Following mating a male praying mantis sometimes allows himself to be eaten by h
ID: 61054 • Letter: F
Question
Following mating a male praying mantis sometimes allows himself to be eaten by his mate. This process reduces the male's fitness by precluding any subsequent matings with other females. However, it increases the fitness of his offspring by providing additional nutrition for the female who needs to build an elaborate structure in which an average of 230 eggs are suspended. Suppose this extra nutritional boost improves the firness of each of the 230 offspring from 1 to 1.004, while reducing the fitness of the father from 1 to 1-c. this behavior obeys Hamilton's rule only if c is less than what value?
Explanation / Answer
C should be less than r X B. Because r is the genetic related ness and B is the fitness benefit to the recipient. Here the c is 0.92 since each offspring has gained 0.004 and totally 230 0ffspring is present hence c= 0.004 X 230 = 0.92 and individual fitness is 1.