Condition dependence of male lifespan and calling effort in a field cricket
Faculty Advisor
Date
2008
Keywords
gryllus pennsylvanicus, trade-offs, life history, sexual selection, handicap
Abstract (summary)
Sexually selected traits are thought to impose survival costs on showy males. Recent empirical work found a negative relationship between male display and survival in a field cricket species (Orthoptera, Gryllidae, Gryllinae) where there is no evidence of a mating bias towards older males. In most species, however, male survival and ornamentation are positively correlated, and older males often have a mating success advantage over younger males. These findings suggest that male quality and survival are positively correlated, but more tests of this hypothesis are needed. We measured the condition dependence of male survival and mating investment (calling effort) in another grylline, Gryllus pennsylvanicus, where older males have previously been shown to have greater mating success. We varied condition by manipulating diet, and measured male lifespan and calling effort to assess the relative condition dependence of these traits. High and medium condition males survived longer than low condition males, and high condition males called more than medium and low condition males. Differences in calling effort among the condition treatments were not apparent early in life, but emerged as males aged. We discuss possible explanations for the differences between our study and contrasting results such as the previous grylline work.
Publication Information
Judge, K., Ting, J., & Gwynne, D. (2008). Condition Dependence of Male Life Span and Calling Effort in a Field Cricket. Evolution, 62(4), 868-878. doi:10.1111/j.1558-5646.2008.00318.x
Notes
Item Type
Article Post-Print
Language
English
Rights
All Rights Reserved