Causes and consequences of female genital mutilation

Causes and consequences of female genital mutilation

Competition between males for the access to fertilization starts before copulation and continues after sperm transfer, especially in species with internal fertilization. This has resulted in manifold ways by which males try to secure paternity.

We investigate the evolution of a novel and drastic mechanism for securing paternity: the mutilation of external female genitalia. In orb-weaving spiders, copulation entails the mechanical coupling of the male sperm transferring organ to anatomical structures present on the external female genitalia. In the course of copulation, males mutilate some crucial structures of the female genitalia, which prevents genital coupling with subsequent males. Manipulation of female genital anatomy is an overlooked but widely spread phenomenon since it is suspected in more than 80 spider species spread among 8 spider families.

We explore the causes and consequences of female genital mutilation by combining behavioural experiments, morphological and physiological methods, genetic analyses as well as theoretical modelling.

Collaboration partners:

Dr. Lutz Fromhage, Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.

Dr. Michaël Beaulieu, Department of Animal Ecology, University of Greifswald, Germany, now German Oceanographic Museum, Stralsund, Germany.