Incestuous sisters: mate preference for brothers over unrelated males in Drosophila melanogaster

PLoS One. 2012;7(12):e51293. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0051293. Epub 2012 Dec 10.

Abstract

The literature is full of examples of inbreeding avoidance, while recent mathematical models predict that inbreeding tolerance or even inbreeding preference should be expected under several realistic conditions like e.g. polygyny. We investigated male and female mate preferences with respect to relatedness in the fruit fly D. melanogaster. Experiments offered the choice between a first order relative (full-sibling or parent) and an unrelated individual with the same age and mating history. We found that females significantly preferred mating with their brothers, thus supporting inbreeding preference. Moreover, females did not avoid mating with their fathers, and males did not avoid mating with their sisters, thus supporting inbreeding tolerance. Our experiments therefore add empirical evidence for inbreeding preference, which strengthens the prediction that inbreeding tolerance and preference can evolve under specific circumstances through the positive effects on inclusive fitness.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Drosophila melanogaster / physiology*
  • Female
  • Male
  • Sexual Behavior, Animal*

Grants and funding

This work was funded by the “Laboratoire d’Excellence (LABEX)” entitled TULIP (ANR-10-LABX-41), a CNRS post-doc to AL, and a fellowship from the Ministry of Research to JHC. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.