Data from: Male medaka continue to mate with females despite sperm depletion
Data files
Dec 18, 2024 version files 18.88 KB
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README.md
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Sperm_depletion_Medaka_Dataset.csv
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Abstract
In animals where males engage in multiple matings, sperm depletion can substantially reduce the reproductive success of both sexes. However, little is known about how successive matings affect sperm depletion, fertilisation rates, and mating behaviour. Here, we investigated this phenomenon under laboratory conditions. Medaka (Oryzias latipes), an externally fertilising fish, is an ideal model to test predictions of sperm depletion because there are established methods to observe its mating and count sperm. Medaka males mated with multiple females (19 per day, on average; range, 4–27), experiencing significant sperm depletion, with sperm release declining markedly after the first few matings, reaching only 0.5–6.3% by the last mating of the day. Fertilisation rates decreased, particularly after approximately 10 consecutive matings, although there was some recovery in the next-day’s matings. The decline in courtship effort and mating duration probably resulted from the males becoming increasingly fatigued. Despite the reduced sperm availability, females did not adjust their clutch size as a counterstrategy. These results suggest substantial reproductive costs for males and the potential for sexual conflict owing to limited sperm availability. For species with frequent successive mating, these findings highlight the need to reconsider reproductive strategies and their impact on sexual selection.
README: Data from: Male medaka continue to mate with females despite sperm depletion
https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.h18931zvs
Data on male medaka (Oryzias latipes) reproductive limits, examining mating behavior until exhaustion by presenting fertile females. The experiment used medaka (himedaka) maintained at Osaka Metropolitan University, Japan.
Contact Yuki Kondo (youkukondou@gmail.com) with any questions. This manuscript has been accepted for publication (11/26/2024).
variables | units | description |
---|---|---|
No | number | Line number. |
Date | number | Experiment day. |
Male ID | categorical | Male experimental ID. |
Female ID | categorical | Female experimental ID. The next day's spawning behaviour is described as ‘Next day’. |
Number of mating | number | The number of times the male has laid eggs. The next day's spawning behaviour is described as ‘Next day’. |
Male mass (g) | g | Body mass of male. |
Standard length of male (mm) | mm | Standard length of male. |
Female mass (g) | g | Body mass of female. |
Standard length of female (mm) | mm | Standard length of female. |
Number of spawned eggs | number | Number of eggs spawned by the female during spawning behaviour. |
Number of fertilised eggs | number | Number of eggs confirmed to have been fertilised under a microscope. |
Number of sperm counted | number | The number of sperm counted under a microscope. |
Number of sperm released | number | The number of sperm released, estimated from the number of sperm counted under a microscope. |
Mating latency (s) | s | Time until the start of spawning behaviour. |
Mating duration (s) | s | Duration of spawning behaviour. |
Total time of following (s) | s | Time when ‘following’, a male courtship behaviour, was observed. |
Number of quick circle | number | Number of times the male courtship behaviour ‘quick circle’ was observed. |
The number of eggs remaining in the ovaries | presence (1) or absence (0) | Whether or not there were any residual eggs in the dissected ovaries. 1 if there were, 0 if there were not, and n/a if they were not dissected. |