How does Temperature Variability Influence Reproductive Success and Decision-making in a Wing-dimorphic Cricket?
Poster Number
11C
Format
Poster Presentation
Faculty Mentor Name
Zachary Stahlschmidt
Faculty Mentor Department
Biological Sciences
Graduate Student Mentor Name
Jordan Glass
Graduate Student Mentor Department
Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Artist Statement
Reproduction is central to fitness as it is integral, to the perpetuation of species. Selection acts upon variation in reproductive success among individuals, and this variation is influenced by abiotic and biotic factors (e.g. temperature and body size respectively). However, we have a limited understanding of how these factors interact to influence lifetime reproductive success. For example, females may be more likely to engage in reproductive bet-hedging (e.g., fertilizing their eggs with sperm from smaller, lower quality males) when the environment is variable. Thus I investigated the effects of temperature variability and morphology on lifetime reproduction in the female wing-dimorphic sand field cricket (Gryllus firmus), which exhibits a flight-fecundity trade-off. In early adulthood, short-winged (SW) G. firmus invest heavily into egg production at the expense of flight capability while long-winged (LW) G. firmus invest in flight capability (functional flight musculature) at the expense of egg production. In my experiment, newly molted SW and LW adults were individually housed with a 16:8 light:dark cycle, and ad libitum food and water. They were randomly assigned to either stable (constant 28ºC) or fluctuating (28±5ºC daily) temperature regimes throughout adulthood. At maturity, male-female mating pairs were randomly assigned. Thereafter, males were removed, and rate of oviposition (laying of fertilized eggs) was determined twice weekly for three weeks. Females were then dissected to determine mating success and the number of retained (unfertilized) eggs, and morphological measurements associated with individual quality were determined for both sexes (i.e., body size, mass, and condition, and head width of males [a trait under sexual selection due to male-male combat]). My results will shed light on the relative impact of abiotic and biotic factors on lifetime reproductive success, as well as the potential interactive effects of these factors on this currency of natural selection.
Location
DeRosa University Center, Ballroom
Start Date
29-4-2017 10:00 AM
End Date
29-4-2017 12:00 PM
How does Temperature Variability Influence Reproductive Success and Decision-making in a Wing-dimorphic Cricket?
DeRosa University Center, Ballroom
Reproduction is central to fitness as it is integral, to the perpetuation of species. Selection acts upon variation in reproductive success among individuals, and this variation is influenced by abiotic and biotic factors (e.g. temperature and body size respectively). However, we have a limited understanding of how these factors interact to influence lifetime reproductive success. For example, females may be more likely to engage in reproductive bet-hedging (e.g., fertilizing their eggs with sperm from smaller, lower quality males) when the environment is variable. Thus I investigated the effects of temperature variability and morphology on lifetime reproduction in the female wing-dimorphic sand field cricket (Gryllus firmus), which exhibits a flight-fecundity trade-off. In early adulthood, short-winged (SW) G. firmus invest heavily into egg production at the expense of flight capability while long-winged (LW) G. firmus invest in flight capability (functional flight musculature) at the expense of egg production. In my experiment, newly molted SW and LW adults were individually housed with a 16:8 light:dark cycle, and ad libitum food and water. They were randomly assigned to either stable (constant 28ºC) or fluctuating (28±5ºC daily) temperature regimes throughout adulthood. At maturity, male-female mating pairs were randomly assigned. Thereafter, males were removed, and rate of oviposition (laying of fertilized eggs) was determined twice weekly for three weeks. Females were then dissected to determine mating success and the number of retained (unfertilized) eggs, and morphological measurements associated with individual quality were determined for both sexes (i.e., body size, mass, and condition, and head width of males [a trait under sexual selection due to male-male combat]). My results will shed light on the relative impact of abiotic and biotic factors on lifetime reproductive success, as well as the potential interactive effects of these factors on this currency of natural selection.