Sexual selection: the handicap principle does work – sometimes

1987 ◽  
Vol 231 (1262) ◽  
pp. 123-145 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Threshold Value ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Handicap Principle ◽  
Feedback Process ◽  
Fitness Effects ◽  
High Viability ◽  
Female Mating Preferences ◽  
Line Of Equilibria ◽  
Threshold Increase

Zahavi’s ‘handicap principle’ proposes that females prefer males with handicaps (mating characters that reduce survival chances) because handicaps are indicators of heritable viability. It is shown here that there are conditions under which the ‘handicap principle’ causes the runaway exaggeration of male handicaps and female mating preferences. The conditions required are ( a ) that the fitness effects of the handicap and ‘viability’ genes combine non-multiplicatively (Zahavi’s handicap), and/or ( b ) that the handicap should directly reveal the presence or absence of genes for high viability (the revealing handicap). The ‘handicap principle’ by itself cannot initiate increases in female preference when the handicap is rare. It only works when a threshold value of female preference is exceeded, and Fisher’s feedback process operates. When Fisher’s feedback process occurs alone, a line of equilibria exists, where for each intensity of female preference there is a corresponding equilibrium development of the male mating character. When the ‘handicap principle’ also operates, the internal line of equilibria is eliminated, and only boundary equilibria persist (i. e. fixation or loss of the handicap). All populations at what were previously internal equilibria, or in which the intensity of female preference is above threshold, increase in a runaway to fixation of the handicap; therefore, handicapping male mating characters are more likely to be exaggerated when they are also indicators of viability.

scholarly journals FEMALE MATE PREFERENCE IS FOR MALE TOTAL LENGTH, NOT TAIL LENGTH IN FERAL GUPPIES

Behaviour ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 139 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 1491-1508 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenji Karino ◽  
Jun Matsunaga
Keyword(s):  
Female Choice ◽  
Tail Length ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Handicap Principle ◽  
Total Length ◽  
Sexually Selected Traits ◽  
Female Preferences ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Selected Traits

AbstractExaggerated male traits can evolve either directly by female choice of males with those traits or indirectly by female preferences for related traits. In this study, we tested whether female choice was based upon male tail length or total length in a feral guppy population in Okinawa, Japan. In this population, about 30% of the males had elongated sword-like tails, and even swordless males had longer tails than females. A series of dichotomous female choice experiments revealed that female guppies chose mates by total length, not by tail length itself. This is inconsistent with the handicap principle. Tail elongation of male guppies may have evolved as a male mating strategy to enhance their attraction to females, mediated by female preference for longer male total length. However, only one-third of the males developed pronounced sword-like tails. This suggests that there are some costs for tail elongation or trade-offs between multiple sexually selected traits. Alternatively, tail elongation may be a deceptive male strategy with frequency-dependent success.

Ultraviolet reflectance and female mating preferences in the common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)

2008 ◽  
Vol 86 (6) ◽  
pp. 479-483 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Zampiga ◽  
G. Gaibani ◽  
D. Csermely
Keyword(s):  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Visible Spectral Range ◽  
Falco Tinnunculus ◽  
Uv Filter ◽  
Skin Reflectance ◽  
Ultraviolet Reflectance ◽  
Uv Reflectance ◽  
Female Mating Preferences ◽  
Uv Reflection

Previous studies revealed the importance of plumage brightness (considering only the visible spectral range) in female mate choice of common kestrels ( Falco tinnunculus L., 1758). Our study focuses on the effect of UV reflectance on female preference; we hypothesize that common kestrel females prefer males with UV-reflecting plumage and refuse, or are not attracted to, males whose plumage UV reflectance is prevented. We tested the preference of 20 captive females who were given a choice between two males, one behind a UV-transmitting (UV+) filter and another one behind a UV-blocking (UV–) filter. Female preference was measured as frequency and duration of visits to either male, specifically by sitting on the perch or hanging on to the partition wall. Females visited the male behind the UV+ filter more often than the male behind the UV– filter, indicating that females prefer males with UV-reflecting plumage than males without UV reflection. UV plumage and skin reflectance could provide females with information regarding current male conditions more so than other colours and other morphological parameters.

