PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Andrade, Maydianne C. B.
TI  - Sexual Selection for Male Sacrifice in the Australian Redback Spider
AID  - 10.1126/science.271.5245.70
DP  - 1996 Jan 05
TA  - Science
PG  - 70--72
VI  - 271
IP  - 5245
4099  - http://science.sciencemag.org/content/271/5245/70.short
4100  - http://science.sciencemag.org/content/271/5245/70.full
SO  - Science1996 Jan 05; 271
AB  - During copulation, male redback spiders (Latrodectus hasselti: Theridiidae) position themselves above the female's jaws. This apparent male complicity in sexual cannibalism is favored by sexual selection because cannibalized spiders receive two paternity advantages. First, cannibalized males copulated longer and fertilized more eggs than those that survived copulation. Second, females were more likely to reject subsequent suitors after consuming their first mate. These results represent empirical evidence for male copulatory suicide as an adaptive behavior.