0000000001308940
AUTHOR
Kirsten Klappert
Two distinct genomic regions, harbouring the period and fruitless genes, affect male courtship song in Drosophila montana
Acoustic signals often have a significant role in pair formation and in species recognition. Determining the genetic basis of signal divergence will help to understand signal evolution by sexual selection and its role in the speciation process. An earlier study investigated quantitative trait locus for male courtship song carrier frequency (FRE) in Drosophila montana using microsatellite markers. We refined this study by adding to the linkage map markers for 10 candidate genes known to affect song production in Drosophila melanogaster. We also extended the analyses to additional song characters (pulse train length (PTL), pulse number (PN), interpulse interval, pulse length (PL) and cycle nu…
MALE COURTSHIP SONG AND FEMALE PREFERENCE VARIATION BETWEEN PHYLOGEOGRAPHICALLY DISTINCT POPULATIONS OF DROSOPHILA MONTANA
Understanding the variation within and between populations in important male mating traits and female preferences is crucial to theories concerning the origin of sexual isolation by coevolution or other processes. There have been surprisingly few studies on the extent of variation and covariation within and between populations, especially where the evolutionary relationships between populations are understood. Here we examine variation in female preferences and a sexually selected male song trait, the carrier frequency of the song, within and between populations from different phylogeographic clusters of Drosophila montana. Song is obligatory for successful mating in this species, and both …
A microsatellite linkage map forDrosophila montanashows large variation in recombination rates, and a courtship song trait maps to an area of low recombination
Current advances in genetic analysis are opening up our knowledge of the genetics of species differences, but challenges remain, particularly for out-bred natural populations. We constructed a microsatellite-based linkage map for two out-bred lines of Drosophila montana derived from divergent populations by taking advantage of the Drosophila virilis genome and available cytological maps of both species. Although the placement of markers was quite consistent with cytological predictions, the map indicated large heterogeneity in recombination rates along chromosomes. We also performed a quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis on a courtship song character (carrier frequency), which differs be…
Factors Affecting Male Song Evolution in Drosophila montana
D. montana (a species of the D. virilis group) has spread over the northern hemisphere, populations from different areas showing both genetic and phenotypic divergence. The males of this species produce an elaborate courtship song, which plays a major role both in species recognition and in intraspecific mate choice. The genetic architecture and physical constraints, as well as the importance of the signal for species recognition, set boundaries within which this signal can vary. Within these limits, courtship song parameters may change, depending on the males' physical condition and on the environment they inhabit. Females are likely to affect song evolution by exerting directional selecti…
Sexual conflict over the duration of copulation in Drosophila montana: why is longer better?
Background Conflicts of interest between the sexes are increasingly recognized as an engine driving the (co-)evolution of reproductive traits. The reproductive behaviour of Drosophila montana suggests the occurrence of sexual conflict over the duration of copulation. During the last stages of copulation, females vigorously attempt to dislodge the mounting male, while males struggle to maintain genital contact and often successfully extend copulations far beyond the females' preferred duration. Results By preventing female resistance, we show that females make a substantial contribution towards shortening copulations. We staged matings under different sex ratio conditions, and provide eviden…
Data from: Two distinct genomic regions, harbouring the period and fruitless genes, affect male courtship song in Drosophila montana
Acoustic signals often play a significant role in pair formation and in species recognition. Determining the genetic basis of signal divergence will help to understand signal evolution by sexual selection and its role in the speciation process. An earlier study investigated QTL for male courtship song carrier frequency in Drosophila montana using microsatellite markers. We refined this study by adding to the linkage map markers for ten candidate genes known to affect song production in D. melanogaster. We also extended the analyses to additional song characters (pulse train length, pulse number, interpulse interval, pulse length and cycle number). Our results indicate that loci in two diffe…