DOI: 10.5061/dryad.70rxwdcbh
title: Data from: Nutritional geometry provides insight into the dual roles of natural and sexual selection in insect cuticular hydrocarbon evolution

description: Interactions between natural and sexual selection have been integral to
 the development of sexual selection theory, yet the role of natural
 selection in sexual trait evolution has received far less empirical
 attention than the role of sexual selection, and the extent to which
 natural and sexual selection are aligned remains an important empirical
 question. Insect cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) provide a good model for
 exploring interactions between natural and sexual selection because of
 their dual roles in sexual signalling and desiccation resistance. We used
 the geometric framework for nutrition to explore the potential for, and
 magnitude of trade-offs between male attractiveness, desiccation
 resistance, and the abundance and blend of CHCs in the cricket
 Teleogryllus oceanicus. Attractiveness and desiccation resistance were
 both maximized on a diet that was rich in carbohydrate relative to
 protein. Although maximum expressions occurred at significantly different
 locations in nutritional space, the difference in angles between maximum
 attractiveness and desiccation resistance was small. Attractiveness and
 desiccation resistance were both associated with CHCs of moderate, rather
 than maximum, abundance and with a blend that was rich in two
 shorter-chained alkenes relative to a single longer-chained alkane.
 Partial correlations between fitness traits suggested that CHCs contribute
 indirectly to male attractiveness via their role in desiccation
 resistance. Our findings are consistent with the idea that natural and
 sexual selection on CHCs can be broadly aligned, facilitating rapid
 adaptation to ecological conditions and promoting speciation.
description: # Data from: Nutritional geometry provides insight into the dual roles of
 natural and sexual selection in insect cuticular hydrocarbon evolution
 Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.70rxwdcbh](10.5061/dryad.70rxwdcbh) ##
 Description of the data and file structure ### Files and variables These
 files contain the data to reproduce the analyses presented in Simmons,
 L.W., Lovegrove, M., Foo, Y.Z., Du,^^ X.(B.), Ren, Y., and Melissa L.
 Thomas, M.L. (2025). Nutritional geometry provides insight into the dual
 roles of natural and sexual selection in insect cuticular hydrocarbon
 evolution. Functional Ecology. #### File: Simmons_et_al_2025.csv
 **Description:** For each case, a cricket was fed 1 of 24 diets (Diet,
 column A). The macronutrient composition of each diet can be found in
 Table S1 of the online supporting material available from the journal
 website. Within diets, each cricket was given an ID (column B) and its
 date of eclosion to adulthood noted (Eclosion_date, column C). Cricket
 weight was estimated in mg (Weight_at_eclose_mg, column D). The total
 weight of diet consumed during the experiment was measured
 (Total_amt_consumed_mg, column E), and the amount of protein
 (Protein_eaten_mg, column F) and carbohydrate (Carbohydrate_eaten_mg,
 column G) consumed was calculated from the % of each macronutrient
 contained in each cricket’s diet. The amount of protein and carbohydrate
 eaten was then divided by weight at eclosion to control for size effects
 of diet intake (P_mg and C_mg, columns H and I, respectively). The total
 number of days a cricket was given access to the diet was recorded
 (days_on_diet, column J) and used to calculate the intake rate of protein
 and carbohydrate as mg per mg of cricket per day (P_mg_day, column V;
 C_mg_day, column W), which were used in our analyses. Crickets were
 assayed for attractiveness by providing them with a sexually receptive
 female each day for 5 days. The number of females courted
 (No_of_courtships, column K) and the number of courtships resulting in a
 mating (No_of_matings, column L) were used to calculate attractiveness as
 a proportion (Attractiveness, column N). The age of the cricket at the
 start of attractiveness assays is given (Age_at_assay_attractiveness,
 column M).  Crickets were then assayed for their desiccation resistance.
 They were weighed (weight_in mg, column O) and placed in a hydrating
 environment for 48h before being re-weighed (weight_out mg, column P). We
 noted whether males died (0) or not (1) during the desiccation assay
 (Died_during_assay_0, column Q). Water loss was calculated as the weight
 difference (column O minus column P) (waterloss_mg, column R). Crickets
 were then dried to constant weight to obtain a measure of body mass
 (Dry_weight, column R) with which to calculate a size-standardized water
 loss, which was reverse scored to yield our measure of desiccation
 resistance. Scores on the first and second principal axes for cuticular
 hydrocarbon data were used as measures of CHC abundance (PC1, column T)
 and blend (PC2, column U) Empty cells indicate missing data because the
 individual had died.  We assessed the effect of diet on mortality by
 noting whether a cricket died (1) or not (0) before the start of the
 attractiveness assay (died_before_start, column X). #### File:
 Simmons_et_al_2025_CHCs.csv **Description:** The file Simmons et al 2025
 CHCs.csv contains data on the abundance in parts per million of each of 22
 compounds (columns C-X) found in the cuticular hydrocarbon profile. Column
 names indicate peak number and compound ID (eg, 9_C31:2 refers to peak 9
 in the CHC profile identified as C31:2).  The first two axes of variation
 following a principal components analysis are provided in columns Y and Z
 (Prin 1 and Prin2). Diet (column 1) and male ID (column 2) are provided as
 in the main data file Simmons et al 2025.csv