Revisiting the definition of “sperm quality”: selection on sperm length depends on a male’s attractiveness and dominance in wild collared flycatchers

• Dominance over rivals, sexual attractiveness and highly efficient ejaculates are all known to be essential for male fertilization success but the theories of how primary and secondary sexual characters may co-evolve largely remain to be tested. Here, we measure sperm morphology in 131 wild-caught collared flycatchers over a four-year period and investigate the links between male display traits, sperm characteristics and siring success among 425 offspring sired by 71 of these males. We show that the optimal sperm length to attain high relative fertilization success depends on the size of a male’s secondary sexual character. Males with small ornaments sire more offspring in their own nest when they produce long sperm and vice-versa. These results are not compatible with theories based on simple relationships between secondary sexual traits and sperm “quality” but imply that the optimal fertilization strategy (and hence optimal sperm traits) differ between males even in a predominantly socially monogamous population with moderate extra-pair copulation rates. Thus, a better knowledge of the complex chain of behavioural interactions between the sexes and their gametes is needed for a complete understanding of how sexual selection operates in nature.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Biologi -- Evolutionsbiologi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Biological Sciences -- Evolutionary Biology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

sperm morphology

secondary sexual character

mating strategy

fertilization success

Ficedula flycatcher

extra-pair copulation

Publication and Content Type

vet (subject category)

ovr (subject category)