Sexually antagonistic coevolution of the male nuptial gift and female feeding behaviour in decorated crickets

Samuel Burns-Dunn, Tassie Mortys, Clarissa M. House, Christopher Mitchell, Kristin R. Duffield, Bert Foquet, Ben M. Sadd, Scott K. Sakaluk, John Hunt

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The evolution of nuptial gifts has traditionally been considered a harmonious affair, providing benefits to both mating partners. There is growing evidence, however, that receiving a nuptial gift can be actively detrimental to the female. In decorated crickets (Gryllodes sigillatus), males produce a gelatinous spermatophylax that enhances sperm transfer but provides little nutritional benefit and hinders female post-copulatory mate choice. Here, we examine the sexually antagonistic coevolution of the spermatophylax and the female feeding response to this gift in G. sigillatus maintained in experimental populations with either a male-biased or female-biased adult sex ratio. After 25 generations, males evolving in male-biased populations produced heavier spermatophylaxes with a more manipulative combination of free amino acids than those evolving in female-biased populations. Moreover, when the spermatophylax originated from the same selection regime, females evolving in male-biased populations always had shorter feeding durations than those evolving in female-biased populations, indicating the evolution of greater resistance. Across populations, female feeding duration increased with the mass and manipulative combination of free amino acids in the spermatophylax, suggesting sexually antagonistic coevolution. Collectively, our work demonstrates a key role for interlocus sexual conflict and sexually antagonistic coevolution in the mating system of G. sigillatus.

Original languageEnglish
Article number20240804
Pages (from-to)1-12
Number of pages12
JournalProceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Volume291
Issue number2026
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Authors.

Keywords

  • experimental evolution
  • free amino acids
  • interlocus sexual conflict
  • nuptial gift
  • spermatophylax

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Sexually antagonistic coevolution of the male nuptial gift and female feeding behaviour in decorated crickets'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this