Meeting Abstract
Sexual selection is primarily studied under artificial conditions or in only one ecological context. However, the dynamic nature of natural environments can alter sexual selection. We investigated changes in male-male competition, one agent of sexual selection, in multiple semi-natural contexts.. Males of the leaf footed cactus bug Narnia femorata compete using enlarged hind femurs for cactus territories. The nutritional quality of cactus territories varies seasonally through the availability and quality of fruit. We experimentally assigned males cactus territories without fruit, with unripe fruit, or with ripe fruit and observed male-male competition and mating success. We did not find a significant effect of territory quality on the intensity of male-male competition. However, we did see trends of both increasing number of male interactions with increasing territory quality, as well as heightened relative fitness for dominant males in higher quality territories. These trends, though not statistically significant, suggest a possible ecological interaction on male-male competition intensity as well as a possible underlying cause for this interaction.
