- MeSH
- Glucose MeSH
- Clinical Enzyme Tests MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- In Vitro Techniques MeSH
- Check Tag
- Humans MeSH
BACKGROUND: Sperm competition imposes a strong selective pressure on males, leading to the evolution of various physiological, morphological and behavioral traits. Sperm competition can be prevented by blocking or impeding the access to female genitalia by means of a mating plug. We investigated the factors responsible for plug production and function in the promiscuous female-cannibalistic spider Micaria sociabilis (Gnaphosidae). RESULTS: We performed mating trials using females with and without a plug that consists of an amorphous mass. The mating trials demonstrated that the probability of male plugging increased non-linearly with the duration of copulation. Copulation duration and plug production seem to be controlled by the female. We found that females terminated matings later if males were fast at genital coupling. Whereas incomplete plugs had disappeared on the day following copulation, complete plugs persisted (40%). In matings with females with complete plugs, only a small proportion of males (7%) were able to remove the plug, indicating the high effectiveness of plugging. Moreover, males ceased attempts to copulate with plugged females with higher probability. 3D X-ray microscopy of the female and male genitalia showed that the plug material can extend far into the female genital tract and that the plug material is produced by a massive gland inside the palpal organ of the modified male pedipalps. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrates that the mating plug in M. sociabilis constitutes an effective male strategy to avoid sperm competition that seems to be under female control.
- MeSH
- Behavior, Animal MeSH
- Competitive Behavior MeSH
- Copulation MeSH
- Spiders classification physiology MeSH
- Genitalia, Female MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Male MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
In butterflies, male reproductive success is highly related to the quality and the size of the spermatophore transferred to the female. The spermatophore is a capsule produced by the male during copulation, which in many species contains sperm in addition to a nuptial gift, and which is digested by the female after copulation. The nuptial gift may contribute to egg production and offspring quality, and in some cases also to female body maintenance. The production of the spermatophore, however, represents a cost for the male and, in polyandrous species, ejaculates are sometimes allocated adaptively across matings. Nonetheless, although the ecological factors affecting the reproductive success of female butterflies have been the topic of numerous studies, little information exists on the factors affecting males' contribution to reproduction, and the indirect impacts on female fecundity and fitness. We used the Glanville fritillary butterfly, Melitaea cinxia (Linnaeus, 1758) (Nymphalidae), in order to assess variation in male allocation to matings. In this species, smaller males produce smaller spermatophores, but variation in spermatophore size is not correlated with female reproductive success. We show that spermatophore size increases with male age at first mating, decreases with mating frequency and adult food-deprivation, and is not influenced by developmental food-limitation. The length of copulation period does not influence the spermatophore size nor influences the polyandrous mating behavior in this species. Male contribution to his spermatophore size is clearly influenced by his condition and adult-resource at the time of mating. Despite this variation, spermatophore size does not seem to have a direct impact on female reproductive output or mating behavior.
- MeSH
- Copulation * MeSH
- Butterflies physiology MeSH
- Food Deprivation MeSH
- Reproduction MeSH
- Spermatogonia physiology MeSH
- Age Factors MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Male MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
Research has repeatedly shown marked differences in men's and women's sexual response patterns; genital response in men tends to be elicited by cues that correspond to their sexual preference (preferred gender), while women's genital response is less sensitive to gender cues and more sensitive to the presence and intensity of other sexual cues (e.g., sexual activities). We tested whether the cue of copulatory movement in a general sexual context elicited a genital response in androphilic women but not in gynephilic men. If so, women should react to stimuli depicting not only the non-preferred gender but also other animal species differing in phylogenetic distance to humans. We studied the genital and self-reported arousal of 30 gynephilic men and 28 androphilic women to two sexual videos depicting penetrative human sexual intercourse (female-male and female-female) and nine videos depicting animal copulation. Neither women nor men showed genital or subjective sexual arousal to non-human sexual stimuli. Moreover, both sexes demonstrated a highly cue-specific pattern of arousal. Our results suggest that copulatory movement displayed in non-human species is not a sexual cue that can elicit genital or subjective sexual arousal in humans.
- MeSH
- Adult MeSH
- Coitus physiology psychology MeSH
- Copulation * physiology MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Young Adult MeSH
- Cues * MeSH
- Sexual Arousal * MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Adult MeSH
- Humans MeSH
- Young Adult MeSH
- Male MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
The opening of the preorbital gland in deer serves as a visual communication and has been linked to a wide variety of behavioural situations. As we reported recently, all previous long-term studies on preorbital gland opening were carried out on only one species, whereas case reports on six other rarely studied species have shown associations with different behaviours, thus greatly increasing our overall understanding of the real function of this gland in animal visual communication. Here, we report for the first time preorbital gland opening in the barasingha (Rucervus duvaucelii) in social contexts as observed in a wild population in Kanha National Park, India. We observed this behaviour in two different contexts: agonistic and sexual. Moreover, our record of preorbital gland opening during copulation is the first one amongst cervids. Our findings of preorbital gland opening in both contexts in wild barasingha indicate that the gland was opened only when the individual was highly excited. We suggest that preorbital gland opening may be an important behavioural indicator of an individual involved in a serious intraspecific interaction, and thus a useful tool with which to distinguish between playful and serious behaviours, especially in agonistic and sexual situations.
- MeSH
- Aggression physiology MeSH
- Behavior, Animal physiology MeSH
- Exocrine Glands physiology MeSH
- Animal Communication * MeSH
- Copulation physiology MeSH
- Scent Glands physiology MeSH
- Sexual Behavior, Animal physiology MeSH
- Deer physiology MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Male MeSH
- Female MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Observational Study MeSH
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
- Geographicals
- India MeSH