scholarly journals MALE MATING SUCCESS AND FEMALE PREFERENCE FOR MULTIPLE TRAITS IN THE TWOLINE PUPFISH (CYPRINODON BIFASCIATUS)

Behaviour ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 138 (10) ◽  
pp. 1303-1318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Murray Itzkowitz ◽  
Anna Ludlow ◽  
David Baird
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Laboratory Experiments ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Male Reproductive Success ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Male Body ◽  
Male Mating Success ◽  
Substrate Type ◽  
Sandy Substrate ◽  
Cyprinodon Bifasciatus

AbstractSummary Using the twoline pupfish (Cyprinodon bifasciatus), a species with a resource-based polygynous breeding system, we examined male mating success in the wild, and we experimentally investigated effects of male body size and substrate type on female association patterns in the laboratory. Our purpose was to (a) identify the traits contributing to male reproductive success in the field, (b) measure preferences for each trait independently in the laboratory, and (c) determine the relative importance of each trait. Field observations revealed that substrate type was the main determinant of male reproductive success: males defending territories on rocks mated significantly more often than males defending territories on silt or sand. Laboratory experiments supported the field data, and revealed that the female preference for substrate type was independent of male body size effects. When given a choice between two males matched for size but differing in the type of substrates they were defending, females preferred the male on the rocky substrate over the male on the sandy substrate. Laboratory experiments also revealed a female preference for larger males when substrate type was held constant. Finally, when females were presented with a choice between a large male on a sandy substrate and a small male on a rocky substrate, no clear preference emerged. We provide several interpretations for this result, and we argue that both traits may be strong predictors of the male's competitive ability.

scholarly journals Consistent female preference for rare and unfamiliar male color patterns in wild guppy populations

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 1672-1681 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer J Valvo ◽  
F Helen Rodd ◽  
Kimberly A Hughes
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Poecilia Reticulata ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Color Patterns ◽  
High Genetic Diversity ◽  
Frequency Dependent ◽  
Frequency Dependent Selection ◽  
Negative Frequency Dependent Selection

Abstract How genetic variation is maintained in ecologically important traits is a central question in evolutionary biology. Male Trinidadian guppies, Poecilia reticulata, exhibit high genetic diversity in color patterns within populations, and field and laboratory studies implicate negative frequency-dependent selection in maintaining this variation. However, behavioral and ecological processes that mediate this selection in natural populations are poorly understood. We evaluated female mate preference in 11 natural guppy populations, including paired populations from high- and low-predation habitats, to determine if this behavior is responsible for negative frequency-dependent selection and to evaluate its prevalence in nature. Females directed significantly more attention to males with rare and unfamiliar color patterns than to males with common patterns. Female attention also increased with the area of male orange coloration, but this preference was independent of the preference for rare and unfamiliar patterns. We also found an overall effect of predation regime; females from high-predation populations directed more attention toward males than those from low-predation populations. Again, however, the habitat-linked preference was statistically independent from the preference for rare and unfamiliar patterns. Because previous research indicates that female attention to males predicts male mating success, we conclude that the prevalence of female preference for males with rare and unfamiliar color patterns across many natural populations supports the hypothesis that female preference is an important process underlying the maintenance of high genetic variation in guppy color patterns.

scholarly journals Evidence for a receiver bias underlying female preference for a male mating pheromone in sea lamprey

2013 ◽  
Vol 280 (1771) ◽  
pp. 20131966 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. J. Buchinger ◽  
H. Wang ◽  
W. Li ◽  
N. S. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
High Volume ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Sea Lamprey ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Ancestral State ◽  
Mating Pheromone ◽  
Mate Search ◽  
Sexual Signalling ◽  
Cognitive Disposition ◽  
Receiver Bias

