10.5061/DRYAD.MQ725
Ewers-Saucedo, Christine
University of Georgia
Hope, Neva B.
University of Georgia
Wares, John P.
University of Georgia
Ewers, Christine
University of Georgia
Data from: The unexpected mating system of the androdioecious barnacle
Chelonibia testudinaria (Linnaeus, 1758)
Dryad
dataset
2016
Crustaceans
Life History Evolution
Chelonibia testudinaria
Comparative Biology
2016-02-23T13:45:21Z
2016-02-23T13:45:21Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.13593
8020 bytes
1
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Androdioecy was first described by Darwin in his seminal work on barnacle
diversity; he identified males and hermaphrodites in the same reproductive
population. Today, we realize that many androdioecious plants and animals
share astonishing similarities, particularly with regard to their
evolutionary history and mating system. Notably, these species were
ancestrally dioecious, and their mating system has the following
characteristics: hermaphrodites self-fertilize frequently, males are more
successful in large mating groups, and males have a mating advantage. A
male mating advantage makes androdioecy more likely to persist over
evolutionary times. Androdioecious barnacles, however, appear to persist
as an outlier with a different evolutionary trajectory: they originate
from hermaphroditic species. Although sexual systems of androdioecious
barnacles are known, no information on the mating system of androdioecious
barnacles is available. This study assessed the mating system of the
androdioecious barnacle Chelonibia testudinaria. In contrast to other
androdioecious species, C. testudinaria does not self-fertilize, males do
not have a mating advantage over hermaphrodites, and the average mating
group is quite small, averaging only three individuals. Mating success is
increased by proximity to the mate and penis length. Taken together, the
mating system of C. testudinaria is unusual in comparison with other
androdioecious plants and animals, and the lack of a male mating advantage
suggests that the mating system alone does not provide an explanation for
the maintenance of androdioecy in this species. Instead, we propose that
sex-specific life history equalizes male and hermaphroditic overall
fitness.
Information to potential mating groups used to characterize mating system
of C. testudinariaTab-delimited file. Column headers are described and
explained in the ReadMe file.DataDryad_Table.csv
United States