The ecology and evolution of female-specific ornamentation in the dance flies (Diptera: Empidinae)

نویسنده

  • Rosalind L. Murray
چکیده

Elaborate morphological ornaments can evolve if they increase the reproductive success of the bearer during competition for mates. However, ornament evolution is incredibly rare in females, and the type and intensity of selection required to develop female-specific ornamentation is poorly understood. The main goals of my thesis are to clarify the relationship between the type and intensity of sexual selection that drives the evolution of female ornamentation, and investigate alternative hypotheses that might be limiting or contributing to the development of female ornaments. I investigated the ecology and evolution of female-specific ornaments within and between species of dance flies from the subfamily Empidinae (Diptera: Empididae). The dance flies display incredible mating system diversity including those with elaborate female-specific ornaments, lek-like mating swarms, aerial copulation and nuptial gift giving. To elucidate the form of sexual selection involved in female-ornament evolution, I experimentally investigated the role of sexual conflict in the evolution of multiple femalespecific ornaments in the species Rhamphomyia longicauda. Through manipulative field experiments, I found that variation in the attractiveness of two ornaments displayed by females indicates that sexual conflict, causing a coevolutionary arms race, is an important

برای دانلود متن کامل این مقاله و بیش از 32 میلیون مقاله دیگر ابتدا ثبت نام کنید

ثبت نام

اگر عضو سایت هستید لطفا وارد حساب کاربری خود شوید

منابع مشابه

Are sex ratio distorting endosymbionts responsible for mating system variation among dance flies (Diptera: Empidinae)?

Maternally inherited bacterial endosymbionts are common in many arthropod species. Some endosymbionts cause female-biased sex ratio distortion in their hosts that can result in profound changes to a host's mating behaviour and reproductive biology. Dance flies (Diptera: Empidinae) are well known for their unusual reproductive biology, including species with female-specific ornamentation and fem...

متن کامل

Are empidine dance flies major flower visitors in alpine environments? A case study in the Alps, France.

Pollination is one of the most important ecosystem services and bees the most important pollinators. As a population decline of bees has been documented in numerous regions of the world, it is crucial to develop understanding on other possible pollinators. Here, we study the potential pollination impact of Diptera, and among them Empidinae, in an alpine environment, where the abundance of bees ...

متن کامل

Contrasting sexual selection on males and females in a role-reversed swarming dance fly, Rhamphomyia longicauda Loew (Diptera: Empididae).

Although there are several hypotheses for sex-specific ornamentation, few studies have measured selection in both sexes. We compare sexual selection in male and female dance flies, Rhamphomyia longicauda (Diptera: Empididae). Swarming females display size-enhancing abdominal sacs, enlarged wings and decorated tibiae, and compete for nuptial gifts provided by males. Males preferentially approach...

متن کامل

Extreme male leg polymorphic asymmetry in a new empidine dance fly (Diptera: Empididae).

A new dance fly (Empididae: Empidinae) with hugely modified male fore tarsus, either on the right, left, both or neither sides, is described from Japan. Such massive polymorphic asymmetry occurring with so high an incidence in a population is previously unreported. In view of the courtship behaviour of other Empidinae, we hypothesize that the oversized tarsus is a secondary sexual character emp...

متن کامل

Nonlinear and correlational sexual selection on 'honest' female ornamentation.

Female ornamentation has long been overlooked because of the greater prevalence of elaborate displays in males. However, the circumstances under which females would benefit from honestly signalling their quality are limited. Females are not expected to invest in ornamentation unless the fitness benefits of the ornament exceed those derived from investing the resources directly into offspring. I...

متن کامل

ذخیره در منابع من


  با ذخیره ی این منبع در منابع من، دسترسی به آن را برای استفاده های بعدی آسان تر کنید

برای دانلود متن کامل این مقاله و بیش از 32 میلیون مقاله دیگر ابتدا ثبت نام کنید

ثبت نام

اگر عضو سایت هستید لطفا وارد حساب کاربری خود شوید

عنوان ژورنال:

دوره   شماره 

صفحات  -

تاریخ انتشار 2015