Size matters—how thrips choose their partners

The bigger the male, the higher his chances to successfully mate—this applies, at least, to thrips, insects measuring only two to three millimetres in length that are hard to recognise with the naked eye. The larger males not only drive off their smaller rivals, they also have better immune systems and produce more sperm. This discovery was made by biologists at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU). Their study is published in the Journal of Insect Behaviour.