Heritable variation for female mating frequency in field crickets,Gryllus integer

Summary Female mating frequency was studied in the laboratory in field crickets, Gryllus integer. Females mated 9.8 times on average (N = 46, SD = 6.6, range = 1–30) in 10-day observations of 5 h each. Offspring from each female were raised and the mating frequency determined for 10 female offspring from from each family. Female offspring mated from 0 to 26 times. The average number of matings across all families was 7.3 (SD = 3.4, range 1.9–16.2). Regression of daughter mating frequency on mother mating frequency resulted in a statistically significant slope of 0.345 and a narrow sense heritability estimate of 0.69 (SE = 0.29). Additive genetic variation is available for selection on female mating frequency in G. integer. Results are discussed in terms of selection on female mating frequency. Offprint requests to: W.H. Cade