Inbreeding–outbreeding trade offs: sex specific effects on mate preference and offspring fitness in a wolf spider

Description

Inbreeding is widespread in the animal kingdom, yet its preference and fitness consequences in spiders remain largely unexplored. In this study, we investigated mating preferences, mating and oviposition behaviors, and offspring fitness in the wolf spider Pardosa laura. Our results revealed that: (1) males preferred related females, whereas females preferred unrelated males; (2) stronger courtship behavior by related males led to significantly higher mating success in inbreeding than in outbreeding; (3) oviposition behavior did not differ significantly between inbred and outbred females, but outbred females produced significantly more offspring; (4) inbred male offspring were significantly larger than outbred male offspring, whereas inbred female offspring were significantly smaller in body size; and (5) inbred male offspring reached sexual maturity earlier than outbred males. Collectively, these findings suggest a trade‑off in the mating strategies of wolf spiders, with males and females favoring inbreeding and outbreeding, respectively, to produce high‑fitness male and female offspring.

Institutions

• Hubei University

  Hubei, Wuhan

Categories

Funders

• National Natural Science Foundation of China

  Grant ID: 31672317
• Frontier Projects of the Applied Foundation of Wuhan Science and Technology Bureau

  Grant ID: 2019020701011464
• China Postdoctoral Science Foundation

  Grant ID: 2025M772665

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