Receiver bias models suggest that a male sexual signal became exaggerated to match a pre-existing sensory, perceptual or cognitive disposition of the female. Accordingly, these models predict that females of related taxa possessing the ancestral state of signalling evolved preference for the male trait in a non-sexual context. We postulated that female preference for the male-released bile alcohol mating pheromone, 3 keto petromyzonol sulfate (3kPZS), of the sea lamprey ( Petromyzon marinus ) evolved as a result of a receiver bias. In particular, we propose that migratory silver lamprey ( Ichthyomyzon unicuspis ), a basal member of the Petromyzontidae, evolved a preference for 3kPZS released by stream-resident larvae as a means of identifying productive habitat for offspring. Larval silver lamprey released 3kPZS at rates sufficient to be detected by migratory lampreys. Females responded to 3kPZS by exhibiting upstream movement behaviours relevant in a migratory context, but did not exhibit proximate behaviours important to mate search and spawning. Male silver lamprey did not release 3kPZS at rates sufficient to be detected by females in natural high-volume stream environments. We infer that female silver lamprey cue onto 3kPZS excreted by stream-resident larvae as a mechanism to locate habitat conducive to offspring survival and that males do not signal with 3kPZS. We suggest that this female preference for a male signal in a non-sexual context represents a bias leading to the sexual signalling observed in sea lamprey.

scholarly journals Female preference for multi-modal courtship: multiple signals are important for male mating success in peacock spiders

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1820) ◽  
pp. 20152222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madeline B. Girard ◽  
Damian O. Elias ◽  
Michael M. Kasumovic
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Sexually Dimorphic ◽  
Complex Signals ◽  
Sexually Selected Traits ◽  
Redundant Signal ◽  
Multiple Messages ◽  
Selected Traits

A long-standing goal for biologists has been to understand how female preferences operate in systems where males have evolved numerous sexually selected traits. Jumping spiders of the Maratus genus are exceptionally sexually dimorphic in appearance and signalling behaviour. Presumably, strong sexual selection by females has played an important role in the evolution of complex signals displayed by males of this group; however, this has not yet been demonstrated. In fact, despite apparent widespread examples of sexual selection in nature, empirical evidence is relatively sparse, especially for species employing multiple modalities for intersexual communication. In order to elucidate whether female preference can explain the evolution of multi-modal signalling traits, we ran a series of mating trials using Maratus volans . We used video recordings and laser vibrometry to characterize, quantify and examine which male courtship traits predict various metrics of mating success. We found evidence for strong sexual selection on males in this system, with success contingent upon a combination of visual and vibratory displays. Additionally, independently produced, yet correlated suites of multi-modal male signals are linked to other aspects of female peacock spider behaviour. Lastly, our data provide some support for both the redundant signal and multiple messages hypotheses for the evolution of multi-modal signalling.

scholarly journals Male-male interactions select for conspicuous male colouration in damselflies

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Md Kawsar Khan ◽  
Marie E. Herberstein
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Choice Experiment ◽  
Sexual Maturity ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Female Mate Preference ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Juvenile Males ◽  
First Time

AbstractMale ornamentation, such as conspicuous male colouration, can evolve through female mate choice. Alternatively, in species without overt female mate preference, conspicuous male colouration can evolve via intrasexual selection to resolve male-male competition or to prevent costly male-male mating attempts. Here, we investigated the drivers of conspicuous male colouration in an ontogenetic colour changing damselfly, Xanthagrion erythroneurum, where the juvenile males are yellow and change colour to red upon sexual maturity. We first showed that red males were chromatically and achromatically more conspicuous than the yellow males. We then quantified the condition of the males and showed that red males were larger and in better condition than yellow males. We tested female preference in a choice experiment where we artificially manipulated male colour, and found that females did not choose mates based on male colouration. We further tested whether the male colouration affected male-male interactions. We presented red and yellow males in the breeding arena, and found that red males received less intra- and interspecific aggression than yellow males. Our study experimentally showed, for the first time, that male conspicuousness is not a target of female mate choice in damselflies. Intra- and interspecific male-male interactions therefore appear to be the driver of conspicuous male colouration in damselflies.

