Preliminary observations of sperm storage in Adalia bipunctata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae): sperm size and number

Arnaud, Ludovic; Spinneux, Yannick; Haubruge, Éric

doi:10.1303/aez.2003.301

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…(i) Quantifying sperm transfer To assess sperm transfer, we froze the experimental females (2208C) 1 h after mating and quantified sperm from the dissected female reproductive tracts following Arnaud et al (2003). We transferred the bursa copulatrix and spermatheca (the sites of sperm deposition and storage, Ransford 1997) and ovarian tubes to a cavity slide containing 100 ml Ringer's solution.…”

Section: (B) Experimental Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Condition-dependent ejaculate size and composition in a ladybird beetle

Perry

Rowe

2010

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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Sexually selected male ejaculate traits are expected to depend on the resource state of males. Theory predicts that males in good condition will produce larger ejaculates, but that ejaculate composition will depend on the relative production costs of ejaculate components and the risk of sperm competition experienced by low-and high-condition males. Under some conditions, when low condition leads to poorer performance in sperm competition, males in low condition may produce ejaculates with higher sperm content relative to their total ejaculate and may even transfer more sperm than high-condition males in an absolute sense. Previous studies in insects have shown that males in good condition transfer larger ejaculates or more sperm, but it has not been clear whether increased sperm content represents a shift in allocation or simply a larger ejaculate, and thus the condition dependence of ejaculate composition has been largely untested. We examined condition dependence in ejaculate by manipulating adult male condition in a ladybird beetle (Adalia bipunctata) in which males transfer three distinct ejaculate components during mating: sperm, non-sperm ejaculate retained within the female reproductive tract, and a spermatophore capsule that females eject and ingest following mating. We found that high condition males indeed transferred larger ejaculates, potentially achieved by an increased rate of ejaculate transfer, and allocated less to sperm compared with low-condition males. Low-condition males transferred ejaculates with absolutely and proportionally more sperm. This study provides the first experimental evidence for a condition-dependent shift in ejaculate composition.

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Section: (B) Experimental Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Condition-dependent ejaculate size and composition in a ladybird beetle

Perry

Rowe

2010

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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“…A spermatophore contains, on average, 14, 000 sperm and a female spermatheca can store around 18, 000 sperm ( Majerus , 1999). The non‐diapausing females of A. bipunctata store, on average, 13, 688 sperm in their spermatheca, while the majority of diapausing females had a sperm number of 250 ( Arnaud et al., 2003). The mean length of spermatozoa stored by non‐diapausing females was 2068.5 μ m ( Arnaud et al., 2003).…”

Section: Sexual Activitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecology of two‐spotted ladybird, Adalia bipunctata: a review

Omkar

Pervez

2005

J Applied Entomology

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Adalia bipunctata (Linnaeus) is a generalist aphidophagous ladybird having a wide prey range. It exhibits complex polymorphism. We reviewed the information on its general characteristics, polymorphism, sexual activity, foraging behaviour, food range and prey suitability, growth and development, heterospecific interactions including natural enemies, and its biocontrol potential. Although a poor biocontrol agent (only successful against aphid, Dysaphis plantaginea in Switzerland), it was used in the past as a good model to test various hypotheses and models facilitating ecological understanding in insects. In the present review, the empirical data are interpreted and inferences drawn and a checklist of its prey is provided.

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“…Females of Coccinella septempunctata L. have sperm in their spermatheca at the overwintering site at the frequency of 28-47 % (Ceryngier et al 1992(Ceryngier et al , 2004Hodek and Ceryngier 2000), while only 2 of 15 diapausing females of A. bipunctata in Belgium have stored sperm (Arnaud et al 2003). From 12 to 41 % of the overwintering females of H. axyridis in NC, USA (Nalepa et al 1996), and 20-60 % of the autumn females in the Czech Republic ) are mated and have a full spermatheca.…”

Section: Pre-diapause Matingmentioning

confidence: 99%