Posted : June 2013
Author : Maria Caballero
Talk about a deadbeat dad.
Male guppies are able reproduce for at least 10 months after
they die, according to new research conducted by the University
of California, Riverside. That’s because female guppies have
the ability to store sperm inside their bodies, saving it up until the optimal
time for fertilization. Since female guppies typically live much longer than
males - 2 years as compared to 3-4 months - this means that male guppies can
continue to impregnate females long after their deaths.
Long-term sperm storage provides several benefits for guppy survival.
“Adult female guppies are the strongest swimmers and now we know they are the
best able to colonize new habitats,” Reznick told UCR Today. “Long
term sperm storage means that a single female can colonize a new site and
establish a new population that has a fair measure of genetic diversity since
we have found that the older, larger females can carry the sperm of several
males.”
Scientists already knew that females could store
sperm, according to Science Daily, but this study provides new insight on
just how long that storage can last. “In addition to learning about sperm
storage, this is the first time we are learning about the huge differences in lifespan
between males and females,” UCR biology professor David Reznick told UCR Today.
“If we were to use males to estimate generation time, then these differences
mean that lucky females live for three generations.”
Research did not monitor sperm storage for longer than 10
months, according to an abstract of the study. This means that females may be
able to store sperm for even longer, though additional research would be needed
to determine just how long. Guppies have been swimming through the headlines a
lot lately. In February, British researches discovered that female guppies
will make friends with less attractive females in order to make themselves
look more desirable by comparison. The month before, researchers found that the
reverse is also true: When female guppies are not receptive to mating, they
will spend time with “sexier” females so that those females detract unwanted
attention away from them.
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