The effect of reproductive activity on the longevity of male Drosophila melanogaster is not caused by an acceleration of ageing

Male D. melanogaster kept supplied with virgin females had lower longevity than males kept without access to females. Cessation of reproductive activity by males previously kept with females resulted after a short lag in the same life expectancy as that of flies of the same age which had never had females. Commencement of reproductive activity resulted in life expectancy indistinguishable from that of males of the same age kept with females throughout life. The effect of reproductive activity on longevity is therefore short-term and reversible and not due to an acceleration of ageing. This finding has implications for the way that different theories of the evolution of ageing should be tested.