Remating, sperm transfer, and sperm displacement in the cactophilic species Drosophila buzzatii Patterson & Wheeler (Diptera: Drosophilidae)

The mating system of Drosophila buzzatii is characterized by short copulation duration, frequent remating in both males and females, and male ejaculate partitioning. Additional features of the system are strong sperm displacement and a high frequency of sterile matings. Remating frequencies and the effects of remating on various mating parameters were studied. In order to characterize variation, five isofemale lines from geographically distant localities in Australia (three localities), Brazil and the Canary Islands were used. Mating parameters studied were: premating time, copulation duration, interval between successive matings, and progeny number as a measure of sperm transfer. Variation for sperm displacement was studied in crosses between laboratory stocks and a number of isofemale lines from Australia. There were significant between‐line differences in female remating frequencies, premating time, copulation duration, interval between successive matings, and progeny numbers, indicating genetic variation for these traits. Females from the five lines mated on average 1.6 to 3.1 times in 4 h, with a maximum of eight matings for one female. The males were given a maximum of ten virgin females in sequence and more than one‐third of the males mated all ten females in the 2 h observation period. Copulation duration decreased and interval between matings increased with copulation number in multiply mated males. Mean copulation duration was c. 2 min. Sperm transfer, measured as the average number of progeny from a single mating, was low (c. 25) and multiply mated females gave more progeny than single mated females, although with much lower progeny numbers than observed in wild‐caught non‐virgin females. A surprisingly high proportion of observed matings gave no progeny, i.e. they were sterile matings. Sperm displacement was strong in most crosses and remained strong in multiply mated females. The results are discussed in relation to the evolution of mating patterns in Drosophila.