scholarly journals Disruptive sexual selection on male nuptial coloration in an experimental hybrid population of cichlid fish

2008 ◽  
Vol 363 (1505) ◽  
pp. 2861-2870 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rike B Stelkens ◽  
Michele E.R Pierotti ◽  
Domino A Joyce ◽  
Alan M Smith ◽  
Inke van der Sluijs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Flow ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Cichlid Fish ◽  
Hybrid Population ◽  
Disruptive Selection ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Mating Preferences ◽  
Nuptial Coloration ◽  
Female Mating ◽  
Female Mating Preferences

Theory suggests that genetic polymorphisms in female mating preferences may cause disruptive selection on male traits, facilitating phenotypic differentiation despite gene flow, as in reinforcement or other models of speciation with gene flow. Very little experimental data have been published to test the assumptions regarding the genetics of mate choice that such theory relies on. We generated a population segregating for female mating preferences and male colour dissociated from other species differences by breeding hybrids between species of the cichlid fish genus Pundamilia . We measured male mating success as a function of male colour. First, we demonstrate that non-hybrid females of both species use male nuptial coloration for choosing mates, but with inversed preferences. Second, we show that variation in female mating preferences in an F 2 hybrid population generates a quadratic fitness function for male coloration suggestive of disruptive selection: intermediate males obtained fewer matings than males at either extreme of the colour range. If the genetics of female mate choice in Pundamilia are representative for those in other species of Lake Victoria cichlid fish, it may help explain the origin and maintenance of phenotypic diversity despite some gene flow.

VARIATION IN LEKKING COSTS IN BLACKBUCK (ANTILOPE CERVICAPRA): RELATIONSHIP TO LEK-TERRITORY LOCATION AND FEMALE MATING PATTERNS

Behaviour ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 137 (5) ◽  
pp. 547-563 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kavita Isvaran ◽  
Yadavendradev Jhala
Keyword(s):  
Mating Success ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Time Activity ◽  
Mating Patterns ◽  
Female Mating ◽  
Focal Animal ◽  
Male Phenotype ◽  
Antilope Cervicapra ◽  
Foraging Time

AbstractWe studied variation in lekking costs in an Indian antelope, the blackbuck Antilope cervicapra, in relation to female mating patterns. We tested the hypothesis that central males had a higher mating success and faced higher costs than peripheral males. We used continuous focal animal sampling to estimate time-activity budgets of individually identified central and peripheral lekking males and bachelor males. Scan sampling was used to estimate the time spent on the lek by central and peripheral males and to monitor female visits to the lek. We mapped lek-territories and monitored territory additions, territory turnover, and the location of matings. We found that central males faced higher costs than peripheral males. Central males foraged less, spent more time on the lek and tended to have higher fighting rates than peripheral males. Corresponding to this difference in costs, mating benefits were also greater for central males. Our results suggest that lek-territory location may be an important cue in female choice. Male mating success was skewed and 90% of matings observed occurred in the lek-centre. Furthermore, three of the five most successful males previously held territories in the lek-periphery where they were not observed to mate. Territory turnover was higher in the centre than in the periphery and males tended to move towards the centre while shifting territories. Based on these findings, we suggest that central and peripheral males follow two different strategies in response to a female preference for central territories: while central males may try to maximise encounters with oestrous females by investing heavily in lekking, peripheral males seem to attempt to maximise their chances of gaining central territories by not compromising on foraging time and investing less in lekking. Since we did not directly measure male phenotype, its role in explaining the patterns we found remains to be studied.

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