Wingless Firefly Females Less Likely to Get Nuptial Gift From Males
Posted on May 28, 2011
Male fireflies sometimes give a nuptial gift -- sperm wrapped in a nutritious, high-protein package -- to females during mating. This gift enables the females to produce more eggs. There are over 2,000 species of fireflies worldwide. In some species of fireflies the females do not fly. Biologists at Tufts University found that the species of wingless females tend to get less nuptial gifts from their partners than their winged cousins. The wingless females tend not to need the gifts as much because they use less energy by not flying.
"These females are definitely committed to being 'stay-at-home-moms' because they're basically a huge sac of eggs," said Sara Lewis, professor of biology at Tufts and co-author of the paper. The flightless females lack wings are enable to devote all their energy to churning out eggs. This gives them an advantage over their winged cousins.
Working with firefly experts from around the world, the Tufts biologists studied the reproductive structures of 32 different species. They confirmed that in those with flying females, males did bestow nuptial gifts. In most species with flightless females, however, the males did not give gifts. The study was published in the April 2011 issue of the journal Evolution.
Image: Tufts University