Sperm competition games when males invest in paternal care

Autor(es)

Requena, Gustavo S. ; Alonzo, Suzanne H.

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES; v. 284, n. 1860 AUG 16 2017.
• Citações Web of Science: 5

Resumo

Sperm competition games investigate how males partition limited resources between pre- and post-copulatory competition. Although extensive research has explored how various aspects of mating systems affect this allocation, male allocation between mating, fertilization and parental effort has not previously been considered. Yet, paternal care can be energetically expensive and males are generally predicted to adjust their parental effort in response to expected paternity. Here, we incorporate parental effort into sperm competition games, particularly exploring how the relationship between paternal care and offspring survival affects sperm competition and the relationship between paternity and paternal care. Our results support existing expectations that (i) fertilization effort should increase with female promiscuity and (ii) paternal care should increase with expected paternity. However, our analyses also reveal that the cost of male care can drive the strength of these patterns. When paternal behaviour is energetically costly, increased allocation to parental effort constrains allocation to fertilization effort. As paternal care becomes less costly, the association between paternity and paternal care weakens and may even be absent. By explicitly considering variation in sperm competition and the cost of male care, our model provides an integrative framework for predicting the interaction between paternal care and patterns of paternity. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 14/21790-2 - Cuida melhor da prole porque é o pai ou é o pai porque cuida melhor da prole? co-evolução entre esforço paternal e características que enviesam a paternidade
• Beneficiário: Gustavo Requena Santos
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado