Abstract
While parasites and immunity are widely believed to play important roles in the evolution of male ornaments, their potential influence on systems where male weaponry is the object of sexual selection is poorly understood. We experimentally infect larval broad-horned flour beetles with a tapeworm and study the consequent effects on: 1) adult male morphology 2) male-male contests for mating opportunities, and 3) induction of the innate immune system. We find that infection significantly reduces adult male size in ways that are expected to reduce mating opportunities in nature. The sum of our morphological, competition, and immunological data indicate that during a life history stage where no new resources are acquired, males allocate their finite resources in a way that increases future mating potential.
Highlights
Pressure on one sex to secure mating opportunities with the other has lead to some of the most extravagant and unusual phenotypes in nature, and a great deal of attention from biologists
While parasites and immunity are widely believed to play an important role in mate choice and the evolution of male ornaments [16,17,52,53], their potential impact on sexual selection involving male weaponry is poorly understood [10,19,20]
Our study examines the effect of Hymenolepis diminuta infection on male morphology, immune protein level, and mate competition
Summary
Pressure on one sex to secure mating opportunities with the other has lead to some of the most extravagant and unusual phenotypes in nature, and a great deal of attention from biologists. Sexually selected traits (SSTs) are malespecific because an inequity in parental investment makes females a limiting resource and increases the strength of selection on males in proportion to their variance in mating success [1,2,3,4,5]. In proximate terms the answer is simple; male mating success is determined either by female choice, resulting in selection for male ornaments, or by male-male contests, resulting in selection for male weapons, though some SSTs likely serve dual roles [6,7,8]. The majority of recent sexual selection literature emphasizes the evolution of male ornaments via female choice [9]. The effect of parasites on male weapon development has rarely been tested [19,20,21,22]
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