TY - JOUR
T1 - Love at first sniff
T2 - a spermatophore-associated pheromone mediates partner attraction in a collembolan species
AU - Zizzari, Z. Valentina
AU - Engl, Tobias
AU - Lorenz, Sybille
AU - van Straalen, Nico M.
AU - Ellers, Jacintha
AU - Groot, Astrid T.
PY - 2017/2/1
Y1 - 2017/2/1
N2 - Mate choice is essential in most animals, as a good choice of mating partner largely determines reproductive success. Much evidence shows that olfactory cues play an important role in mate choice. However, the integration of chemical, visual and acoustic cues, often used when both partners meet, makes it hard to test whether olfaction alone can mediate reproductive decisions. Interestingly, several invertebrates have adopted a mating system where males deposit their sperm (packed in spermatophores) in the environment for females to pick up with no visual contact between the sexes. In this case the male cue is conveyed by the spermatophore only. Earlier studies on a species with indirect sperm transfer, the soil arthropod Orchesella cincta, showed that, even in these animals, female choice exists. In this study, we tested whether chemical cues provided by the spermatophores mediate this female choice. Chemical analysis of spermatophore extracts revealed that (Z)-14-tricosenol is the main compound in the male spermatophores and this compound attracted females in olfactometer bioassays. Our finding suggests that (Z)-14-tricosenol is thus a pheromone component, which is sufficient for female attraction. This is the first report of a spermatophore-associated sex pheromone in a species performing indirect sperm transfer.
AB - Mate choice is essential in most animals, as a good choice of mating partner largely determines reproductive success. Much evidence shows that olfactory cues play an important role in mate choice. However, the integration of chemical, visual and acoustic cues, often used when both partners meet, makes it hard to test whether olfaction alone can mediate reproductive decisions. Interestingly, several invertebrates have adopted a mating system where males deposit their sperm (packed in spermatophores) in the environment for females to pick up with no visual contact between the sexes. In this case the male cue is conveyed by the spermatophore only. Earlier studies on a species with indirect sperm transfer, the soil arthropod Orchesella cincta, showed that, even in these animals, female choice exists. In this study, we tested whether chemical cues provided by the spermatophores mediate this female choice. Chemical analysis of spermatophore extracts revealed that (Z)-14-tricosenol is the main compound in the male spermatophores and this compound attracted females in olfactometer bioassays. Our finding suggests that (Z)-14-tricosenol is thus a pheromone component, which is sufficient for female attraction. This is the first report of a spermatophore-associated sex pheromone in a species performing indirect sperm transfer.
KW - indirect sperm transfer
KW - sex pheromone
KW - sexual chemical communication
KW - spermatophore
KW - springtails
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85010867730&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85010867730&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.12.015
DO - 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.12.015
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85010867730
VL - 124
SP - 221
EP - 227
JO - Animal Behaviour
JF - Animal Behaviour
SN - 0003-3472
ER -