Sperm Investment in Male Meadow Voles is Affected by the Condition of the Nearby Male Conspecifics
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Behavioral Ecology
Publication Date
11-2008
Abstract
Sperm competition occurs when 2 or more males copulate with a particular female during the same reproductive cycle, and their sperm compete to fertilize the female's available eggs. One strategy that male voles use to assess the risk and intensity of sperm competition involves responding to the presence of scent marks of conspecific males found near a sexually receptive female. Previously, we have shown that if a male vole copulated with a female while he was in the presence of the odors of another male he increased his sperm investment relative to his investment if another male's odors were not present. The aim of the present study was to test the hypothesis that males assess differences in the relative quality of competing males and adjust their sperm investment accordingly. We did so by allowing males to copulate when they were exposed to the scent mark of a 24-h food-deprived male (low-quality male) or the scent mark of a male that was not food deprived (high-quality male). The data indicate that male meadow voles did not increase their sperm investment during copulation when exposed to the scent mark of a food-deprived male but did so when they were exposed to the scent mark of a male that was not food deprived. The results support the hypothesis that male voles are able to adjust sperm investment when they encounter the scent marks of males that differ in quality.
Funding Source
National Science Foundation (grant IOB 04553); National Institutes of Health (grant HDO 49525 to M.H.F.).
Recommended Citation
Vaughn, Ashlee A.; delBarco-Trillo, Javier; and Ferkin, Michael H., "Sperm Investment in Male Meadow Voles is Affected by the Condition of the Nearby Male Conspecifics" (2008). Faculty Publications – Biological Sciences. 170.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/fpbiosci/170
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arn092
Comments
This article was originally published as Vaughn, A., delBarco-Trillo, J. and Ferkin, M.H. (2008) Sperm investment in male meadow voles is affected by the condition of the nearby male conspecifics. Behavioral Ecology. 19:1159-1164. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arn092.