Male reproductive strategy in Trichogramma evanescens:: sperm production and allocation to females

The production and allocation of sperm among successive mates during a male's life largely determine its fitness. The sperm production pattern and sperm allocation to females is studied in Trichogramma evanescens, a short-lived egg parasitoid of several lepidopteran species. At emergence, virgin males have an average of 1607 +/- 249 sperm stored in the seminal vesicles and no further production occurs during adult life. These males are able to mate with at least 20 females in rapid succession. During the first 10 matings, the males transfer approximately 100 sperm each time and then transfer fewer and fewer sperm per mating. The number of sperm stored in spermathecae of successively mated females remains relatively constant for the first 10 females, and decreases slowly for the subsequent females. The relationship between male reproductive strategy and some life-history traits are discussed.