Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Measuring polyandry in wild populations: a case study using promiscuous crickets.

Amanda Bretman1, Tom Tregenza

  • 1Ecology and Evolution Group, School of Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK. A.J.Bretman@exeter.ac.uk

Molecular Ecology
|May 25, 2005
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Testing for pre- and post-copulatory inbreeding avoidance in the flour beetle Tribolium castaneum.

PloS one·2026
Same author

A career in pursuit of the origin of species: celebrating Roger Butlin's contributions to the advancement of knowledge and growth of our scientific community.

Journal of evolutionary biology·2026
Same author

Wild crickets can adjust escaping speed under varying predation cues.

Behavioral ecology : official journal of the International Society for Behavioral Ecology·2026
Same author

Evidence for chronotypes and associations with fitness-related traits in a wild insect.

Proceedings. Biological sciences·2026
Same author

Impacts of parental age and inbreeding on fitness in a wild insect.

PLoS biology·2026
Same author

Climate change: temperature rises and mate choice in insects.

Current opinion in insect science·2026
Same journal

Isolation and Connectivity: Population Structure of an Ectomycorrhizal Truffle in the Fragmented Mountain Landscape of the Madrean Sky Island Archipelago.

Molecular ecology·2026
Same journal

Refugia, but Not for Everyone: Genetic Structure Differentiates Shallow and Mesophotic Populations of the Brooder Sponge Ircinia variabilis.

Molecular ecology·2026
Same journal

Leafcutter Ant Farmers Prevent Loss of Edible Symbiotic Structures by Maintaining Allelic Diversity in Their Multinucleate Fungal Crop.

Molecular ecology·2026
Same journal

Resolving Emergent Patterns in Community Genetics With Environmental DNA.

Molecular ecology·2026
Same journal

Genomic Offsets Predict Survival With Low Accuracy in a Marine Common Garden.

Molecular ecology·2026
Same journal

Differential Immune Responses Correlate With Chytridiomycosis Severity in Italian Crested Newts.

Molecular ecology·2026
See all related articles

Field crickets exhibit high levels of polyandry, with most females mating with multiple males. This study reveals that females mate with more partners than are required to sire their offspring, impacting sexual selection.

Area of Science:

  • Behavioral Ecology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Mating rates are crucial for understanding sexual selection, sexual conflict, speciation, and genetic diversity.
  • Investigating natural mating rates offers insights into female mating behavior drivers.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the extent of polyandry in a Spanish field cricket (Gryllus bimaculatus) population.
  • To compare methods for inferring paternity and mating partners.
  • To develop a novel probabilistic technique for estimating mates using stored sperm.

Main Methods:

  • Microsatellite genotyping of offspring from wild-caught gravid females to determine the number of sires.
  • Microsatellite genotyping of sperm stored in female spermathecae to estimate the number of mating partners.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Comparison of existing and novel probabilistic methods for inferring male reproductive contributions.

    • Main Results:

    • Using conservative methods, 71% of females produced offspring sired by at least two males (mean of 2.4 fathers per clutch).
    • All females had mated with at least two males, with minimum mean estimates ranging from 2.7 to 5.1 mates per female.
    • The study confirmed high levels of polyandry in wild field crickets.

    Conclusions:

    • Gryllus bimaculatus females engage in extensive polyandry in the wild.
    • Females appear to mate with more males than are genetically necessary to fertilize their eggs.
    • High polyandry levels have significant implications for sexual selection and conflict dynamics.