stronger sexual selection in warmer waters the case of a sex role reversed pipefish更强的性选择在温暖水域的情况下性别角色逆转了尖嘴鱼.pdfVIP

Stronger Sexual Selection in Warmer Waters: The Case of a Sex Role Reversed Pipefish Nuno M. Monteiro1,2*, David O. Lyons3 ˜ ´ ˜ ˆ ´ 1 Centro de Investigac¸ao em Biodiversidade e Recursos Geneticos, Vairao, Portugal, 2 CEBIMED, Faculdade de Ciencias da Saude, Universidade Fernando Pessoa, Porto, Portugal, 3 National Parks and Wildlife Service, Galway, Ireland Abstract In order to answer broader questions about sexual selection, one needs to measure selection on a wide array of phenotypic traits, simultaneously through space and time. Nevertheless, studies that simultaneously address temporal and spatial variation in reproduction are scarce. Here, we aimed to investigate the reproductive dynamics of a cold-water pipefish simultaneously through time (encompassing variation within each breeding cycle and as individuals grow) and space (by contrasting populations experiencing distinct water temperature regimes) in order to test hypothesized differences in sexual selection. Even though the sampled populations inhabited locations with very different water temperature regimes, they exhibited considerable similarities in reproductive parameters. The most striking was the existence of a well-defined substructure in reproductive activity, where larger individuals reproduce for longer periods, which seemed dependent on a high temperature threshold for breeding rather than on the low temperatures that vary heavily according to latitude. Furthermore, the perceived disparities among populations, such as size at first reproduction, female reproductive investment, or degree of sexual size dimorphism, seemed dependent on the interplay between seawater temperature and the operational sex ratio (OSR).