Evolution by Sexual Selection

Charles Darwin published his second book “Sexual selection and the descent of man” in 1871 150 years ago, to try to explain, amongst other things, the evolution of the peacock’s train, something that he famously thought was problematic for his theory of evolution by natural selection. He proposed that the peacock’s train had evolved because females preferred to mate with males with more elaborate trains. This idea was very controversial at the time and it wasn’t until 1991 that a manuscript testing Darwin’s hypothesis was published. The idea that a character could arise as a result of a female preference is still controversial. Some argue that there is no need to distinguish sexual from natural selection and that natural selection can adequately explain the evolution of extravagant characteristics that are characteristic of sexually selected species. Here, I outline the reasons why I think that this is not the case and that Darwin was right to distinguish sexual selection as a distinct process. I present a simple verbal and mathematical model to expound the view that sexual selection is profoundly different from natural selection because, uniquely, it can simultaneously promote and maintain the genetic variation which fuels evolutionary change. Viewed in this way, sexual selection can help resolve other evolutionary conundrums, such as the evolution of sexual reproduction, that are characterised by having impossibly large costs and no obvious immediate benefits and which have baffled evolutionary biologists for a very long time. If sexual selection does indeed facilitate rapid adaptation to a changing environment as I have outlined, then it is very important that we understand the fundamentals of adaptive mate choice and guard against any disruption to this natural process.

Darwinian Evolutionary Theory

10.1093/oso/9780190867577.003.0001 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Michael Ruse

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Natural Selection ◽

Middle Class ◽

Evolutionary Theory ◽

Scientific Community ◽

Homo Sapiens ◽

Origin Of Species ◽

Theory Of Evolution ◽

Charles Robert Darwin, the English naturalist, published On the Origin of Species in 1859 and the follow-up work The Descent of Man in 1871. In these works, he argued for his theory of evolution through natural selection, applying it to all organisms, living and dead, including our own species, Homo sapiens. Although controversial from the start, Darwin’s thinking was deeply embedded in the culture of his day, that of a middle-class Englishman. Evolution as such was an immediate success in scientific circles, but although the mechanism of selection had supporters in the scientific community (especially among those working with fast-breeding organisms), its real success was in the popular domain. Natural selection, and particularly the side mechanism of sexual selection, were known to all and popular themes in fiction and elsewhere.

2. Evolution and natural selection

Philosophy of Biology: A Very Short Introduction ◽

10.1093/actrade/9780198806998.003.0002 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 9-26

Author(s):

Samir Okasha

Keyword(s):

Natural Selection ◽

Charles Darwin ◽

Natural World ◽

Early 20Th Century ◽

Philosophical Argument ◽

Modern Biology ◽

Theory Of Evolution ◽

Philosophical Significance ◽

Argument From Design ◽

Evolution By Natural Selection

In 1859 Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species, in which he set out his theory of evolution. The book marked a turning point in our understanding of the natural world and revolutionized biology. ‘Evolution and natural selection’ outlines the theory of evolution by natural selection, explaining its unique status in biology and its philosophical significance. It considers how Darwin’s theory undermined the ‘argument from design’, a traditional philosophical argument for the existence of God; how the integration of Darwin’s theory with genetics, in the early 20th century, gave rise to neo-Darwinism; and why, despite evolutionary theory being a mainstay of modern biology, in society at large there is a marked reluctance to believe in evolution.

What the human annals tell us

Behavioral and Brain Sciences ◽

10.1017/s0140525x9925220x ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 22 (5) ◽

pp. 888-888 ◽

Author(s):

Gwen J. Broude

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Natural Selection ◽

Kin Selection ◽

Reciprocal Altruism ◽

Cross Cultural ◽

Mental Processes ◽

Theory Of Evolution ◽

And Behavior ◽

Cultural Data

Evidence reveals numerous cross-cultural universals regarding human mental processes and behavior. Similarly, cross-cultural data are consistent with predictions from theories of kin selection, reciprocal altruism, and sexual selection inspired by Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. Thus, the “annals of human behaviour” do provide “example[s] fitting the sociobiological bill,” (Lifelines, p. 202) thereby, supporting sociobiological accounts of human behavior.

