ReadMe for FordSmisethJEB12797.xls
Experiment 1
This spreadsheet provides data for the effects of male presence or absence on laying pattern
(Experiment 1). Each line represents a brood used in the experiment. Missing data are
recorded as NA.
Treatment = Male present or male absent (removed 6 hours after introduction to the carcass)
Female age = Age of the female at the time of breeding (days post eclosion)
Female pronotum (mm) = Female pronotum width
Carcass mass (g) = Mass of the carcass on which the brood was reared
Delay until first egg (hours) = Amount of time after introduction to the carcass before the
first egg was laid
Laying spread (hours) = Amount of time between the first and last egg being laid
Clutch size = Total number of eggs laid
Skew index = An index reflecting the extent to which laying is skewed towards the earlier
part of the laying period
Experiment 2
This spreadsheet provides data for the effects of hatching pattern on parent and offspring
fitness (Experiment 2). Each line represents a brood used in the experiment. Missing data are
recorded as NA.
Hatching pattern = Synchronous, asynchronous or highly asynchronous broods. Synchronous
broods were generated by providing parents with 20 larvae at the same time. We generated
asynchronous broods by providing parents with 10 larvae initially and then an additional 10
larvae 24 hours later. Finally, we generated highly asynchronous broods by providing parents
with 10 initial larvae followed by 10 additional larvae 48 hours later.
Male presence = Male present or male absent (removed 6 hours after introduction to the
carcass)
Carcass mass (g) = Mass of the carcass on which the brood was reared
Male age = Age of the male at the time of breeding (days post eclosion)
Female age = Age of the female at the time of breeding (days post eclosion)
Male initial mass (g) = Mass of the male at the time of introduction to the carcass
Female initial mass (g) = Mass of the female at the time of introduction to the carcass
Male mass after caring (g) = Mass of the male at the time of removal from the carcass
Female mass after caring (g) = Mass of the female at the time of removal from the carcass
Male pronotum (mm) = Male pronotum width
Female pronotum (mm) = Female pronotum width
Male half days present = The number of observations for which the male was with the brood
(observations were conducted twice each day)
Female half days present = The number of observations for which the female was with the
brood (observations were conducted twice each day)
Male age at death = Age of the male at the time of death (days post eclosion)
Female age at death = Age of the female at the time of death (days post eclosion)
Brood mass at dispersal (g) = Total mass of the entire brood at the time of dispersal from the
carcass
Half days as larvae = Number of half days spent developing on the carcass as larvae
Initial larval mass each (g) = Average mass of a larva at the time of introduction to the
carcass
Number dispersing = Number of larvae surviving to dispersal in each brood
Offspring pronotum (mm) = Average pronotum width of offspring surviving to become
adults in each brood
Standard deviation in offspring pronotum = Standard deviation in pronotum widths of
offspring surviving to become adults in each brood
Son age at death = Age of randomly selected male offspring at the time of death (days post
eclosion)
Daughter age at death = Age of randomly selected female offspring at the time of death (days
post eclosion)
Son pronotum (mm) = Pronotum width of randomly selected male offspring
Daughter pronotum (mm) = Pronotum width of randomly selected female offspring