Fatal fighting in fig wasps : GBH in time and space

Fighting to the death over mating opportunities is an extreme behaviour, considering that the loser will never mate again. It is therefore not surprising that escalation to lethal combat is rare in most species and is often avoided by complex behaviours involving display and assessment. With this in mind, the existence of regular fatal fighting in certain species demands an evolutionary explanation. Both theory and comparative data suggest that fatal fights generally occur when individuals compete over a limiting resource that has a major impact on their lifetime reproductive success. Fig wasps provide some of the most dramatic examples of fatal fighting in animals. Fig wasps have provided crucial empirical evidence in the testing of several fundamental issues in behavioural ecology. Whilst studies of fig wasp behaviour have a long history, robust estimates of phylogeny, relatedness and sperm competition have only recently become possible with the development of appropriate molecular markers. This therefore provides a new impetus for integrated studies of fatal fighting that combine behavioural, genetic and phylogenetic data.