{"title":"Interspecies reproductive interactions and the evolution of plant and animal mating systems. A commentary on Clo et al. (2025).","authors":"Asher D Cutter","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf048","DOIUrl":"10.1093/jeb/voaf048","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The selective forces that influence mating-system evolution are most often considered using a within-species context. Reproductive interactions, however, also can involve related species and can influence the evolutionary trajectories of diverse mating-related traits and the genetic composition of interacting species. The ecological conditions associated with selection for reproductive assurance in plants and animals also are conditions that are likely to result in interspecies reproductive interactions. In this commentary, I explore a variety of factors that link mating-system evolution and interspecies reproductive interactions, including genetic introgression by hybridization, extinction-by-fusion (\"genetic swamping\"), evolutionary rescue, pre-zygotic reproductive interference between species, and persistent incomplete assortative mating between species and in hybrid zones. A particular focus aims to make the case that reproductive interference holds the potential to foster the evolution of selfing syndrome traits as a form of reproductive character displacement rather than purely as adaptations for reproductive assurance per se. Although interactions among individuals within-species remain central to understanding mating-system evolution, a variety of interspecific factors are also likely to contribute to realized patterns of mating in both plant and animal taxa, especially under conditions of conspecific mate limitation that impose selection for reproductive assurance.</p>","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":"38 6","pages":"696-701"},"PeriodicalIF":2.3,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144683461","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Mating-system evolution in predominantly haploid species: a commentary on Clo et al. (2025).","authors":"Bart Nieuwenhuis, Stuart F McDaniel","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf055","DOIUrl":"10.1093/jeb/voaf055","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":" ","pages":"702-707"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144042203","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Evidence for the independent evolution of sex-related signals in manakins.","authors":"Natália S Porzio, Paulo G Mota","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf035","DOIUrl":"10.1093/jeb/voaf035","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In birds, colouration, dance, and song evolved into great elaboration. Males most frequently produce these signals to attract females, and their evolution is undoubtedly affected by natural and sexual selection. Song, dance, and colouration are attributes commonly involved in mate attraction and are generally considered targets of sexual selection. In many species, multiple signalling is present, often involving different signal modalities, but we still know very little about how they interact during the evolution of different species. Here, we analyzed manakin species, which present impressive displays, vibrant colouration, and simple songs, to determine if these multiple signals co-evolved or if they evolved independently, which in the latter case would mean that different signal types will convey different messages. Moreover, we attempted to determine which environmental and morphological factors were related to the evolution of each signal. We found that song, dance, and colour complexity evolved independently in manakins. The only exception was for dance complexity, which is negatively associated with plumage brilliance. We also found that dances were more complex in smaller species and habitats with less precipitation and appeared not to be related to the intensity of sexual selection. Differently, colour complexity evolution was only associated with sexual selection. Colour brightness was related to habitat cover and precipitation. Song complexity was unrelated to any of the predictors tested here. Our results indicate that colour, dance, and song evolved in an unrelated way, implying that they most likely have different signalling roles in the mating behaviour of these species, and they were revealed to be affected by different natural and sexual selection factors throughout their evolution.</p>","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":" ","pages":"716-727"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144030086","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nadine Tardent, Tamara Schlegel, Jukka Jokela, Hanna Hartikainen
{"title":"Positive and negative frequency-dependent parasitism in naturally co-occurring diploid sexual and polyploid asexual Lumbriculus variegatus.","authors":"Nadine Tardent, Tamara Schlegel, Jukka Jokela, Hanna Hartikainen","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf046","DOIUrl":"10.1093/jeb/voaf046","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Polyploidization is an important evolutionary force. It drives sympatric speciation through reproductive isolation of different cytotypes, and often leads to loss of sexual reproduction in polyploid lineages. Polyploidization and asexuality can change how other species engage in ecological interactions with the polyploid lineage and may change coevolutionary dynamics. Here, we quantified the phenotypic divergence in the freshwater oligochaete worm Lumbriculus variegatus, the California blackworm, among its co-occurring sexual diploid (Lineage II) and asexual polyploid (Lineage I) lineages. We further investigated variation in parasite communities and infection prevalence among sympatric and allopatric diploid/polyploid populations. 10 out of 18 populations showed co-existence of both lineages, with 7 populations harbouring only the polyploid lineage. Both worm lineages hosted endoparasitic nematodes, an ectoparasitic rotifer, and one potentially symbiotic gut ciliate. The parasite community similarity and overlapping size range of diploid and polyploid worms points to the ecological similarity of the worm lineages, despite the substantial ploidy and reproductive strategy differentiation. Although parasite prevalence varied independently of worm lineage, the prevalence was associated with the frequency of local cytotypes. Specifically, the rotifer prevalence was highest on the rare local cytotype, and nematode prevalence was highest on the common local cytotype. These results suggest the presence of both positive and negative frequency-dependent parasitism, which may contribute to the co-existence in the L. variegatus species complex.</p>","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":" ","pages":"769-777"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144039897","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Is the study of mating system evolution comparable between plants and animals? A commentary on Clo et al., 2025.","authors":"Kimberly J Gilbert, Leo Zeitler","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf034","DOIUrl":"10.1093/jeb/voaf034","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":" ","pages":"693-695"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144286991","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Are studies of mating systems too inbred? A commentary on Clo et al. (2025).","authors":"David M Shuker, Ellie B W Smith","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf060","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeb/voaf060","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":"38 6","pages":"712-715"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144683460","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Josselin Clo, Diala Abu Awad, Trine Bilde, Greta Bocedi, Christoph R Haag, John Pannell, Matthew Hartfield
