Oviposition preference and performance in natural resources in Drosophila melanogaster and D. Simulans.

SOTO, E. M.; HURTADO, J.; BETTI, M.; CORTESE, M.; E. HASSON

Raleigh, North Carolina, Estados Unidos.

Simposio; The American Genetic Association 2008 Symposium. Genetics and Genomics of Behavior.; 2008

The American Genetic Association

The existence of genetic correlation between election of the best host and the performance on this host has been an issue of debate in models of sympatric speciation and the maintenance of genetic variation in insects. The ability to select a better resource from multiple ones is important to optimize their resources. The sibling species D. melanogaster and D. simulans are known as excellent genetic models, however, knowledge of their ecology is very poor. In this work, we examined two behavioral traits: acceptance and oviposition preference of different natural fruit resources and performance (as measured by developmental time, larval viability and wing size) in flies raised in these resources. We detected interspecific differences in oviposition preference but not for acceptance. Concerning fitness related traits we observed that D. melanogaster raised in its favorite resource had larger wings, suggesting a relationship between oviposition preference and performance. Artificial selection experiments for oviposition preference revealed that only D. simulans had a positive response to the selection regime, indicating that variation in resource preference had a genetic basis. In summary, choice for oviposition sites may play an important role in speciation in these Drosophila species.