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MATING UNPLUGGED: A MODEL FOR THE EVOLUTION OF MATING PLUG (DIS‐)PLACEMENT
Author(s) -
Fromhage Lutz
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
evolution
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.84
H-Index - 199
eISSN - 1558-5646
pISSN - 0014-3820
DOI - 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2011.01406.x
Subject(s) - biology , mating , evolutionary biology , sexual selection , zoology , sperm , antagonistic coevolution , sperm competition , ecology , sexual conflict , genetics
ABSTRACT Mating plugs are male‐derived structures that may impede female remating by physically obstructing the female genital tract. Although mating plugs exist in many taxa, the forces shaping their evolution are poorly understood. A male can clearly benefit if his mating plug secures his paternity. It is unclear, however, how plug efficacy can be maintained over evolutionary time in the face of counteracting selection on males’ ability to remove any plugs placed by their rivals. Here, I present a game‐theory model and a simulation model to address this problem. The models predict that evolutionarily stable levels of mating‐plug efficacy should be high when (1) the number of mating attempts per female is low; (2) the sex ratio is male‐biased, and (3) males are sperm‐limited. I discuss these results in the light of empirical data.