The Male Mating System in a Desert Widow Spider

Segev, Ori; Ziv, Merav; Lubin, Yael

doi:10.1636/s01-101

Cited by 33 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Thus, the intense sexual selection argued to lead to monogyny [1,2] may also have given rise to facultative polygyny in L. hasselti and L. geometricus. More broadly, this previously unrecognized alternative mating tactic may be common in other invertebrate taxa where males interact with immature females [15][16][17]. Although advantageous, the frequency of the immaturemating tactic in nature depends on the male's ability to identify immature females during a brief developmental window (electronic supplementary material, figure S1).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Copulation with immature females increases male fitness in cannibalistic widow spiders

et al. 2016

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Copulatory cannibalism of male ‘widow’ spiders (genus Latrodectus ) is a model example of the extreme effects of sexual selection, particularly in L. hasselti and L. geometricus where males typically facilitate cannibalism by females and mate only once. We show that these males can increase their reproductive success by copulating with final-instar, immature females after piercing the female's exoskeleton to access her newly developed sperm storage organs. Females retain sperm through their final moult and have similar fecundity to adult-mated females. This is an adaptive male tactic because immature mating increases insemination success relative to adult mating (which predicts higher paternity) and moreover, rarely ends in cannibalism, so males can mate again. Although successful only during a brief period before the female's final moult, males may employ this tactic when they associate with final-instar females in nature. Consistent with this, one-third of L. hasselti females collected as immatures in nature were already mated. Immature mating alters sexual selection on these otherwise monogynous males, and may explain male traits allowing facultative polygyny in Latrodectus . Since male cohabitation with immature females is common among invertebrates, immature mating may be a widespread, previously unrecognized mating tactic, particularly when unmated females are of high reproductive value.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite this risk, our data show that L. hasselti males successfully find and mate one-third of immature females in nature. Frequent reports of cohabitation of Latrodectus males with immature females [15,16] suggest the opportunity for immature mating may be common in the genus.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Copulation with immature females increases male fitness in cannibalistic widow spiders

et al. 2016

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“…Furthermore, such male-biased sex ratios are suggested to arise in concert with female-biased sexual size dimorphism [5][6][7], as males in such systems often reach sexual maturation earlier and are more likely to survive to maturity [2,8,9]. Such life-history patterns have led scientists to predict an evolutionary correlation between female-biased sexual size dimorphisms, male-biased sex ratios and monogyny [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spontaneous male death and monogyny in the dark fishing spider

2013

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Monogyny (male monogamy) is found in a diverse assemblage of taxa, and recent theoretical work reveals that a male-biased sex ratio can favour the evolution of this relatively rare mating system. We integrate this theoretical framework with field observations and laboratory experiments involving the sexually size dimorphic fishing spider, Dolomedes tenebrosus, to test the prediction that this species exhibits monogyny. Field surveys revealed a male-biased sex ratio, likely resulting from different life-history strategies (early male maturation). Results from mating trials supported our prediction of monogyny as we discovered that males mate with a single female. Unexpectedly, however, we observed that mating results in obligate male death and genital mutilation. Additional field observations of released individuals suggest that males are not limited by their ability to encounter additional females. Controlled laboratory assays demonstrated that males discriminate among virgin and non-virgin female silk cues, consistent with predictions of first-male sperm precedence. In summary, we report a novel case of male self-sacrifice in a species that exhibits female-biased sexual size dimorphism, male-biased sex ratio, genital mutilation and a suggestion of first-male sperm precedence; all of which are consistent with theoretical predictions of the evolution of monogyny.

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“…Widows are well known in popular culture because of their neurotoxic venom (Jelinek 1997;Ushkaryov et al 2004), the tendency of several species to thrive in anthropogenically disturbed habitats (Trubl et al 2012;Vetter et al 2012), and because of their lurid reputation for females that kill and consume courting males (D'Amour et al 1936). In reality, there is a wide range of mating systems in this genus (e.g., Breene and Sweet 1985;Forster 1992;Andrade 1996;Knoflach and van Harten 2002;Segev et al 2003;Segoli et al 2006), ranging from polygyny and polyandry to the most extreme examples of male monogyny enforced by polyandrous female cannibals (observed in two species to date : Forster 1992;Segoli et al 2008a). For example, in the Australian L. hasselti, males are monogynous and facilitate cannibalism by females (Forster 1992;Andrade 1996), but neither of these behaviors is found in the sister taxon L. katipo (Kavale 1986;Forster 1992).…”

Section: Comparative Context and Variationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, if there are seasonal shifts in the frequency of preferred males, this may also make CFC beneficial. For example, in at least two Latrodectus species, male body size, mass, or condition show significant differences between the early and late season ( 8 Segev et al 2003;S. Fry, personnel communication), and wide variation in male body size has been reported in many species ( 5,6,7 Kaston 1970;8 Segev et al 2003;6 Brandt and Andrade 2007).…”

Section: Comparative Context and Variationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential for CFC in Black Widows (Genus Latrodectus): Mechanisms and Social Context

Andrade

MacLeod

2015

Cryptic Female Choice in Arthropods

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Understanding the causes of variation in paternity is an important goal of research in sexual selection. While much progress has been made in understanding the dynamics of pre-copulatory mate choice and competition, post-copulatory processes that affect paternity are much less well understood. Distinguishing cryptic female choice (CFC, biases in paternity due to female postcopulatory preferences) from sperm competition (SC, competition among ejaculates for fertilization) and particularly from sexual antagonistic coevolution (SAC, intersexual conflict over mating frequency or fertilization) is at best challenging, and at worst, may be impossible. One way forward is to identify taxa in which comparative approaches, field studies, and detailed mechanistic study are all tractable, as these may allow the design of critical tests of distinguishing predictions of these intertwined hypotheses at different levels of analysis. Here, we focus on the widow spiders, the approximately 30 species in the genus Latrodectus, as a promising group for future work on CFC. Latrodectus spiders are distributed worldwide and show a fascinating range of mating systems set in variable ecological and social contexts. We outline how some of the aspects of Latrodectus natural history and biology may favor CFC rather than (or in addition to) pre-copulatory choice. Moreover, inter-and intraspecific variation in the benefits of CFC may provide the opportunity for comparative and intraspecific studies. We then identify likely mechanisms of CFC in this genus and end by providing suggestive evidence for CFC in a few of the species that have been studied in detail. Although there is no evidence for sperm selection in the Latrodectus to date, female behavior can lead to biases in paternity via changes in copulation frequency, duration, and remating as a function of male courtship effort. In addition, although firstmale sperm precedence mediated by the deposit of sperm plugs is common in this genus, females may be able to manipulate the success of this internal plug and

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The Male Mating System in a Desert Widow Spider

Cited by 33 publications

References 29 publications

Copulation with immature females increases male fitness in cannibalistic widow spiders

Copulation with immature females increases male fitness in cannibalistic widow spiders

Spontaneous male death and monogyny in the dark fishing spider

Potential for CFC in Black Widows (Genus Latrodectus): Mechanisms and Social Context

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