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Male territoriality and mating system in the European beewolf Philanthus triangulum F. (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae): evidence for a “hotspot” lek polygyny

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Abstract

The evolution of the mating system of a species is strongly influenced by the spatial and temporal distribution of females and/or resources. Here, we describe aspects of the territorial behavior of males of a solitary digger wasp, the European beewolf (Philanthus triangulum) and characterize the mating system. We show that beewolf males establish small territories that do not contain any resources essential to females. These territories are intensively scent-marked with a pheromone from a cephalic gland and are defended against intruders in combat flights. We provide evidence that scent-marking constitutes a chemical display and that the pheromone serves to attract receptive females and, thus, represents a sex pheromone. Using spatial statistics, we show that beewolf territories are clumped in space both with respect to other male territories and, more importantly, with respect to female nesting sites. Additionally, the proportion of days a territory is occupied by a male is correlated with the number of female nests in the vicinity. Taking into account that beewolf males do not defend or provide resources essential to females, but merely display chemically to attract females for mating in an aggregation of territories close to female nesting sites, we conclude that the European beewolf exhibits a hotspot lek polygyny with female nesting sites constituting “hotspots” for lek formation.

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Acknowledgments

This study was partly supported by the DFG (STR 532/1-2). We thank Thorsten Wiegand for providing the Programita Software. We are grateful to anonymous reviewers who provided valuable comments on an earlier draft of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Zoology, University of Regensburg, 93040, Regensburg, Germany

    Johannes Kroiss & Erhard Strohm

  2. Department of Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology, University of Würzburg, Am Hubland, 97074, Würzburg, Germany

    Klaus Lechner

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  1. Johannes Kroiss
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  2. Klaus Lechner
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Correspondence to Johannes Kroiss.

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Kroiss, J., Lechner, K. & Strohm, E. Male territoriality and mating system in the European beewolf Philanthus triangulum F. (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae): evidence for a “hotspot” lek polygyny. J Ethol 28, 295–304 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-009-0185-5

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