Data from: Sexual conflict and correlated evolution between male persistence and female resistance traits in the seed beetle Callosobruchus maculatus

Traumatic mating (or copulatory wounding) is an extreme form of sexual
conflict whereby male genitalia physically harm females during mating. In
such species females are expected to evolve counter-adaptations to reduce
male-induced harm. Importantly, female counter-adaptations may include
both genital and non-genital traits. In this study, we examine
evolutionary associations between harmful male genital morphology and
female reproductive tract morphology and immune function across 13
populations of the seed beetle Callosobruchus maculatus. We detected
positive correlated evolution between the injuriousness of male genitalia
and putative female resistance adaptations across populations. Moreover,
we found evidence for a negative relationship between female immunity and
population productivity, which suggests that investment in female
resistance may be costly due to the resource trade-offs that are predicted
between immunity and reproduction. Finally, the degree of female tract
scarring (harm to females) was greater in those populations with both
longer aedeagal spines and a thinner female tract lining. Our results are
thus consistent with a sexual arms race, which is only apparent when both
male and female traits are taken into account. Importantly, our study
provides rare evidence for sexually antagonistic coevolution of male and
female traits at the within-species level.