The effect of handling damage, mobility, body size, and fluctuating asymmetry on lifetime mating success of Ischnura graellsii (Rambur) (Zygoptera: Coenagrionidae)

Several spp. of odonates have been the subject of sexual selection studies. In non-territorial species most variance in lifetime mating success (LMS) is accounted for by lifespan and specially by the number of visits, and random factors (like rainy weather) can have strong effect on reproductive success. Here we present the study of 2 natural populations of I. graellsii by marking-recapture methods. Our results show that <J mating success is related to body size, mobility and handling damage, but not to fluctuating asymmetry. Larger 6 6 had greater success in both populations, a result in agreement with previous findings on the same sp. Nevertheless, multivariate analyses indicate that body length was a significant correlate of LMS in just one of the studied populations. We estimated a mobility index for c? 6 averaging the distance between consecutive resightings. For long-lived <J <J, we found a positive relationship between mobility and LMS. There was ft clear effect of leg loss during marking on survivorship, and a marginally significant negative effect on LMS. Finally, we studied the effect of wing fluctuating asymmetry (FA) on LMS by capturing a sample of marked individuals at the end of field work. Results suggest that FA is not an important correlate of LMS in this sp.