Data from: Transgenerational effects of sexual interactions and sexual conflict: non-sires boost the fecundity of females in the following generation

The consequences of sexual interactions extend beyond the simple production of offspring. These interactions typically entail direct effects on female fitness, but may also impact the life histories of later generations. Evaluating the cross-generational effects of sexual interactions provides insights into the dynamics of sexual selection and conflict. Such studies can elucidate whether offspring fitness optima diverge across sexes upon heightened levels of sexual interaction among parents. Here, we found that, in Drosophila melanogaster, components of reproductive success in females, but not males, were contingent on the nature of sexual interactions experienced by their mothers. In particular, maternal sexual interactions with non-sires enhanced female fecundity in the following generation. This highlights the importance of non-sire influences of sexual interactions on the expression of offspring life histories.

性互动的进化与生态效应远超单纯的子代生产。这类互动通常会直接作用于雌性的适合度（fitness），同时还可能对后续世代的生活史产生影响。评估性互动的跨代效应，可为解析性选择与性冲突的动态机制提供重要视角。此类研究可阐明，当亲本间性互动水平升高时，不同性别的子代的适合度最适值是否会发生分化。本研究以黑腹果蝇（Drosophila melanogaster）为研究对象，结果显示雌性繁殖成功的相关组分（而非雄性），取决于其母本所经历的性互动的性质。具体而言，母本与非父本雄性（non-sires）的性互动，可提升后续世代雌性的繁殖力。该结果凸显了性互动的非父本影响对子代生活史性状表达的重要意义。