Male pioneering as a mating strategy: the case of the beetle Maladera matrida

1. The phenomenon of male pioneering, whereby males are active (daily) befo re females, is compared with protandry, a phenomenon whereby males are sexu ally matured before females. The effects of natural selection and sexual se lection on both phenomena are discussed. 2. In Maladera matrida Argaman (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), males emerged fr om the soil a few minutes before females, every evening, to feed and mate. 3. Aggregations of males and females are formed at sites of plant damage wh ere males initiated feeding. 4. All copulations were initiated at the beginning of the activity period s o males that emerge earlier may increase their probability of finding a mat e. 5. Females mate only once in an evening. 6. Males that emerge later may not find receptive females with which to mat e. 7. The aggregation of beetles per se did not contribute to the individual m ating success because it occurred during and after the copulating had begun . 8. Male pioneering may evolve through sexual selection by means of male-mal e competition in time to achieve receptive females.