Male size does not affect the strength of male mate choice for high-quality females in Drosophila melanogaster

Theory predicts that the strength of male mate choice should vary depending on male quality when higher-quality males receive greater fitness benefits from being choosy. This pattern extends to differences in male body size, with larger males often having stronger pre- and post-copulatory preferences than smaller males.We sought to determine whether large males and small males differ in the strength (or direction) of their preference for large, high-fecundity females using the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. We measured male courtship preferences and mating duration to show that male body size had no impact on the strength of male mate choice; all males, regardless of their size, had equally strong preferences for large females. To understand the selective pressures shaping male mate choice in males of different sizes, we also measured the fitness benefits associated with preferring large females for both large and small males. Male body size did not affect the benefits that males r..., , , # Data from: Male size does not affect the strength of male mate choice for high-quality females in Drosophila melanogaster

## Authors

Avigayil Lev and Alison Pischedda\*
Department of Biology, Barnard College
\*[e-mail]

## Description of the data and file structure

MaleSizesMMCB1.csv
Male size data for Block 1 of the Male Mate Choice Trials. Data are displayed in Figure S1a.

* “Sieve Hole Diameter” = sieve hole diameter (in 𝜇m) for the 12 sieves used for size sorting
* “Total # Males” = the total number of males found within each sieve after size sorting
* “# Selected Males” = the number of males from each sieve selected for this experiment. Blank cells indicate that males were not selected from the corresponding sieves.
* “Selected Male Size” = whether the selected males were used as large or small males for this experiment. Blank cells indicate that males were not selected from the corresponding sieves.

MaleSizesMMCB2.csv
Male size data for Block 2 of the Male Ma...