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Spatial behavior in relation to mating systems: movement patterns, nearest-neighbor distances, and mating success in diploid and polyploid frog hybrids (Pelophylax esculentus)

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Abstract

Mating success depends not only on genetic and phenotypic characteristics of males and females but also on their spatial position relative to other individuals, which influences the chances for interactions. Hence, any behavior that affects proximity to other individuals can potentially translate into fitness gain or loss. Here, we investigate the effects of genotype on male movement and distance to nearest neighbor (DNN) in three populations of the edible frog Pelophylax esculentus, a natural hybrid between its parental species Pelophylax ridibundus (genotype RR) and Pelophylax lessonae (LL). The system is particularly suited for such an analysis because the fitness differences between mating with a certain genotype are particularly strong. Moreover, which genotype should be preferred differs among populations where diploid hybrids (LR) live in sympatry with P. lessonae (L–E system) and those where diploid hybrids occur in all-hybrid populations together with triploids (LLR and/or LRR) (E–E system). Hence, we expected differences among genotypes in movement patterns and spatial arrangement within the breeding pond. We did, indeed, find such differences. They were predominantly due to density differences between populations, followed by size and condition differences between males. Most relevant for our question was a difference in DNN: in the E–E system, distances between all three hybrid types were equal, whereas in the L–E system LR hybrids tended to stay closer to LL than to other LR. The results are discussed in relation to previous mate choice experiments and theoretical models about mating preferences in the two systems.

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Acknowledgments

We greatly thank Irene Völlmy for her help in the field in Döbern and Genarp, Sandra Röthlisberger for her excellent lab work, and two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on the first version of the manuscript. Special thanks go to the pond owners, who kindly allowed us to roam in and around their ponds over several weeks—and sometimes even treated us with meals and drinks. The study was funded through the University of Zürich and a grant by the Swiss National Science Foundation to H-UR (no. 3100A0-120225/1).

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The experiments comply with the current laws of Sweden, Germany, and Switzerland.

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  1. Institute of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland

    Alexandra Hoffmann, Gaby Abt Tietje & Heinz-Ulrich Reyer

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  1. Alexandra Hoffmann
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  2. Gaby Abt Tietje
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Correspondence to Heinz-Ulrich Reyer.

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Hoffmann, A., Abt Tietje, G. & Reyer, HU. Spatial behavior in relation to mating systems: movement patterns, nearest-neighbor distances, and mating success in diploid and polyploid frog hybrids (Pelophylax esculentus). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 69, 501–517 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-014-1862-0

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