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Is variation in female aggressiveness across Drosophila species associated with reproductive potential?

Bath, Eleanor1; Gleason, Jennifer2

Research facility: University of Oxford
Published Mar 11, 2025 on Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.zpc866tfp

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Abstract

Aggression is a key determinant of fitness in many species, mediating access to mates, food, and breeding sites. Variation in intrasexual aggression across species is likely driven by variation in resource availability and distribution. While males primarily compete over access to mates, females are likely to compete over resources to maximize offspring quantity and/or quality, such as food or breeding sites. To date, however, most studies have focused on male aggression, and we know little about drivers of female aggression across species. To investigate potential reproductive drivers of female aggression, we tested the relationship between three reproductive traits and aggression in eight Drosophila species. Using machine learning classifiers developed for D. melanogaster, we quantified aggressive behaviours displayed in the presence of yeast for mated and unmated females. We found that female aggression was correlated with ovariole number across species, suggesting that females that lay more eggs are more aggressive. A need for resources for egg production or oviposition sites may therefore be drivers of female aggression, though other potential hypotheses are discussed.