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JPR Advance Access originally published online on October 9, 2007
Journal of Plankton Research 2007 29(12):1023-1030; doi:10.1093/plankt/fbm076
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© The Author 2007. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

HORIZONS

Copepod mating: chance or choice?

Josefin Titelman1,2,*, Øystein Varpe1,3, Sigrunn Eliassen1 and Øyvind Fiksen1

1 Department of Biology, University of Bergen, PO Box 7800, 5020 Bergen, Norway 2 Department Of Marine Ecology, GÖTeborg University, Kristineberg Marine Research Station, 45034 FiskebÄCkskil, Sweden 3 The University Centre in Svalbard, PO Box 156, 9171 Longyearbyen, Norway

* CORRESPONDING AUTHOR: josefin.titelman{at}marecol.gu.se

Received on May 16, 2007; accepted on October 4, 2007


  Abstract

Mate choice is common in most animals, but the issue has largely been ignored in regard to pelagic copepods—the most abundant zooplankton group in the oceans. Contemporary demographic models of copepods assume that all encounters lead to successful copulation and viable egg production. We revisit the subject of copepod mating biology in the framework of sexual selection theory. We discuss, and point to, examples that suggest mate choice in both sexes. Sexual selection theory may add an important dimension for understanding copepod population dynamics and potentially lead to renewed interpretations of the diverse copepod behaviours and life histories. In addition, the range of mating strategies in copepods represents a rich, but unexplored, source of information for general behavioural ecologists.

Written responses to this article should be submitted to R. P. Harris at r.p.h@pml.ac.uk within two months of publication. For further information, please see the Editorial ‘Horizons’ in Journal of Plankton Research, Volume 26, Number 3, Page 257.

Communicating editor: R.P. Harris


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