Mating behavior and reproductive morphology predict macroevolution of sex allocation in hermaphroditic flatworms.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Sex allocation is the distribution of resources to male or female reproduction. In hermaphrodites, this concerns an individual's resource allocation to, for example, the production of male or female gametes. Macroevolutionary studies across hermaphroditic plants have revealed that the self-pollination rate and the pollination mode are strong predictors of sex allocation. Consequently, we expect similar factors such as the selfing rate and aspects of the reproductive biology, like the mating behaviour and the intensity of postcopulatory sexual selection, to predict sex allocation in hermaphroditic animals. However, comparative work on hermaphroditic animals is limited. Here, we study sex allocation in 120 species of the hermaphroditic free-living flatworm genus Macrostomu

SUBMITTER: Brand JN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8822660 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature