Male secondary sexual traits do not predict female preference in Caribbean livebearing fishes ( Limia )

Ethology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Montrai Spikes ◽  
Sophia Huebler ◽  
Ingo Schlupp
Keyword(s):  
Female Preference ◽  
Secondary Sexual Traits ◽  
Sexual Traits ◽  
Secondary Sexual

Female preference for a male sexual trait uncorrelated with male body size in the Palmate newt (Triturus helveticus)

Behaviour ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 144 (7) ◽  
pp. 797-814 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Adult Survival ◽  
Filament Length ◽  
Secondary Sexual Traits ◽  
Male Condition ◽  
Sexual Traits ◽  
Palmate Newt ◽  
Secondary Sexual

AbstractMate choice is often based on the assessment of multiple traits. Depending on whether traits provide redundant or different information about male characteristics, correlation between traits is expected to arise or not. In species where size increases with age, body size can be a reliable indicator of adult survival whereas secondary sexual traits advertise other qualities like the ability to exploit local resources. However, because of correlations between morphological traits it is often difficult to determine whether females base their preference on the absolute or the relative size of secondary sexual traits. We addressed this issue in the palmate newt, Triturus helveticus. We selected the two most variable traits, body size and filament length, whose weak correlation suggested that they could signal different aspects of male condition or quality. We tested female preference for both traits in two experiments in which we controlled either for body size or filament length. Females preferred males with long filament in experiment 1 and males with small body sizes in experiment 2. The preference for an exaggerated trait like the caudal filament is not unexpected in a context of inter-sexual selection. In contrast, the preference for small males contrasts with usual findings on mate choice. However, body size might not be a reliable quality indicator because males of different cohorts can experience different conditions throughout their life. The caudal filament, grown each breeding period, likely reflects male condition. By assessing such a character, females might evaluate the performance of a potential partner in the current environment regardless of its age.

Female secondary sexual traits in spiders: Adaptive interpretations of the sternum projection in the pholcid Holocnemus pluchei

Zoology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 136 ◽  
pp. 125694 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucia Calbacho-Rosa ◽  
Franco Cargnelutti ◽  
Alfredo V. Peretti ◽  
Luiz Ernesto Costa-Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Sexual Traits ◽  
Sexual Traits ◽  
Secondary Sexual

scholarly journals Can roosters′ head ornaments serve as a criterion for their selection as a valuable reproducers?

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 747-755 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ewa Łukaszewicz ◽  
Paulina Bagińska ◽  
Martyna Lasoń
Keyword(s):  
Fluctuating Asymmetry ◽  
Secondary Sexual Traits ◽  
Broiler Breeder ◽  
Testes Size ◽  
Sexual Traits ◽  
Positive Correlations ◽  
Secondary Sexual

Abstract It is widely practiced that before mating the roosters are selected as reproducers mainly on the basis of head ornaments appearance. Relationship between males secondary sexual traits (comb and wattles) with testes size, as all of them are testosterone-dependent traits, were examined. Measurements of head ornaments and testes from two broiler breeder lines and two laying lines of chicken were correlated. The value of fluctuating asymmetry (FA) of bilateral traits was also measured. Positive correlations were found for head ornaments and testes weight in one of broiler breeder lines. No correlations were found for males of laying lines. The degree of FA did not differ between lines, except for FA of wattle length, which was higher (P≤0.05) for one of the broiler lines. Results obtained indicated that head ornaments cannot be used as the only criterion for rooster selection as reproducers.

scholarly journals Adiposity, compared with masculinity, serves as a more valid cue to immunocompetence in human mate choice

2013 ◽  
Vol 280 (1751) ◽  
pp. 20122495 ◽  
Author(s):  
Markus J. Rantala ◽  
Vinet Coetzee ◽  
Fhionna R. Moore ◽  
Ilona Skrinda ◽  
Sanita Kecko ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Good Genes ◽  
Secondary Sexual Traits ◽  
Genetic Quality ◽  
Secondary Sexual Trait ◽  
Sexual Traits ◽  
Handicap Hypothesis ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Secondary Sexual

According to the ‘good genes’ hypothesis, females choose males based on traits that indicate the male's genetic quality in terms of disease resistance. The ‘immunocompetence handicap hypothesis’ proposed that secondary sexual traits serve as indicators of male genetic quality, because they indicate that males can contend with the immunosuppressive effects of testosterone. Masculinity is commonly assumed to serve as such a secondary sexual trait. Yet, women do not consistently prefer masculine looking men, nor is masculinity consistently related to health across studies. Here, we show that adiposity, but not masculinity, significantly mediates the relationship between a direct measure of immune response (hepatitis B antibody response) and attractiveness for both body and facial measurements. In addition, we show that circulating testosterone is more closely associated with adiposity than masculinity. These findings indicate that adiposity, compared with masculinity, serves as a more important cue to immunocompetence in female mate choice.

Quantitative Genetic Analysis of Divergence in Male Secondary Sexual Traits Between Drosophila simulans and Drosophila mauritiana

Evolution ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 51 (3) ◽  
pp. 816 ◽  
Author(s):  
John R. True ◽  
Jianjun Liu ◽  
Lynn F. Stam ◽  
Zhao-Bang Zeng ◽  
Cathy C. Laurie
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Analysis ◽  
Drosophila Simulans ◽  
Secondary Sexual Traits ◽  
Quantitative Genetic ◽  
Drosophila Mauritiana ◽  
Sexual Traits ◽  
Quantitative Genetic Analysis ◽  
Secondary Sexual

Triploidy in a sexually dimorphic passerine provides new evidence for the effect of the W chromosome on secondary sexual traits in birds

2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (11) ◽  
pp. 1475-1480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Crisley de Camargo ◽  
H. Lisle Gibbs ◽  
Mariellen C. Costa ◽  
Luís F. Silveira ◽  
Cláudia A. Rainho ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexually Dimorphic ◽  
W Chromosome ◽  
Secondary Sexual Traits ◽  
Sexual Traits ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
Secondary Sexual
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