Sperm length unexpectedly varies more than 3,000-fold across species, posing new questions for anisogamy theory and understanding the different forces shaping evolution of the male gamete.
References
Pitnick, S., Hosken, D. J. & Birkhead, T. R. in Sperm Biology: An Evolutionary Perspective (eds Birkhead, T. R. et al.) 69–149 (Academic Press, 2009).
Kahrl, A. F., Snook, R. R. & Fitzpatrick, J. L. Nat. Ecol. Evol. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01488-y (2021).
Butterfield, N. J. Paleobiology 26, 386–404 (2000).
Parker, G. A., Baker, R. R. & Smith, V. L. J. Theor. Biol. 36, 529–553 (1972).
Parker, G. A. J. Theor. Biol. 96, 281–294 (1982).
Hinchliff, C. E. et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 112, 12764–12769 (2015).
Parker, G. A. Biol. Rev. 45, 525–567 (1970).
Taylor, M. L., Price, T. A. R. & Wedell, N. Trends Ecol. Evol. 29, 376–383 (2014).
Eberhard, W. Female Control: Sexual Selection by Cryptic Female Choice (Princeton Univ. Press, 1996).
Manier, M. K. et al. Science 328, 354–357 (2010).
Scott Pitnick, S., Wolfner, M. F. & Suarez, S. S. in Sperm Biology: An Evolutionary Perspective (eds Birkhead, T. R. et al.) 247–304 (Academic Press, 2009).
Lupold, S. et al. Nature 533, 535–538 (2016).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The author declares no competing interests.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gage, M.J.G. Sperm size evolution. Nat Ecol Evol 5, 1064–1065 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01501-4
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-021-01501-4
- Springer Nature Limited