Striped mouse

Striped mouse

Striped mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio) on the cover of the August edition of Behaviour

Striped mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio) on the cover of the August edition of Behaviour
My photo and the accompanying paper (see List of publications) were published in this issue.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Summary: Albo & Costa (2010)

Nuptial gift giving is rare in spiders, but is known to occur in Paratrechalea ornata (a neotropical spider belong to the family Trechaleidae. Albo & Costa (2010) tested various hypotheses (mating effort, sexual cannibalism and paternal investment) to determine the function of nuptial gift giving. They compared sexual behaviour and reproductive success of pairs in both the presence and absence of a nuptial gift. Historically, it has been suggested the nuptial gifts function as a form of paternal investment. Albo & Costa (2010), however, found that males carrying a prey item had better mating success, longer copulations and longer palpal insertions. Furthermore, longer copulations were associated with earlier eggsac construction and oviposition in females. This suggests that nuptial gift giving represents male mating effort in P. ornata. These gifts could allow males to control duration of copulation, thereby increasing sperm supply and likelihood of paternity.

No comments:

Post a Comment