) and Schlupp (2005)). This is a type of ameiotic unisexual reproduction where offspring are formed parthenogenetically, yet egg development cannot be completed without sperm.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The discrimination is clearly not complete (Heubel 2004;Schlupp & Plath 2005;Heubel & Schlupp 2006), however, otherwise the Amazons would have been driven extinct. The short-sightedness of asexuality occurs because, by not suffering the twofold cost of sex, Amazons are quickly expected to outnumber their sexual competitors ( Williams 1975;Beukeboom & Vrijenhoek 1998;Schley et al 2004). However, if this makes it impossible for the sexual species to persist, Amazons obviously lose their access to males and cannot persist either.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Here, we will propose and model an alternative explanation for coexistence of sexual and asexual reproduction in gynogenetic species complexes, that can operate even if there are no differences in competitive ability and if mate choice is too weak to guarantee local coexistence. The alternative, also alluded to by Schley et al (2004), is spatial structure combined with predator-prey (or host-parasite) dynamics. Ecologically, gynogenetic species resemble predators or parasites, in the sense that their reproduction depends on having access to the sexual species that forms the 'prey' or 'host' species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In gynogenesis, as well as in the related context of gynodioecy where populations consist of females and hermaphrodites, these processes can result in population collapse due to sperm (or pollen) shortage (gynogenesis: Kiester et al 1981, Schley et al 2004gynodioecy: Stewart-Cox et al 2005). In the context of gynodioecy, it has already been shown that spatial structure can help maintain the coexistence of females and hermaphrodites (Stewart-Cox et al 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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How populations persist when asexuality requires sex: the spatial dynamics of coping with sperm parasites

2008

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The twofold cost of sex implies that sexual and asexual reproduction do not coexist easily. Asexual forms tend to outcompete sexuals but may eventually suffer higher extinction rates, creating tension between short-and long-term advantages of different reproductive modes. The 'short-sightedness' of asexual reproduction takes a particularly intriguing form in gynogenetic species complexes, in which an asexual species requires sperm from a related sexual host species to trigger embryogenesis. Asexuals are then predicted to outcompete their host, after which neither species can persist. We examine whether spatial structure can explain continued coexistence of the species complex, and assess the evidence based on data on the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa). A modification of the Levins metapopulation model creates two regions of good prospects for coexistence, connected by a region of poorer patch occupancy levels. In the first case, mate discrimination and/or niche differentiation keep local extinction rates low, and most patches contain both species; the other possibility resembles host-parasite dynamics where parasites frequently drive the host locally extinct. Several dynamical features are counterintuitive and relate to the parasitic nature of interactions in the species complex: for example, high local extinction rates of the asexual species can be beneficial for its own persistence. This creates a link from the evolution of sexual reproduction to that of prudent predation.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

How populations persist when asexuality requires sex: the spatial dynamics of coping with sperm parasites

2008

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Constraints on the evolution of asexual reproduction

2008

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Sexual reproduction is almost ubiquitous among multicellular organisms even though it entails severe fitness costs. To resolve this apparent paradox, an extensive body of research has been devoted to identifying the selective advantages of recombination that counteract these costs. Yet, how easy is it to make the transition to asexual reproduction once sexual reproduction has been established for a long time? The present review approaches this question by considering factors that impede the evolution of parthenogenesis in animals. Most importantly, eggs need a diploid chromosome set in most species in order to develop normally. Next, eggs may need to be activated by sperm, and sperm may also contribute centrioles and other paternal factors to the zygote. Depending on how diploidy is achieved mechanistically, further problems may arise in offspring that stem from 'inbreeding depression' or inappropriate sex determination systems. Finally, genomic imprinting is another well-known barrier to the evolution of asexuality in mammals. Studies on species with occasional, deficient parthenogenesis indicate that the relative importance of these constraints may vary widely. The intimate evolutionary relations between haplodiploidy and parthenogenesis as well as implications for the clade selection hypothesis of the maintenance of sexual reproduction are also discussed.

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Imitating the cost of males: A hypothesis for coexistence of all‐female sperm‐dependent species and their sexual host

Leung

Angers

2017

Ecology and Evolution

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All‐female sperm‐dependent species are particular asexual organisms that must coexist with a closely related sexual host for reproduction. However, demographic advantages of asexual over sexual species that have to produce male individuals could lead both to extinction. The unresolved question of their coexistence still challenges and fascinates evolutionary biologists. As an alternative hypothesis, we propose those asexual organisms are afflicted by a demographic cost analogous to the production of males to prevent exclusion of the host. Previously proposed hypotheses stated that asexual individuals relied on a lower fecundity than sexual females to cope with demographic advantage. In contrast, we propose that both sexual and asexual species display the same number of offspring, but half of asexual individuals imitate the cost of sex by occupying ecological niches but producing no offspring. Simulations of population growth in closed systems under different demographic scenarios revealed that only the presence of nonreproductive individuals in asexual females can result in long‐term coexistence. This hypothesis is supported by the fact that half of the females in some sperm‐dependent organisms did not reproduce clonally.

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Population models of sperm-dependent parthenogenesis

Cited by 37 publications

References 35 publications

How populations persist when asexuality requires sex: the spatial dynamics of coping with sperm parasites

How populations persist when asexuality requires sex: the spatial dynamics of coping with sperm parasites

Constraints on the evolution of asexual reproduction

Imitating the cost of males: A hypothesis for coexistence of all‐female sperm‐dependent species and their sexual host

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