Female loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta L.) rarely remate during nesting season. Issue 1 (20th December 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lasala, Jacob A.; Hughes, Colin; Wyneken, Jeanette
• Is Part Of: Ecology and evolution. Volume 10:Issue 1(2020)
• Page Start: 163
• Page End: 174
• Publication Date: 2019-12-20
• Subjects: breeding sex ratio -- mating behavior -- paternity analysis -- sea turtle; Ecology -- Periodicals; Evolution -- Periodicals; 577.05
• DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5869
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2045-7758

Abstract

Abstract: The goal of this study was to assess the consequences of single versus multiple paternity by identifying paternity of clutches per female to identify whether there were detectable costs or benefits. Multiple mating can occur when the benefits of mating outweigh the costs, but if costs and benefits are equal, no pattern is expected. Previous research on loggerhead sea turtle ( Caretta caretta ) populations found male‐biased breeding sex ratios and multiple mating by many females nesting in southwestern Florida. A sample of nesting loggerhead females who laid more than one nest over the course of the season and a subset of their hatchlings were examined from 36 clutches in 2016 on Sanibel Island, Florida. Males that fathered hatchlings in the first clutch sampled were identified in subsequent clutches. Interestingly, 75% of the females analyzed had mated singly. No male was represented in more than one female's clutches. The results suggest that females likely mate at the beginning of the season and use stored sperm for multiple clutches. Evidence for mating between laying events was limited. There was no consistent pattern across the subsequent multiple paternity clutches, suggesting benefits to loggerhead females likely equal their costs and subsequent mating is likely determined by female preference. Abstract : The focus of this paper is to examine and describe the costs and benefits of multiple mating across taxa and then focus on a case study by examining repeating nesting of loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta ) nesting in the Gulf of Mexico. We identified in all nests, males that were present in the first nest were also present in subsequent nests (confirming sperm storage). We also found instances of possible sperm depletion and weak evidence for remating events, but no evidence of male genotypes in multiple female's nests (polygyny).