Expression Of Sexual Conflict Research Articles

The cost of associating with males for Bornean and Sumatran female orangutans: a hidden form of sexual conflict?

Sexual coercion, in the form of forced copulations, is relatively frequently observed in orangutans and generally attributed to their semi-solitary lifestyle. High ecological costs of association for females may be responsible for this lifestyle and may have prevented the evolution of morphological fertility indicators (e.g., sexual swellings), which would attract (male) associates. Therefore, sexual conflict may arise not only about mating per se but also about associations, because males may benefit from associations with females to monitor their reproductive state and attempt to monopolize their sexual activities. Here, we evaluate association patterns and costs for females when associating with both males and females of two different orangutan species at two study sites: Suaq, Sumatra (Pongo abelii), and Tuanan, Borneo (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii). Female association frequency with both males and females was higher in the Sumatran population, living in more productive habitat. Accordingly, we found that the cost of association, in terms of reduced feeding to moving ratio and increased time being active, is higher in the less sociable Bornean population. Males generally initiated and maintained such costly associations with females, and prolonged associations with males led to increased female fecal cortisol metabolite (FCM) levels at Tuanan, the Bornean population. We conclude that male-maintained associations are an expression of sexual conflict in orangutans, at least at Tuanan. For females, this cost of association may be responsible for the lack of sexual signaling, while needing to confuse paternity.Significance statementSocioecological theory predicts a trade-off between the benefits of sociality and the ecological costs of increased feeding competition. Orangutans’ semi-solitary lifestyle has been attributed to the combination of high association costs and low predation risk. Previous work revealed a positive correlation between association frequencies and habitat productivity, but did not measure the costs of association. In this comparative study, we show that females likely incur costs from involuntary, male-maintained associations, especially when they last for several days and particularly in the population characterized by lower association frequencies. Association maintenance therefore qualifies as another expression of sexual conflict in orangutans, and especially prolonged, male-maintained associations may qualify as an indirect form of sexual coercion.

Unusual modes of reproduction in social insects: Shedding light on the evolutionary paradox of sex

The study of alternative genetic systems and mixed modes of reproduction, whereby sexual and asexual reproduction is combined within the same lifecycle, is of fundamental importance as they may shed light on classical evolutionary issues, such as the paradox of sex. Recently, several such cases were discovered in social insects. A closer examination of these systems has revealed many amazing facts, including the mixed use of asexual and sexual reproduction for the production of new queens and workers, males that can clone themselves and the routine use of incest without deleterious genetic consequences. In addition, in several species, remarkable cases of asexually reproducing socially parasitic worker lineages have been discovered. The study of these unusual systems promises to provide insight into many basic evolutionary questions, including the maintenance of sex, the expression of sexual conflict and kin conflict and the evolution of cheating in asexual lineages.

A cost worth paying: energetically expensive interactions with males protect females from intrasexual aggression

When approached by males, females of the Amarillo fish (Girardinichthys multiradiatus) perform a behaviour called vibration or they are aggressively challenged. We quantified vibration and assessed whether it compromises the rate of feeding attempts in dyads kept in outdoor enclosures. Male approaches resulted in female vibration and in a reduced feeding rate. Vibration was not evoked by female–female aggression, which was frequent and always ended in the subordinate fleeing from the dominant female. Using a closed respirometer we found that vibration is costly; oxygen consumption of females was greater in the presence of a male (which evoked vibration) than in the presence of a non-familiar female (when no vibration occurred). By recording interactions of females confined in aquaria in the presence and in the absence of males, we confirmed that escaping is the only available response to deal with female aggression. Females kept without males participated in frequent aggressive (even lethal) interactions that did not abate while the subordinate female was in sight of the dominant, and which caused premature births and injuries. Yet in the alternative treatment aggression ceased when a male approached, prompting vibration in both females. Thus, in the Amarillo, in as much as it evokes energetically costly female vibrations, male courtship is an expression of sexual conflict. However, in the absence of males, frequent female aggression potentially annuls the benefits of not vibrating. We propose that a complete appraisal of the consequences of sexual conflict must include an assessment of the costs imposed by intra-sexual interactions.

Thematic expression of sexual conflict under varying stimulus conditions.

Thematic expression of sexual conflict under varying stimulus conditions.