Males, but not females, perform strategic mate searching movements between host plants in a leaf beetle with scramble competition polygyny

1. Mate searching is assumed to be performed mostly by males, but when females benefit from multiple mating or are under risk of failing to mate, they may also perform mate searching. This is especially important in scramble competition polygynies, in which mate searching is the main mechanism of mate competition. Typically, more mobile individuals are expected to achieve higher mating success because mobility increases their probability of finding mates. 2. If we assume individual movements are mainly explained by mate searching in scramble competition polygynies, we can investigate searching strategies by asking when individuals should leave their location and where they should go. We hypothesize that individuals will leave their locations when mating opportunities are scarce and will seek spatially close sites with better mating opportunities. 3. We tested these hypotheses for males and females of Leptinotarsa undecimlineata, a leaf beetle with scramble competition polygyny in which ...