Darwin, Teleology and Taxonomy

Philosophy ◽

10.1017/s003181910006040x ◽

1973 ◽

Vol 48 (183) ◽

pp. 35-49 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Andrew Woodfield

Keyword(s):

Natural Selection ◽

Philosophy Of Science ◽

The Sun ◽

Origin Of Species ◽

Theory Of Evolution ◽

Language User ◽

The Subject ◽

Darwinism is ‘much more than a theory’, said the German botanist Albert Wigand in 1875; ‘it is a frame of mind which dominates thought, a resuscitated “Naturphilosophie”, in which the terms “Polarity”, “Totality”, “Subject”, “Object” are replaced by terms such as “Struggle for Existence”, “Inheritance”, “Selection”, and so on.’ Subsequent events have indicated that Wigand had a point. But it is not clear to us yet what exactly the point is. Interest in Man's Place in Nature, and in his alleged biological uniqueness as a language-user and tool-maker, is as great now as it was in 1871 when Darwin's Descent of Man was first published. We now have access to well over a hundred years' worth of material sparked off by The Origin of Species, linking Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection to almost every field under the sun. Yet the precise status of his theory is still the subject of vigorous controversy in philosophy of science.

Darwin's Use of Intellectual Disability in The Descent of Man

Disability Studies Quarterly ◽

10.18061/dsq.v28i2.96 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 28 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Steven A. Gelb

Keyword(s):

Intellectual Disability ◽

Natural Selection ◽

Intellectual Disabilities ◽

Human Evolution ◽

Mental State ◽

Charles Darwin ◽

Human Beings ◽

Theory Of Evolution ◽

When Charles Darwin turned his attention to writing about human descent in 1871 he attempted to narrow the fossil gap between human beings and higher primates by presenting persons with intellectual disabilities — "idiots" in the language of the day — as evidence in support of the theory of evolution. This paper explores the four ways that Darwin used persons with intellectual disabilities in The Descent of Man: 1) as intermediate rung on the evolutionary ladder connecting humans and primates; 2) as exemplars of the inevitable waste and loss produced by natural selection acting upon variability; 3) as the floor of a scale representing the "lowest", most unfit variety of any species when individuals were rank ordered by intelligence; and 4) as atavistic reversions to extinct forms whose study would reveal the characteristics of earlier stages of human evolution. Darwin's strategic use of intellectual disability is brought to bear on the controversy regarding the mental state of Darwin's last child.

Charles Darwin and the Falkland Islands

Polar Record ◽

10.1017/s0032247400005659 ◽

1985 ◽

Vol 22 (139) ◽

pp. 413-420 ◽

Author(s):

Richard Grove

Keyword(s):

Natural Selection ◽

South America ◽

Charles Darwin ◽

Galapagos Islands ◽

Falkland Islands ◽

Galápagos Islands ◽

Southern South America ◽

Theory Of Evolution ◽

Endemic Flora

AbstractCharles Darwin's notes, diary entries and letters covering visits to southern South America and the Falkland Islands in 1833 and 1834 throw light on the revolutionary events of the time. His notes also contain the first indication of an evolutionary concept, suggested by the endemic flora and fauna of the Falklands, which guided his later observations on the Galapagos Islands and lead ultimately to his theory of evolution by natural selection.

Charles Darwin, sexual selection and the evolution of other-regarding ethics

BJHS Themes ◽

10.1017/bjt.2021.5 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-21

Author(s):

