Male-biased sex ratios
Different reproductive functions of male and female individuals of dioecious species may lead to sexual differences in life histories. Espirito-Santo et al. (pp. 13-19) show that males of a Neotropical shrub, Baccharis dracunculifolia, produce inflorescences before females, which then delay fruit maturation until the dry season. This different flowering phenology was associated with higher female mortality, thus helping to explain the male-biased sex ratio of this population.
