Skip to content
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Menu
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Menu
Home
About Us
Resources
Profiles Metrics
Authors Directory
Institutions Directory
Top Authors
Top Institutions
Top Sponsors
AI Digest
Contact Us
Publication Details
AFRICAN RESEARCH NEXUS
SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AFRICAN RESEARCH
agricultural and biological sciences
Quantitative tests of sex ratio models in a pollinating fig wasp
Animal Behaviour, Volume 64, No. 1, Year 2002
Notification
URL copied to clipboard!
Description
Pollinating fig wasps are often used to study sex ratio evolution in structured mating populations. Theory predicts a female-biased sex ratio, becoming less female biased as female (foundress) density increases. We used Liporrhopalum tentacularis to test two mechanisms of sex ratio control when foundresses oviposit simultaneously: (1) foundresses facultatively adjust the number of males in clutches, and (2) they produce the same number of males regardless of clutch size, which, given limited numbers of oviposition sites, would lead to increases in sex ratio with increasing density. We then examined whether foundresses can oviposit sequentially into figs. When oviposition was simultaneous, brood composition indicated facultative adjustment, although sex ratios were more female biased than predicted. Instead, foundresses appeared to adjust their sex ratio in response to both others ovipositing and their own fecundity. We also found that foundresses are able to oviposit completely sequentially, with those arriving second adjusting their sex ratio in response to the previous oviposition. Hence, pollinating wasps may fail to fit the predictions of classical sex ratio theory because the conditions under which foundresses oviposit, and their responses to changes in such conditions, are more complex than once assumed. © 2002 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors & Co-Authors
Moore, Jamie C.
United Kingdom, Leeds
University of Leeds
South Africa, Pretoria
University of Pretoria
Compton, Steve G.A.
United Kingdom, Leeds
University of Leeds
Hatcher, Melanie J.
United Kingdom, Leeds
University of Leeds
Dunn, Alison M.
United Kingdom, Leeds
University of Leeds
Statistics
Citations: 44
Authors: 4
Affiliations: 2
Identifiers
Doi:
10.1006/anbe.2002.3034
ISSN:
00033472
Study Approach
Quantitative
Participants Gender
Female