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Populations of Pecos pupfish (Cyprinodon pecosensis) differ in their susceptibility to hybridization with sheepshead minnow (C. variegatus)

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Abstract

The importance of sexual selection in hybridization between species that evolved in allopatry is poorly understood. Even less is known about differences between populations in their resistance or susceptibility to genetic introgression with a congener. Here we examine behavioral differences between populations of the native Pecos pupfish (Cyprinodon pecosensis) and their potential effects in facilitating or retarding hybridization with an introduced congener, the sheepshead minnow (C. variegatus). We quantified competitive interactions, establishment of territories, and mating success of several naturally occurring C. pecosensis populations and an artificially created laboratory population (control) against C. variegatus. Experiments were conducted in large outdoor tanks during the summer months when high temperatures favor breeding activity in pupfish. C. pecosensis populations differed in agonistic behavior, territoriality, and in mating success when competing against C. variegatus. Differences in the competitive ability of males from different C. pecosensis populations suggest that the rate of introgression with C. variegatus may vary, depending on the population of C. pecosensis it comes in contact with. Our results suggest that large, stable C. pecosensis populations may be relatively resistant to hybridization with C. variegatus. Interpopulation variation in male behavior, shaped by sexual selection, may be important in determining the incidence and rate of hybridization between the two congeners. Experimental studies are a powerful tool in elucidating behavioral processes, such as the action of intrasexual selection, that facilitate or retard the coalescence of lineages through initial hybridization and subsequent genetic introgression after secondary contact between allopatric species.

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Acknowledgements

We thank J.H. Brown, D. Schluter, T. Turner, and the Kodric-Brown laboratory group for providing valuable suggestions and comments on the manuscript. P. Klerks provided C. variegatus for this study. T. Angón, S. Cain, S. Lindauer and C. Sandoval assisted with the experiments. The study was funded by an NSF grant No. IBN-9806483 (A.K.-B.), Share with Wildlife fund (N.M. Game and Fish) and Graduate and Biology Research Allocation Committees of the University of New Mexico (J.A.R.). J.A.R. was supported by a STAR fellowship from the US Environmental Protection agency. The experiments conducted during the course of this study comply with the rules and regulations of the Animal Care and Use Committee of the University of New Mexico (permit No. 97001) and the laws of the country in which they were performed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UNM Biology Department, MSC03 2020, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131–0001, USA

    Astrid Kodric-Brown

  2. Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology Department, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616–8751, USA

    Jonathan A. Rosenfield

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  1. Astrid Kodric-Brown
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  2. Jonathan A. Rosenfield
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Correspondence to Astrid Kodric-Brown.

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Communicated by M. Abrahams

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Kodric-Brown, A., Rosenfield, J.A. Populations of Pecos pupfish (Cyprinodon pecosensis) differ in their susceptibility to hybridization with sheepshead minnow (C. variegatus). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 56, 116–123 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-004-0761-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-004-0761-1

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