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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 11, 2026

Assessing Differences in Sperm Competitive Ability in Drosophila

Assessing Differences in Sperm Competitive Ability in Drosophila

Published on: August 22, 2013

Quantitative genetic correlation between trait and preference supports a sexually selected sperm process.

Leigh W Simmons¹, Janne S Kotiaho

¹Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Animal Biology (M092), University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia. lsimmons@cyllene.uwa.edu.au

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

|October 9, 2007

Summary

Sperm evolution is driven by sexual selection and female reproductive tract morphology. In dung beetles, female spermatheca size influences sperm length, supporting coevolutionary processes in sperm evolution.

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Area of Science:

Evolutionary biology
Sexual selection
Quantitative genetics

Background:

Sperm exhibit rapid evolution, often linked to sexual selection and sperm competition.
Comparative studies suggest male-female coevolution in sperm length and female reproductive tract morphology.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the quantitative genetic basis of sperm length evolution in relation to female reproductive traits.
To test hypotheses of male-female coevolution in sperm morphology and female reproductive anatomy.

Main Methods:

Studied the dung beetle Onthophagus taurus.
Assessed additive genetic variation and heritability for spermatheca size.
Examined genetic covariance between spermatheca size and sperm length.

Main Results:

Identified significant additive genetic variation and heritability for female spermatheca size.
Found genetic covariance between spermatheca size and sperm length.
Demonstrated that large spermathecae select for shorter sperm in Onthophagus taurus.

Conclusions:

Quantitative genetic data support a sexually selected sperm process driving sperm morphology divergence.
Male-female coevolution, similar to precopulatory sexual selection, shapes sperm evolution.
Female reproductive tract morphology plays a crucial role in the evolution of sperm traits.