Work

Conservation of social effects (Ψ) between two species of Drosophila despite reversal of sexual dimorphism

Year: 2017

Type: article

Abstract: Indirect genetic effects (IGEs) describe the effect of the genes of social partners on the phenotype of a focal individual. Here, we measure indirect genetic effects using the “coefficient of interaction” (Ψ) to test whether Ψ evolved between Drosophila melanogaster and D. simulans. We compare Ψ for locomotion between ethanol and nonethanol environments in both species, but only D. melanogaster utilizes ethanol ecologically. We find that while sexual dimorphism for locomotion has been reversed in D. simulans, there has been no evolution of social effects between these two species. What did evolve was the interaction between genotype‐specific Ψ and the environment, as D. melanogaster varies unpredictably between environments and D. simulans does not. In this system, this suggests evolutionary lability of sexual dimorphism but a conservation of social effects, which brings forth interesting questions about the role of the social environment in sexual selection.

Source: Ecology and Evolution

DOI: 10.1002/ece3.3523

Authors: Sarah A. Signor, Mohammad Abbasi, Paul Marjoram, Sergey V. Nuzhdin

Institution: University of Southern California

Language: English

Topic: Animal Behavior and Reproduction

Subfield: Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,570

Funders: National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institute of General Medical Sciences