Abstract
In a Siberian population of the Wood Lemming a considerable excess of females has been observed for three subsequent years of low density. Female-biased sex ratio is associated with a high concentration of the X* chromosome which induces the development of X*Y specimens as females. The frequency of XY females was noticeably higher than that expected at equilibrium under random segregation of sex chromosomes in males and X*X° females. Estimates of FIS index were obtained from the frequencies of homozygotes and heterozygotes for the Idh-1 locus and for dimorphic chromosome No. 2. Apparently inbreeding does not contribute to the maintenance of the aberrant genetic system of sex determination in natural populations of Myopus schisticolor.
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
References
Bengtsson, B O. 1977. Evolution of the sex ratio in the wood lemming, Myopus schisticolor. In: Fenchel, T. M. and Christiansen, F. M. (eds), Measuring Selection in Natural Populations, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, pp. 333–343.
Bull, J J, and Bulmer, M G. 1981. The evolution of XY females in mammals. Heredity, 47, 347–365.
Fredga, K. 1988. Aberrant chromosomal sex-determining mechanisms in mammals, with special reference to species with XY females. Phil Trans Roy Soc Lond, B322, 83–95.
Fredga, K, Gropp, A, Winking, H, and Frank, F. 1976. Fertile XX- and XY-type females in the wood lemming, Myopus schisticolor. Nature, 261, 225–227.
Fredga, K, Gropp, A, Winking, H, and Frank, F. 1977. A hypothesis explaining the exceptional sex ratio in the wood lemming (Myopus schisticolor). Hereditas, 85, 101–104.
Gileva, E A. 1987. Meiotic drive in the sex chromosome system of the varying lemming, Dicrostonyx torquatus Pall. (Rodentia, Microtinae). Heredity, 59, 383–389.
Gileva, E A, Benenson, I E, Konopistseva, L A, Puchkov, V F, and Makaranets, I A. 1982. XO females in the varying lemming, Dicrostonyx torquatus; reproductive performance and its evolutionary significance. Evolution, 36, 601–609.
Gileva, E A, Bolshakov, V N, Sadykov, O F, and Omariev, T J. 1983. Chromosome variability and deviating sex ratio in two Urals populations of the wood lemming Myopus schisticolor Lilljeborg, 1884. Proc Acad Sci USSR, 270, 453–456 (in Russian).
Gileva, E A, and Chebotar', N A. 1979. Fertile XO males and females in the varying lemming Dicrostonyx torquatus Pall. (1779). Heredity, 42, 67–77.
Kalela, O, and Oksala, T. 1966. Sex ratio in the wood lemming Myopus schisticolor (Lilljeb.) in nature and in captivity. Ann Univ Turkuensis, Ser A, 2, 1–24.
Maynard Smith, J, and Stenseth, N C. 1978. On the evolutionary stability of the female-biased sex ratio in the wood lemming (Myopus schisticolor): the effect of inbreeding. Heredity, 41, 205–214.
Nei, M, and Chesser, R K. 1983. Estimation of fixation indices and gene diversities. Ann Hum Genet, 47, 253–259.
Ralls, K, Harvey, P H, and Lyles, A M. 1986. Inbreeding in natural populations of birds and mammals. In: Soule, M. E. (ed.), Conservation Biology, Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, pp. 35–56.
Selander, R K, Smith, M H, Yang, S Y, Johnson, W E, and Gentry, J B. 1971. Biochemical polymorphisms and systematics in the genus Peromyscus: 1. Variation in the old-field mouse, Peromyscus polionotus. In: Studies in Genetics VI, Texas University Publications, Texas, N7103, pp. 49–90.
Stenseth, N C. 1978. Is the female biased sex ratio in wood lemming Myopus schisticolor maintained by cyclic inbreeding? Oikos, 30, 83–89.
Ward, R H, and Sing, C E. 1970. A consideration of the power of the χ2 test to detect inbreeding effects in natural populations. Am Natur, 104, 355–365.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gileva, E., Fedorov, V. Sex ratio, XY females and absence of inbreeding in a population of the Wood Lemming, Myopus schisticolor Lilljeborg, 1844. Heredity 66, 351–355 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.1991.44
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.1991.44