Sexual selection on male but not female function in monoecious and dioecious populations of broadleaf arrowhead (Sagittaria latifolia).

Abstract

Direct measures of sexual selection in plants are rare and complicated by immobility and modular growth. For plants, instantaneous measures of fitness typically scale with size, but covariances between size and mating success could obscure the detection of sexual selection. We measured the magnitude of sexual selection in a monoecious and a dioecious population of the clonal plant Sagittaria latifolia using Bateman gradients (ßss). These gradients were calculated using parentage analysis and residual regression to account for the effects of shoot and clone size on mating and reproductive success. In both populations, (i) there was greater promiscuity via male function than via female function and (ii) ßss were positive, with significant associations between mating and reproductive success for male but not female function. Moreover, estimated βss were similar for the monoecious and dioecious populations, possibly because non-overlapping female and male sex phases in hermaphroditic S. latifolia reduced the scope for interference between sex functions during mating. This study builds on previous studies of selection on plant mating traits, and of sexual selection under experimental conditions, by showing that sexual selection can operate in natural populations of plants, including populations of hermaphrodites.