High variation in sperm precedence and last male advantage in the scorpionfly Panorpa germanica L. (Mecoptera, Panorpidae): Possible causes and consequences

Abstract

In the last decades, many insect species have been studied in terms of sperm competition. Patterns of sperm use are often inferred from the mean species value of P 2, defined as the mean proportion of offspring sired by the second male in double-mating trials. In Panorpa germanica (Mecoptera, Panorpidae), P 2 largely depends on relative copulation durations of both males, but with the second male on average having some advantage over the first male. Estimating the presence of fertile sperm inside the female's reproductive tract in relation to time after copulation we conclude this partial last male sperm precedence not to be caused by natural death, loss, or depletion of first male sperm. Estimating sperm transfer rates of both mates of a female we, furthermore, found that the high intraspecific variance in P 2 that can be observed cannot solely be explained by variances in sperm transfer rates among P. germanica males. Other factors possibly causing the observed patterns of paternity success are discussed.