Abstract
In the crustacean Branchipus schaefferi cercopods are brightly coloured caudal rami at the end of the abdomen. The specific life environment of B. schaefferi (highly turbid puddles) may suggest that besides their mechanical function, cercopods may also play an ornamental role to attract a potential mate. We performed standardized major axis regression analyses of cercopod length against body length to determine the allometry. Each allometric slope of cercopod was compared with the median of slopes of non-sexual body parts: eye diameter, epipodit, and antennulae lengths. We also examined the relative differences in cercopods colouration between males and females within a population. Cercopods scaled slightly more positively when compared to both median slope of non-sexual traits as well as to typically used slope value 1. The difference in cercopods colouration between the sexes showed a strong sexual dimorphism. Sexual dimorphism in colouration and slightly positive allometry of cercopods support the hypothesis that this organ might be under the sexual selection and function as an ornament advertising fitness of an individual or a signal of sexual maturity of a male in highly turbid water.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Abramoff M.D., Magalhaes P.J. & Ram S.J. 2004. Image processing with Image J. Biophotonics International 11 (7): 36–42.
Altincicek B., Kovacs J.L. & Gerardo N.M. 2012. Horizontally transferred fungal carotenoid genes in the two-spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae. Biol. Lett. 8 (2): 253–257. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2011.0704
Beladjal L. & Mertens J. 1999. Direct preservation in alcohol causes deformation of taxonomic key-characters in Anostraca (Crustacea). Int. Rev. Hydrobiol. 84 (1): 17–22. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/iroh.199900003
Beladjal L. & Mertens J. 2009. Diaspore dispersal of Anostraca by flying insects. J. Crustacean Biol. 29 (2): 266–268. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1651/08-3059R.1
Ben Naceur H., Ben Rejeb Jenhani A. & Romdhane M.S. 2012. Impacts of salinity, temperature and pH on the morphology of Artemia salina (Branchiopoda: Anostraca) from Tunisia. Zool. Stud. 51 (4): 453–462.
Bertin A. & Fairbairn D.J. 2007. The form of sexual selection on male genitalia cannot be inferred from within-population variance and allometry–a case study in Aquarius remigis. Evolution 61 (4): 825–837. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1558-5646.2007.00074.x
Bonduriansky R. 2007. Sexual selection and allometry: a critical reappraisal of the evidence and ideas. Evolution 61 (4): 838–849. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1558-5646.2007.00081.x
Bonduriansky R. & Day T. 2003. The evolution of static allome-try in sexually selected traits. Evolution 57 (11): 2450–2458. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1554/03-213
Brendonck L. 1995. An updated diagnosis of the branchiopo-did genera (Branchiopoda: Anostraca, Branchipodidae) with reflections on the genus concept by Dubois (1988) and the importance of genital morphology in anostracan taxonomy. Arch. Hydrobiol. Suppl. 107: 149–186.
Brendonck L. & Belk D. 1997. On potentials and relevance of the use of copulatory structures in anostracan taxonomy. Hydro-biologia 359 (1): 83–92. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003125812020
Daday de Deés E. 1910. Monographie systematique des Phylopodes Anostraces. Ann. Sci. Nat. Zool. 9, ser. 11, pp. 91–489.
Dararat W., Lomthaisong K. & Sanoamuang L.-O. 2012. Biochemical composition of three species of fairy shrimp (Branchiopoda: Anostraca) from Thailand. J. Crustacean Biol. 32 (1): 81–87 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/193724011X615352
Dumont H.J. & Negrea S. 2002. Introduction to the Class Branchiopoda. Guides to the Microinvertebrates of the Continental Waters of the World. Vol. 19, Backhuys Publishers, 398 pp. ISBN: 90-5782-112-5
Eberhard W.G. 2009. Static allometry and animal genitalia. Evolution 63 (1): 48–66. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1558-5646.2008.00528.x
Eberhard W.G., Huber B.A., Rodriguez R.L.S., Briceno R.D., Salas I. & Rodriguez V. 1998. One size fits all? Relationship between the size and degree of variation in genitalia and other body parts in twenty species of insects and spiders. Evolution 52 (2): 415–431. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2411078
Eberhard W.G., Rodriguez R.L. & Polihronakis M. 2009. Pitfalls in understanding the functional significance of genital allometry. J. Evol. Biol. 22 (3): 435–445. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1420-9101.2008.01654.x.
