Paternity and egg cannibalism in the ringlegged earwig Euborellia annulipes (Dermaptera: Anisolabididae)

Jacobs, Anne C.; Stigall, Tyler

doi:10.1111/ens.12363

Paternity and egg cannibalism in the ringlegged earwig Euborellia annulipes (Dermaptera: Anisolabididae)

Persistent URL

https://dspace.allegheny.edu/handle/10456/49447

Author(s)

Jacobs, Anne C.

Stigall, Tyler

Date Issued

June 6, 2019

Abstract

Cannibalism is a common occurrence in nature, and many cannibals prey on relatively small and defenseless life stages, such as eggs or young juveniles. Such behavior provides many benefits to the cannibal, but cannibalistic individuals also face risks, including the cost of decreasing their inclusive fitness by eating close relatives such as siblings or offspring. This risk can be mitigated if cannibals can recognize and avoid preying on kin. Here, we tested whether male ringlegged earwigs Euborellia annulipes avoid cannibalizing eggs that they had sired. In this species, females care for their own eggs, but males provide no care and frequently prey upon eggs. We found that when presented with an unguarded clutch of eggs, male earwigs nearly always cannibalized some eggs, but that the proportion of eggs eaten was smaller if the male had sired the clutch. This suggests that males can distinguish between their own offspring and unrelated offspring and that they avoid harming their kin.

Journal

Entomological Science

Department

Biology

Citation

Jacobs, A. C. and Stigall, T. (2019), Paternity and egg cannibalism in the ringlegged earwig Euborellia annulipes (Dermaptera: Anisolabididae). Entomological Science, 22: 250-257. doi:10.1111/ens.12363

Publisher

Wiley

Version of Article

Published article

DOI

10.1111/ens.12363

ISSN

1479-8298

Rights

Subjects

Euborellia annulipes

filial cannibalism

inclusive fitness

kin discrimination

ringlegged earwig

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