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Effects of polygamy on the activity/rest rhythm of male fruit flies Drosophila melanogaster

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Abstract

Although polygamy is common in insects, its extent varies enormously among natural populations. Mating systems influence the evolution of reproductive traits and the difference in extent of polygamy between males and females may be a key factor in determining traits which come under the influence of sexual selection. Fruit flies Drosophila melanogaster are promiscuous as both males and females mate with multiple partners. Mating has severe consequences on the physiology and behaviour of flies, and it affects their activity/rest rhythm in a sex-specific manner. In this study, we attempted to discern the effects of mating with multiple partners as opposed to a single partner, or of remaining unmated, on the activity/rest rhythm of flies under cyclic semi-natural (SN) and constant dark (DD) conditions. The results revealed that while evening activity of mated flies was significantly reduced compared to virgins, polygamous males showed a more severe reduction compared to monogamous males. In contrast, though mated females showed reduction in evening activity compared to virgins, activity levels were not different between polygamous and monogamous females. Although there was no detectable effect of mating on clock period, power of the activity/rest rhythm was significantly reduced in mated females with no difference seen between polygamous and monogamous individuals. These results suggest that courtship motivation, represented by evening activity, is successively reduced in males due to mating with one or more partners, while in females, it does not depend on the number of mating partners. Based on these results we conclude that polygamy affects the activity/rest rhythm of fruit flies D. melanogaster in a sex-dependent manner.

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Acknowledgements

VRV thanks Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research for a visiting fellowship. VV thanks Council of Scientific and Industrial Research for research fellowship. This work was funded by the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore.

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The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chronobiology Laboratory, Evolutionary and Organismal Biology Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore, 560064, Karnataka, India

    Vivek Rohidas Vartak, Vishwanath Varma & Vijay Kumar Sharma

  2. Khar Land Research Station, Panvel, 410206, Maharashtra, India

    Vivek Rohidas Vartak

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  1. Vivek Rohidas Vartak
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  2. Vishwanath Varma
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  3. Vijay Kumar Sharma
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Correspondence to Vijay Kumar Sharma.

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Communicated by: Sven Thatje

V. R. Vartak and V. Varma are authors with equal contribution.

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Vartak, V.R., Varma, V. & Sharma, V.K. Effects of polygamy on the activity/rest rhythm of male fruit flies Drosophila melanogaster . Sci Nat 102, 3 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-014-1252-5

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