Effects of prior contest experience and contest outcome on female reproductive decisions and offspring fitness

Winning or losing a prior contest can influence the outcome of future contests, but it might also alter subsequent reproductive decisions. For example, losers may increase their investment in the current breeding attempt if losing a contest indicates limited prospects for future breeding. Using the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides, we tested whether females adjust their prehatching and posthatching reproductive effort after winning or losing a contest with a same-sex conspecific. Burying beetles breed on carcasses of small vertebrates for which there is fierce intrasexual competition. We found no evidence that winning or losing a contest influenced reproductive investment decisions in this species. Instead, we show that a female's prior contest experience (regardless of its outcome) influenced the amount of posthatching care provided, with downstream consequences for the female's reproductive output; both winners and losers spent more time provisioning food to their offspring and...

先前竞赛的胜负不仅会影响后续竞赛的结果，还可能改变后续的繁殖决策。例如，若某次竞赛失利预示着未来繁殖前景有限，失利个体可能会加大对当前繁殖尝试的投入。本研究以埋葬甲（Nicrophorus vespilloides）为实验对象，探究雌性个体在与同性同种个体发生竞赛并取胜或失利后，是否会调整其孵化前与孵化后的繁殖投入。埋葬甲会在小型脊椎动物的尸体上繁殖，这类资源存在激烈的种内同性竞争。本研究未发现该物种的繁殖投入决策会受竞赛胜负的影响。与之相反，本研究证实雌性个体先前的竞赛经历（无论胜负）均会影响其孵化后的育幼投入量，并对雌性的繁殖产出产生下游效应；取胜者与失利者均会花费更多时间为后代提供食物，且……