The Evolution of Insect Mating Systems

David Shuker is a NERC Advanced Research Fellow and Lecturer at the University of St Andrews. His research focuses on the evolution of reproductive behaviour in insects. This work brings together functional and mechanistic studies at the genetic and whole organism level to test evolutionary theory. David has worked on various aspects of reproductive behaviour and ecology in a number of different insect species, including extensive work on sex allocation and the causes and consequences of sexual conflict over reproductive decisions. David has published more than 50 papers and articles. He has also recently co-edited a special issue of Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, and is a member of the editorial boards of the Journal of Evolutionary Biology, Biology Letters and Ecology and Evolution. Leigh Simmons is an ARC Professorial Fellow at the University of Western Australia. His research uses both vertebrates and invertebrates to test the predictions and assumptions of theoretical models of sexual selection and life history evolution. Collectively, these research programs seek to determine the direction and strength of selection acting on male and female reproductive strategies, and on the morphological and life history traits that contribute to fitness, from the whole organism to its gametes. Leigh has published more than 200 papers and articles, authored a book on insect sperm competition, and co-edited a volume on dung beetle ecology and evolution. He has had extensive editorial experience with many journals including Proceedings of the Royal Society B, Behavioural Ecology and Sociobiology, and Advances in the Study of Behavior, as well as time as the editor-in-chief of Animal Behaviour.