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Black spots and female association preferences in a sexual/asexual mating complex (Poecilia, Poeciliidae, Teleostei)

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Abstract

We investigated whether female association preferences for males are influenced by black spot disease (BSD), a parasite induced change of the host phenotype. We compared three different species of fish: a gynogenetic hybrid species, Poecilia formosa (amazon molly) and two sexual species (Poecilia latipinna and Poecilia mexicana), which were involved in the natural hybridisation leading to the amazon molly. Contrary to their sexual relatives, asexual amazon mollies significantly avoided images of males infected with black spot disease. We propose that amazon molly females have direct fitness benefits from choosing healthy males. The adaptive significance of the preference for BSD-uninfected males in the asexual amazon molly is yet unclear but may involve avoidance of predation or parasite infection as well as increased sperm availability.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Dustin Penn and Michael J. Ryan for critically reading an earlier draft of this paper. A. Taebel-Hellwig helped with the data collection; the Animal care teams of the Biozentrum Grindel; and University of Texas Brackenridge Field laboratory helped with fish care. Financial support came from DFG (SCHL 344/13-1, I. S.), from the University of Hamburg (M. P.) and from the Swiss Academy of Sciences and the NWG St. Gallen (M. T.). The experiments reported in this paper comply with the current laws in Germany. The Mexican Government kindly issued permits to collect fish (Permiso de pesca de fomento numbers: 242-219, 276/36, 210696-213-03).

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Correspondence to Ingo Schlupp.

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Communicated by K. Lindström

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Tobler, M., Plath, M., Burmeister, H. et al. Black spots and female association preferences in a sexual/asexual mating complex (Poecilia, Poeciliidae, Teleostei). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 60, 159–165 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-005-0152-2

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