The cost of mating and the relationship between body size and fitness in males of the parasitoid wasp Nasonia vitripennis

Journal article

Question: Does male size affect fitness in gregarious parasitoids? Hypothesis: Larger males achieve higher reproductive success by obtaining more matings when in a competitive scenario and by living longer. Although mating can be costly, larger males are better able to withstand these costs. Methods: Three experiments: two assessed the effect of size on mating success, one with and one without the presence of a competitor; the third experiment explored the relationship between male size and longevity under alternative mating regimes. Results: Mating success did not depend on male size even in the presence of an introduced competitor. Mating reduced male longevity, but it did so independently of size. © 2007 Maxwell N. Burton-Chellew.

Authors: Burton-Chellew, M; Sykes, E; Patterson, S; Shuker, D; West, SA

• Publication status: Published
• Journal: EVOLUTIONARY ECOLOGY RESEARCH
• Volume: 9
• Issue: 6
• Pages: 921-934
• Publication date: 2007-10-01
• ISSN: 1522-0613
• Language: English
• Keywords: sex allocation; clutch size; longevity; sex ratio; brood size; local mate competition