Male mate preferences have been demonstrated across a range of species, including the Malaysian stalk-eyed fly, Teleopsis dalmanni. This species is subject to SR, an X-linked male meiotic driver, that causes the dysfunction of Y-sperm and the production of all-female broods. While there has been work considering female avoidance of meiotic drive males, the mating decisions of drive-bearing males have not been considered previously. Drive males may be less able to bear the cost of choice as SR is associated with a low frequency inversion that causes reduced organismal fitness. Drive males may also experience weaker selection for preference maintenance if they are avoided by females. Using binary choice trials, across two experiments, we confirmed male preference for large (fecund) females but found no evidence that the strength of male preference differs between drive and standard males. We showed that large eyespan males displayed strong preference for large females while small eyespan males showed no preference. Taken together, these results suggest that even though meiotic drive is associated with lower genetic quality it does not directly interfere with mate preference among available females. However, as drive males tend to have smaller eyespan (albeit only ~5% on average), this will to a minor extent weaken their strength of preference.
Male preference experiment 1 data
Male preference assay data from the first experiment where eyespan was constrained to a narrow range. Column A, "Male.ID" refers to a unique experiment-specific fly ID. Column B, "Date", refers to the date the assay was carried out. Columns C-L, refer to the mating decision of each male in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd matings, etc. If a male mated with the large female, an L is recorded. If the male mated with the small female, an S is recorded. If a male did not achieve that mating, he is given an NA for that column. Column M, "Total.large" refers to the total number of matings with the large female that male was able to achieve. Column N, "Total.small", refers to the total number of matings with the small female that male was able to achieve. Column O, "Total.matings" is the sum of the previous two columns. Column P, "Preference" is a male's preference metric, calculated as given in the manuscript. Column Q, "Genotype" refers to the genotype of that male. A small number of males were unable to be successfully genotyped, and these are denoted NA in this column. Columns R-X are a male's mating-specific preference value for the 1st, 2nd,...7th matings. 1 indicates mating with a large female, and -1 indicates mating with a small female.
Male choice experiment 1 data.csv
Male preference experiment 2 data
Data from male mate preference assays in the second experiment where eyespan was allowed to vary across its natural range. Column A, "Male.ID" refers to an experiment-specific fly ID. Column B, "Genotype" refers to the genotype of that male. A small number of individuals were unable to be successfully genotyped and are denoted NA in this column. Column C, "Date" refers to the date of the male mate preference assay for that male. Columns D-M refer to the female a male chose to mate with in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. matings. If a male chose the large female, a 2 is recorded. If the male chose the small female, a 1 is recorded. If a male failed to achieve that mating, an NA is recorded. Columns N and O give a male's eyespan and thorax length measurements respectively. Column P refers to the total number of matings male obtained. Column Q refers to the number of matings a male obtained with the large female. Column R refers to the number of matings a male obtained with the small female. Column S, "Pref" gives a male's preference metric, as calculated in the manuscript. Columns T-Z give a male's preference in the 1st, 2nd...7th matings. If a male mated with the large female, a 1 is recorded. If the male mated with the small female, a -1 is recorded.
Male choice experiment 2 data.csv