{"title":"Perspectives on mating-system evolution: comparing concepts in plants and animals.","authors":"Josselin Clo, Diala Abu Awad, Trine Bilde, Greta Bocedi, Christoph R Haag, John Pannell, Matthew Hartfield","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf009","DOIUrl":"10.1093/jeb/voaf009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The study of mating systems, defined as the distribution of who mates with whom and how often in a sexually reproducing population, forms a core pillar of evolution research due to their effects on many evolutionary phenomena. Historically, the \"mating system\" has either been used to refer to the rate of self-fertilization or to the formation of mating pairs between individuals of distinct sexes. Consequently, these two types of mating systems have tended to be studied separately rather than jointly. This separation often means that mating systems are not necessarily researched in a coherent manner that might apply to different types of organisms (e.g., plants versus animals, or hermaphrodites versus dioecious species), even if similar mechanisms may drive the evolution of self-fertilization and mating pair formation. Here, we review the evolution of both plant and animal mating systems, highlighting where similar concepts underlie both these fields and also where differing mechanisms are at play. We particularly focus on the effects of inbreeding, but also discuss the influence of spatial dynamics on mating-system evolution. We end with a synthesis of these different ideas and propose ideas for which concepts can be considered together to move towards a more cohesive approach to studying mating-system evolution.</p>","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":" ","pages":"673-692"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143558671","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A single episode of sexual reproduction can produce large variation in population growth rates under dual stressors.","authors":"Yawako W Kawaguchi, Masato Yamamichi","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf041","DOIUrl":"10.1093/jeb/voaf041","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Sexual reproduction has been a central topic in evolutionary biology because of its many costs: why have organisms evolved sexual reproduction despite the many costs of sex? To answer the question, researchers have conducted laboratory experiments to measure population growth rates with and without sexual reproduction under a stressor. Here we show that a single episode of sexual reproduction can produce a large amount of variation in population growth rates under dual stressors by laboratory experiments of a green alga, Closterium peracerosum-strigosum-littorale complex. We observed the population dynamics of the alga under dual stressors and confirmed that high salinity and low pH decreased growth rates. By comparing parental and their hybrid F1 populations, we observed larger variations in growth rates of F1 populations (i.e., transgressive segregation) when pH was low. Interestingly, even when parental populations had negative growth rates, some F1 populations showed positive growth rates in severe environmental conditions due to the large variation in population growth. By utilizing the recently obtained genomic information of the alga, we conducted a gene ontology enrichment analysis and found that genes with copy number variations between parental strains were more frequently associated with pH stress-related terms than salt stress-related terms. Our results suggest that recombination and variation in the number of gene copies might produce large genetic variation in the F1 generation. This will be an important step toward a better understanding of evolution of sex and evolutionary rescue where rapid contemporary evolution prevents population extinction in changing environments.</p>","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":" ","pages":"778-785"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144036903","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Complex genetic determinism of male-fertility restoration in the gynodioecious snail Physa acuta.","authors":"Elpida Skarlou, Fanny Laugier, Kévin Béthune, Timothée Chenin, Jean-Marc Donnay, Céline Froissard, Patrice David","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf093","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeb/voaf093","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Male fertility in plants is often controlled by the interaction between mitochondrial and nuclear genes. Some mitotypes confer cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS), making the individual male-sterile, unless the nuclear background contains alleles called restorers, that suppress the effects of CMS and restore the hermaphroditic phenotype. Restorers in cultivated crops are often alleles with strong and dominant effect, but in wild plants, data often suggest more complex systems. Here, we characterized the inheritance and specificity of restoration in a new CMS model, the freshwater snail Physa acuta. We explored two different populations (i) a naive population i.e., without contact with CMS in the past 80 generations, (ii) a non-naive population, where CMS is present and largely restored. Although we found male fertility of individuals with CMS mitogenomes to be heritable in both contexts, this genetic determinism was of a different nature depending on population history. In naive populations not coevolved with CMS the background variation may include alleles that happen to act as weak quantitative modifiers of the penetrance of CMS, while in populations coevolved with CMS, selection may have favored, when such variants were available, the emergence of strong alleles with a dominant effect.</p>","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-07-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144651021","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Asymmetric barriers to gene flow can maintain sex role differentiation upon secondary contact.","authors":"Elijah Reyes, Hope Klug, Leithen K M'Gonigle","doi":"10.1093/jeb/voaf026","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/jeb/voaf026","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Acquiring a mate and providing parental care require substantial time and energy. Evolution typically favours allocating more effort to one of these actions at the expense of the other. Differences between the sexes in such allocation are common, with males investing more heavily in mate acquisition and females investing more heavily in parental care in systems with conventional sex roles and the converse pattern in sex-role-reversed systems. If populations diverge in sex roles, pre- or postmating incompatibilities may arise. For example, if different sexes provide parental care in different populations, interpopulation mating combinations may produce broods that receive little to no care, which could lead to low offspring survival. Here, we consider a two-patch model to ask whether variation in sex roles can persist upon secondary contact in populations that have diverged. We find that populations with sexes that are differently specialized in parental care versus sexual selection can, indeed, remain differentiated after secondary contact and, further, that the mechanism maintaining differentiation depends on the direction of dispersal. Importantly, however, whether populations remain diverged depends on both the model of mate acquisition and the resultant population dynamics (density dependence, mating rate, population size). These findings have potential implications for incipient speciation and the evolution of reproductive barriers.</p>","PeriodicalId":50198,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Evolutionary Biology","volume":"38 5","pages":"594-605"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144103022","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}