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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Female-driven intersexual coevolution in beetle genitalia

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Author(s):
Genevcius, Bruno C. [1] ; Baker, Joanna [2] ; Bianchi, Filipe M. [3] ; Marvaldi, Adriana E. [4]
Total Authors: 4
Affiliation:
[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Biosci, Dept Genet & Evolutionary Biol, Sao Paulo - Brazil
[2] Univ Reading, Sch Biol Sci, Reading, Berks - England
[3] Univ Fed Rio Grande do Sul, Inst Biosci, Dept Zool, Porto Alegre - Brazil
[4] Univ Nacl La Plata, Fac Ciencias Nat & Museo, CONICET, Div Entomol, Buenos Aires - Argentina
Total Affiliations: 4
Document type: Journal article
Source: JOURNAL OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY; v. 33, n. 7 APR 2020.
Web of Science Citations: 1
Abstract

Genital coevolution is a pervasive phenomenon as changes in one sex tend to impose fitness consequences on the other, generating sexual conflict. Sexual conflict is often thought to cause stronger selection on males due to the Darwin-Bateman's anisogamy paradigm. However, recent studies have demonstrated that female genitalia may be equally elaborated and perform diverse extra-copulatory functions. These characteristics suggest that female genitals can also be primary targets of selection, especially where natural selection acts on female-exclusive functions such as oviposition. Here, we test this hypothesis in a statistical phylogenetic framework across the whole beetle (Coleoptera) phylogeny, investigating whether coevolution of specific genital traits may be triggered by changes in females. We focus on traits of the proctiger, which composes part of the male terminalia and the female ovipositor. Our results present a comprehensive case of male-female genital coevolution and provide solid statistical evidence for a female-initiated coevolutionary process where the vast majority of evolutionary transitions in males have occurred only after changes in females. We corroborate the hypothesis that female traits may change independently and elicit counter-adaptations in males. Furthermore, by showing a consistent pattern across the phylogeny of the most diverse group of animals, our results suggest that this female-driven dynamics may persist through long time scales. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 14/21104-1 - Patterns and processes of genital evolution in Pentatomidae: Pentatominae (Insecta, Hemiptera)
Grantee:Bruno Celso Feltrin Genevcius
Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate