Sexual Size Dimorphism in Rays and Skates (Elasmobranchii: Batoidea)
ABSTRACT Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) is a widely observed but poorly understood phenomenon in which male and female animals differ in body size (e.g., length or mass). Despite extensive research on the interspecific distribution of SSD across various lineages, the evolutionary drivers behind male‐b...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71858 |
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| author | Joel H. Gayford Scott G. Seamone Duncan J. Irschick Andrew Chin Jodie L. Rummer |
| author_facet | Joel H. Gayford Scott G. Seamone Duncan J. Irschick Andrew Chin Jodie L. Rummer |
| author_sort | Joel H. Gayford |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) is a widely observed but poorly understood phenomenon in which male and female animals differ in body size (e.g., length or mass). Despite extensive research on the interspecific distribution of SSD across various lineages, the evolutionary drivers behind male‐biased and female‐biased SSD remain contentious. In Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays), it is hypothesised that spatiotemporal differences in reproductive effort distribution between oviparous and matrotrophic species underlie variation in the direction and magnitude of SSD. However, existing studies have focused almost exclusively on sharks, overlooking batoids (rays), which comprise over 50% of elasmobranch diversity. In this study, we analysed published size (total length and disc width) records from 187 batoid species to quantify interspecific SSD variation across batoids and tested for ecological and evolutionary drivers of SSD within a comparative phylogenetic framework. Our findings reveal that, although interspecific trends in SSD among batoids superficially mirror those in sharks, subtle differences emerge in ecological signal and modes of trait evolution between the two. These differences suggest that selection for substantial male‐biased and female‐biased SSD in batoids is weaker than in sharks. The underlying reasons for this remain unclear but may involve variation in fecundity selection between batoids and sharks. Further studies quantifying variation in sexual selection and fecundity selection will be essential to fully clarify the adaptive basis of SSD variation within elasmobranchs. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-76cc3a3e90174311a75b6a60c2a987aa |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj-art-76cc3a3e90174311a75b6a60c2a987aa2025-08-20T02:46:16ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582025-07-01157n/an/a10.1002/ece3.71858Sexual Size Dimorphism in Rays and Skates (Elasmobranchii: Batoidea)Joel H. Gayford0Scott G. Seamone1Duncan J. Irschick2Andrew Chin3Jodie L. Rummer4College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University Townsville Queensland AustraliaDepartment of Marine Sciences Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute San Andros BahamasDepartment of Biology Morrill Science Center, University of Massachusetts Amherst Massachusetts USACollege of Science and Engineering, James Cook University Townsville Queensland AustraliaCollege of Science and Engineering, James Cook University Townsville Queensland AustraliaABSTRACT Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) is a widely observed but poorly understood phenomenon in which male and female animals differ in body size (e.g., length or mass). Despite extensive research on the interspecific distribution of SSD across various lineages, the evolutionary drivers behind male‐biased and female‐biased SSD remain contentious. In Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays), it is hypothesised that spatiotemporal differences in reproductive effort distribution between oviparous and matrotrophic species underlie variation in the direction and magnitude of SSD. However, existing studies have focused almost exclusively on sharks, overlooking batoids (rays), which comprise over 50% of elasmobranch diversity. In this study, we analysed published size (total length and disc width) records from 187 batoid species to quantify interspecific SSD variation across batoids and tested for ecological and evolutionary drivers of SSD within a comparative phylogenetic framework. Our findings reveal that, although interspecific trends in SSD among batoids superficially mirror those in sharks, subtle differences emerge in ecological signal and modes of trait evolution between the two. These differences suggest that selection for substantial male‐biased and female‐biased SSD in batoids is weaker than in sharks. The underlying reasons for this remain unclear but may involve variation in fecundity selection between batoids and sharks. Further studies quantifying variation in sexual selection and fecundity selection will be essential to fully clarify the adaptive basis of SSD variation within elasmobranchs.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71858allometrybatoidfecundity selectionRensch's rulereproductive modescaling |
| spellingShingle | Joel H. Gayford Scott G. Seamone Duncan J. Irschick Andrew Chin Jodie L. Rummer Sexual Size Dimorphism in Rays and Skates (Elasmobranchii: Batoidea) Ecology and Evolution allometry batoid fecundity selection Rensch's rule reproductive mode scaling |
| title | Sexual Size Dimorphism in Rays and Skates (Elasmobranchii: Batoidea) |
| title_full | Sexual Size Dimorphism in Rays and Skates (Elasmobranchii: Batoidea) |
| title_fullStr | Sexual Size Dimorphism in Rays and Skates (Elasmobranchii: Batoidea) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sexual Size Dimorphism in Rays and Skates (Elasmobranchii: Batoidea) |
| title_short | Sexual Size Dimorphism in Rays and Skates (Elasmobranchii: Batoidea) |
| title_sort | sexual size dimorphism in rays and skates elasmobranchii batoidea |
| topic | allometry batoid fecundity selection Rensch's rule reproductive mode scaling |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71858 |
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