Feigenbaum C. & Switzer P.V. 2007. The effect of male and female body size on mating behavior of male fairy shrimp, Eubranchipus neglectus. J. Freshwater Ecol. 22 (2): 271–276. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02705060.2007.9665048
Forbes M.R.L., Pagola H. & Baker R.L. 1992. Causes of a non-random pairing by size in the brine shrimp, Artemia salina: (Crustacea: Anostraca). Oecologia 91 (2): 214–219. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00317786
Gilchrist B. 1968. Distribution and relative abundance of carotenoid pigments in Anostraca (Crustacea: Branchiopoda). Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 24 (1): 123–147. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0010-406X(68)90963-8
Goldyn B., Bernard R., Czyz M.J. & Jankowiak A. 2012. Diversity and conservation status of large branchiopods (Crustacea) in ponds of western Poland. Limnologica 42 (4): 264–270. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.limno.2012.08.006
Goodwing T.W. 1984. The Biochemistry of the Carotenoids. Vol. 2. Animals. 2nd ed. Chapman & Hall, London, 224 pp. ISBN: 978-94-010-8945-6
Gould S.J & Lewontin R.C. 1979. The spandrels of San Marco and the Panglossian paradigm: a critique of the adaptationist programme. Proc. R. Soc. Lond., B Biol. Sci. 205 (1161): 581–598. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.1979.0086
Green A.J., Sánchez M.I., Amat F., Figuerola J., Hontoria F., Ruiz O. & Hortas F. 2005. Dispersal of invasive and native brine shrimps Artemia (Anostraca) via waterbirds. Limnol. Oceanogr. 50 (2): 737–742. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4319/lo.2005.50.2.0737
Ioannidis J.P.A. 2005. Why most published research findings are false. PLoS Med. 2 (8): e124. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/jour-nal.pmed.0020124
Kodric-Brown A, Sibly R.M. & Brown J.H. 2006 The allometry of ornaments and weapons. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 103 (23): 8733–8738. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0602994103
Lozano, G.A. 1994. Carotenoids, parasites, and sexual selection. Oikos 70 (2): 309–311. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3545643
Maeda-Martinez A.M., Obregon H. & Dumont H.J. 1995. Food dependent color patterns in Thamnocephalus platyurus Packard (Branchiopoda: Anostraca); a laboratory study. Hydrobiologia 298: 133–139. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-0291-9_12
Martin J.W., Rogers D.C. & Olesen J. 2016. Collecting and processing branchiopods. J. Crustacean Biol. 36 (3): 396–401. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/1937240X-00002434
Moran N.A. & Jarvik T. 2010. Lateral transfer of genes from fungi underlies carotenoid production in aphids. Science 328 (5978): 624–627. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1187113
Munafo M.R., Nosek B.A., Bishop D.V. M., Button K.S., Chambers CD., du Sert N.P., Simonsohn U., Wagenmakers E.-J., Ware J.J. & Ioannidis J.P.A. 2017. A manifesto for reproducible science. Nat. Hum. Behav. 1: 0021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-016-0021
Mu˜noz J., Amat F., Green A.J., Figuerola J. & Gomez A. 2013. Bird migratory flyways influence the phylogeography of the invasive brine shrimp Artemia franciscana in its native American range. PeerJ 1: e200. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.200
Nielsen R. 2009. Adaptationism–30 years after Gould and Lewontin. Evolution 63 (10): 2487–2490. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1558-5646.2009.00799.x
Pomfret J.C. & Knell R.J. 2006. Sexual selection and horn allometry in the dung beetle Euoniticellus intermedius. Anim. Behav. 71 (3): 567–576. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2005.05.023
R Development Core Team 2011. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. ISBN: 3-900051-07-0. https://doi.org/www.R-project.org/
Rogers D.C. 2002. Female-based characters for anostracan (Crustacea: Branchiopoda) identification: A key for species of California and Oregon, USA. Hydrobiologia 486 (1): 125–132. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021390416256
Rogers D.C. 2014. Larger hatching fractions in avian dispersed Anostracan eggs (Branchiopoda). J. Crustacean Biol. 34 (2): 135–143. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/1937240X-00002220
Sokal R.R. & Rohlf F.J., 2012. Biometry. 4th ed. WH Feeman and Company, New York, 937 pp. ISBN: 0-7167-8604-4, 978-0-7167-8604-7.
Sugumar V. 2010. Reproduction in the brine shrimp Artemia Leach, 1819 (Branchiopoda, Anostraca) from South India: Laboratory cross fertility tests and mating behaviour. North-West. J. Zool. 6 (2): 162–171. p-ISSN: 1584–9074 https://doi.org/biozoojournals.ro/nwjz/content/v6n2.html
Valls L., Castillo-Escrivà A., Mesquita-Joanes F. & Armengol X. 2016. Human-mediated dispersal of aquatic invertebrates with waterproof footwear. Ambio 45 (1): 99–109. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-015-0689-x
Vanschoenwinkel B., Gielen S., Seaman M. & Brendonck L. 2009. Wind mediated dispersal of freshwater invertebrates in a rock pool metacommunity: Differences in dispersal capacities and modes. Hydrobiologia 635 (1): 363–372. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-009-9929-z
Vanschoenwinkel B., Waterkeyn A., Nhiwatiwa T., Pinceel T., Spooren E., Geerts A., Clegg B. & Brendonck L. 2011. Passive external transport of freshwater invertebrates by elephant and other mud-wallowing mammals in an African savannah habitat. Freshwater Biol. 56 (8): 1606–1619. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2427.2011.02600.x
Warton D., Duursma R., Falster D. & Taskinen S. 2014. smatr: (Standardised) Major Axis Estimation and Testing Routines. R package version 3.2.3. https://doi.org/CRAN.R-project.org/package=smatr Warton D.I., Wright I.J., Falaster D.S. & Westoby M. 2006. Bivariate line-fitting methods for allometry. Biol. Rev. 81: 259–291. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1464793106007007
Wiman F.H. 1981. Mating behavior in the Streptocephalus fairy shrimp (Crustacea: Anostraca). Southwest. Nat. 25 (4): 541–546. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3670855
Zuur A.F., Ieno E.N., Walker N.J., Savaliev A.A. & Smith G.M. 2009. Mixed effect models and extensions in ecology with R. Springer-Verlag, New York, 574 pp. ISBN: 978-0-387-87457-9
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Czyż, M.J., Gołdyn, B. Relative scaling and colouration of cercopodes in Branchipus schaefferi (Crustacea: Branchiopoda). Biologia 72, 319–324 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1515/biolog-2017-0026
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/biolog-2017-0026