ORCID Profile
0000-0002-8074-8670
Current Organisation
Stockholm University
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Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-07-2020
DOI: 10.1111/EVO.13986
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 23-12-2019
DOI: 10.1101/2019.12.21.885996
Abstract: Sexually selected ornaments are highly variable and the factors that drive variation in ornament expression are not always clear. Rare instances of female-specific ornament evolution (such as in some dance fly species) are particularly puzzling. While some evidence suggests that such rare instances represent straightforward reversals of sexual selection intensity, the distinct nature of trade-offs between ornaments and offspring pose special constraints in females. To examine whether competition for access to mates generally favours heightened ornament expression, we built a phylogeny and conducted a comparative analysis of Empidinae dance fly taxa that display ornate female-specific ornaments. We show that species with more female-biased operational sex ratios in lek-like mating swarms have greater female ornamentation, and in taxa with more ornate females, polyandry is increased. These findings support the hypothesis that ornament ersity in dance flies depends on female receptivity, which is associated with contests for nutritious nuptial gifts provided by males. Moreover, our results suggest that increases in female receptivity lead to higher levels of polyandry and sperm competition among males. The incidence of both heightened pre-mating sexual selection on females and post-mating selection on males contradicts assertions that sex-roles are straightforwardly reversed in dance flies.
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 16-03-2022
DOI: 10.1101/2022.03.14.484300
Abstract: The prevalence and ersity of female ornaments poses a challenge to evolutionary theory because males should prefer mates that spend resources on offspring rather than ornaments. Among dance flies, there is extraordinary variation in sexual dimorphism. Females of many species have conspicuous ornaments (leg scales and inflatable abdominal sacs). Meanwhile males of some species have regions of their eyes with larger ommatidial facets, common traits in many arthropod taxa that allow for regionally elevated photosensitivity and/or acuity. Here, we conduct a comparative study of these traits using both species descriptions available from the literature, as well as quantitative measures of eyes and ornaments from wild-caught flies. We show a conspicuous covariance between exaggerated male dorsal eye regions and the extent of female ornaments: species with highly ornamented females have males with more exaggerated eyes. We discuss this pattern in the context of competing hypotheses for their evolution.
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
No related grants have been discovered for R. Axel W. Wiberg.