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- Title
Frequency distributions, dimorphisms, and allometric variation in size of the weapon on male harvestmen (Arthropoda, Arachnida, Opiliones).
- Authors
Packard, Gary C.
- Abstract
Males of numerous species of harvestman have been reported to be dimorphic with respect to size of the weapon that is used in aggressive encounters with conspecific males. The claim of dimorphism was based in every instance on finite mixture modeling of the frequency distribution for size of the weapon, with the detection of bimodality being equated with the detection of dimorphism. I used the Hartigan dip test and frequency histograms to re-examine the original data for size of the weapon in males of five species of harvestman. Distributions for two of the species are unimodal by both dip test and graphical display; distributions for two others have an appearance of bimodality in frequency diagrams but do not depart significantly from unimodality by the dip test; and the distribution for the remaining species is multimodal by the dip test but appears to be unimodal in graphical display. Patterns of bivariate (allometric) variation follow sigmoidal curves for all five species, with the steep part of the curve corresponding with the low point in the histogram for the two species that give an appearance of bimodality. Thus, bimodality — when it can be detected and confirmed — is most likely to be a consequence of an unexpected pattern of allometric variation and not dimorphism.
- Subjects
DISTRIBUTION (Probability theory); OPILIONES; ARACHNIDA; SPECIES distribution; MALES
- Publication
Evolutionary Ecology, 2023, Vol 37, Issue 4, p749
- ISSN
0269-7653
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s10682-023-10235-7