Paternity in Naturally-Occurring Utetheisa ornatrix (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae) as Estimated Using Enzyme Polymorphism

Paternity of offspring in natural populations of insects has received little attention due to the difficulties inherent in following females and sampling each of their mates. Here, an existing statistical technique is modified to estimate paternity based on allozyme variation found in the female and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Behavioral ecology and sociobiology 1994-06, Vol.34 (6), p.403-408
Main Author: LaMunyon, Craig W.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alleles
Animal ethology
Arctiidae
Biological and medical sciences
Female animals
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Insect behavior
Invertebrates
Lepidoptera
Male animals
Mating behavior
Moths
Ova
Phenotypes
Protozoa. Invertebrata
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Spermatophores
Spermatozoa
Utetheisa ornatrix
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Summary:Paternity of offspring in natural populations of insects has received little attention due to the difficulties inherent in following females and sampling each of their mates. Here, an existing statistical technique is modified to estimate paternity based on allozyme variation found in the female and her last mate, thus allowing paternity in nature to be studied by collecting copulating pairs of insects. Using this technique, paternity was investigated in naturally-occurring females of the arctiid moth Utetheisa ornatrix. These females mate promiscuously: upon dissection, they were found to contain up to 13 spermatophores. Statistical paternity estimation revealed considerable variation in the share of offspring sired by the female's last mate: approximately 25% of the males sired all the offspring, while another 25% fathered no offspring; the remainder sired at least some offspring. The proportion of offspring sired by the last male did not correlate with latency to oviposition, the extent of previous mating by the female, or male wing length. Male U. ornatrix are known to make substantial nuptial investments during mating, and this study shows that mating males frequently sire few or no offspring. Thus, male moths stand a chance of being cuckolded.
ISSN:0340-5443
1432-0762
DOI:10.1007/BF00167331