Mating tactics in external fertilizers when sperm is limited |
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Authors: | Shapiro Douglas Y; Giraldeau Luc-Alain |
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Institution: | aDepartment of Marine Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico 00681, USA,
bDepartment of Biology, Concordia University, 1455 Ouest Boulevard de Maisonneuve, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1M8, Canada |
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Abstract: | Among externally fertilizing animals in aquatic habitats, theproportion of a female's egg clutch that is successfully fertilizedoften falls below 100%. In many such species, particularly incoral reef fishes, males spawn daily at high frequencies, oftenwith little or no sperm competition. A major evolutionary problemfor such males is how best to allocate sperm over successivespawns. Females face the problem of ensuring complete fertilizationof their egg clutch. Here we model male and female mating tacticswhen daily sperm production is limited and with various assumptionsconcerning how differences in the number of sperm released duringa mating influence the number of eggs fertilized. The modelsreveal conditions under which males can maximize daily reproductivesuccess, either by releasing a fixed number of sperm duringall successive spawns or by matching sperm numbers to the clutchsize of their mates. These patterns of sperm allocation exertdifferent pressures on females, which may respond evolutionarilyby developing various mating tactics of their own. |
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Keywords: | fertilization mating tactics reproduction sperm limitation |
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