Coexisting in sympatry: evaluating the phenotypic variation of multiple morphological traits in two species of mountain scorpions

OVIEDO DIEGO, M.; SOTO, E.; MATTONI, C. I.; PERETTI, A. V.

Nueva York

Congreso; American Arachnological Society Virtual Summer Symposium; 2020

American Arachnological Society

In sympatric areas, the correct sexual recognition among conspecifics iscritical to ensure reproductive isolation. However, the recognition can fail resultingin processes like reproductive interference (RI). For this, certain reproductive traitscan suffer reproductive character displacement (RCD), allowing species'coexistence. Two species of closely related scorpions (Urophonius brachycentrus,U. achalensis) have sympatric populations with synchronic reproduction(Argentina). Antecedents in these species reveal the occurrence of heterospecificmating and chemical communication overlapping, which allows us to test if certaintraits experiment RCD in response to RI. We perform linear and geometricmorphometrics of several non-sexual and sexual traits (involved in different matingstages and sperm transfer). We observed RCD in both sexes of U. brachyentrus inthe pedipalp' shape, a key trait in courtship behavior. However, in both speciesmost of the structures size experiment convergence towards sympatry, whichwould evidence some ecological processes. These results are extremelyinteresting in terms of the occurrence of asymmetric RCD and the possiblecompetitive exploitation of mates by U. achalensis. Furthermore, a scenario withscramble competition, a short reproductive period and the existence of strongsperm competition make our findings an important piece in the puzzle of thereproductive biology of these species.