Effect of Laboratory Adaptation on Male Harm in Drosophila melanogaster
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18192/osurj.v5i2.8057Abstract
Sexual conflict arises when males and females have differing reproductive interests, often
resulting in traits that enhance male reproductive success while reducing female fitness. In
Drosophila, male harm has been widely documented, in which traits that increase male
reproductive success can also reduce female fitness. This study investigates whether laboratory
adaptation influences the expression of male harm by comparing lab adapted and recent
descendants of wild collected Drosophila melanogaster.
A 2x2x2 factorial experimental design was used, manipulating male exposure (low vs. high),
male type (lab-adapted vs. wild), and female type (lab-adapted vs. wild). Virgin females were
exposed to males for several days under controlled conditions and then isolated to lay eggs in
groups. Female fitness was quantified by counting the number of eclosing offspring. Male harm
was calculated as the relative reduction in female reproductive output under high compared to
low male exposure.
Results indicate that male harm was significant overall, with increased male exposure reducing
female fitness. Harm was greater when females were exposed to lab males than to wild males
(H_lab = 0.54, H_wild = 0.34), supported by a significant interaction between male exposure and
male type (F = 9.12, df = 1, 149, P = 0.003).
These findings suggest that laboratory adapted males are more harmful than wild males,
highlighting the importance of ecological context in studies of sexual conflict. These results are
consistent with previous work showing that structurally complex environments reduce the
expression and evolution of male harm compared to simplified laboratory environments (see Yun
et al., 2017; Osijo et al., 2026). Together, these results suggest that standard laboratory conditions
may overestimate the strength of male harm relative to natural populations.
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