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Paternity success depends on male genetic characteristics in the terrestrial isopod Armadillidium vulgare

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Abstract

Mate choice for compatible partners has been gaining interest during the past years, which implies that what represents a suitable male varies between females and that genetic diversity in offspring should be increased. In this context, mechanisms of mate choice for heterozygous and/or genetically dissimilar partners can be expected. To test for the presence of such mechanisms in the gregarious crustacean Armadillidium vulgare, we performed experimental crosses allowing a female to reproduce with two males. More heterozygous males had a higher paternity success whatever the number of males (only one or both males) participating in reproduction, which could result from better competing abilities or from female preference for such males. When only one male fathered a brood, this male was the most genetically dissimilar to the female, suggesting the existence of a female choice for dissimilarity. Additionally, the more genetically similar both males were to the female, the fewer offspring were produced per brood. Genetic diversity is thus likely to be involved in both pre- and post-copulatory processes, as well as to have an impact on fitness in this terrestrial isopod. This work improves our understanding of the genetic characteristics involved in mating behaviours, and provides insights on the mechanisms at the basis of genetic diversity maintenance.

Significance statement

Amongst the many parameters that can be taken into account during mate choice, genetic characteristics must not be neglected, as more and more studies highlight that what is best for one female may not be best for another. Here, we show that both heterozygosity and genetic similarity can influence paternity success in a gregarious terrestrial isopod. This could have strong implications in terms of fitness as a high genetic similarity has a negative impact on offspring number in this species. This work reflects the growing interest for genetic variables, and is positioned at the interface between molecular biology and behavioural ecology.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Daniel Guyonnet for the technical assistance in genotyping the animals. Doctoral researches of S. Durand were funded by the Région Nouvelle-Aquitaine, previously Région Poitou-Charentes. The funding is partly granted by the following 2015–2020 programs: the State-Region Planning Contracts (CPER) and the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER). A. Cohas is supported by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche (Project ANR-13-JSV7-0005). This work was supported by the French Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and the French Ministère de l’Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche.

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  1. Laboratoire Ecologie et Biologie des Interactions, Equipe Ecologie, Evolution, Symbiose, UMR CNRS 7267, Université de Poitiers, F-86073, Poitiers, France

    Sylvine Durand, Christine Braquart-Varnier & Sophie Beltran-Bech

  2. Université de Lyon F-69000, Lyon; Université Lyon 1; CNRS, UMR 5558, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, F-69622, Villeurbanne, France

    Aurélie Cohas

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  1. Sylvine Durand
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Correspondence to Sylvine Durand.

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Communicated by N. Wedell

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Durand, S., Cohas, A., Braquart-Varnier, C. et al. Paternity success depends on male genetic characteristics in the terrestrial isopod Armadillidium vulgare . Behav Ecol Sociobiol 71, 90 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-017-2317-1

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