Piers J. Hale

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Natural Selection ◽

Charles Darwin ◽

Future Research ◽

Woman Question ◽

Self Interest ◽

Acquired Characters ◽

Other Regarding ◽

Descent Of Man ◽

Selection Of

Abstract Although many read Charles Darwin's Origin of Species as an endorsement, rather than merely a description, of individualism and competition, in Descent of Man (1871) Darwin intended to show that natural selection could account for the most noble aspects of human morality and conscience. He did so in response to Alfred Russel Wallace's 1869 statement to the contrary. In doing so, Darwin appealed to the natural selection of groups rather than individuals, and to the maternal, parental and filial instincts, as the origin of truly other-regarding moral sentiments. Further, the inheritance of acquired characters and sexual selection had important implications for Darwin's understanding of how other-regarding ethics might prevail in an evolutionary framework that seemed to reward self-interest. In a short addendum to this essay I highlight just three of a number of Darwin's contemporaries who were impressed by this aspect of his work: the science popularizer Arabella Buckley, the Scottish Presbyterian scholar Henry Drummond and the anarchist geographer and naturalist Peter Kropotkin. In closing, I point to an extensive network of others who framed their concerns about both the ‘labour question’ and the ‘woman question’ in evolutionary terms, as a fruitful area for future research in this direction.

The Gene's-Eye View of Evolution

10.1093/oso/9780198862260.001.0001 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

J. Arvid Ågren

Keyword(s):

Natural Selection ◽

Evolutionary Biology ◽

Charles Darwin ◽

Evolutionary Genetics ◽

Selfish Gene ◽

Theory Of Evolution ◽

Social Sciences And Humanities ◽

Oxford University ◽

The Social ◽

Evolution By Natural Selection

To many evolutionary biologists, the central challenge of their discipline is to explain adaptation, the appearance of design in the living world. With the theory of evolution by natural selection, Charles Darwin elegantly showed how a purely mechanistic process can achieve this striking feature of nature. Since Darwin, the way many biologists think about evolution and natural selection is as a theory about individual organisms. Over a century later, a subtle but radical shift in perspective emerged with the gene’s-eye view of evolution in which natural selection was conceptualized as a struggle between genes for replication and transmission to the next generation. This viewpoint culminated with the publication of The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins (Oxford University Press, 1976) and is now commonly referred to as selfish gene thinking. The gene’s-eye view has subsequently played a central role in evolutionary biology, although it continues to attract controversy. The central aim of this accessible book is to show how the gene’s-eye view differs from the traditional organismal account of evolution, trace its historical origins, clarify typical misunderstandings and, by using examples from contemporary experimental work, show why so many evolutionary biologists still consider it an indispensable heuristic. The book concludes by discussing how selfish gene thinking fits into ongoing debates in evolutionary biology, and what they tell us about the future of the gene’s-eye view of evolution. The Gene’s-Eye View of Evolution is suitable for graduate-level students taking courses in evolutionary biology, behavioural ecology, and evolutionary genetics, as well as professional researchers in these fields. It will also appeal to a broader, interdisciplinary audience from the social sciences and humanities including philosophers and historians of science

Adaptation

Evolutionary Ecology ◽

10.1093/oso/9780195131543.003.0008 ◽

2001 ◽

Author(s):

David Reznick ◽

Joseph Travis

Keyword(s):

Natural Selection ◽

Charles Darwin ◽

Theory Of Evolution ◽

Cause And Effect ◽

Definition Of ◽

Life On Earth ◽

Diversity Of Life ◽

First Time ◽

Over Time

When Charles Darwin and Alfred Russell Wallace proposed their theory of evolution by natural selection, the concepts of evolution and speciation were not new. Darwin introduced The Origin with “An Historical Sketch,” in which he summarized the work of 34 previous authors who had speculated on evolution and the origin of species. What was new about Darwin and Wallace’s proposition was natural selection as the mechanism of evolutionary change. Darwin further proposed that natural selection was a unifying process that accounts for adaptation, for speciation, and hence for the diversity of life on earth. Darwin and Wallace proposed natural selection as a process that caused evolution. Adaptations are features of organisms that were shaped by this process. The modern version of Darwin and Wallace’s theory allows for other agents of evolution, such as genetic drift, migration, and mutation, but adaptation remains a product of natural selection alone. The virtue of their proposal is that it allows us to develop testable hypotheses about cause-and-effect relationships between features of the environment and presumed adaptations. Natural selection immediately became a source of controversy, although the nature of the controversy has shifted over time. First, there has been considerable debate about the definition of adaptation (e.g., Reeve and Sherman 1993). We do not wish to add to or summarize this debate because we feel that Darwin got it right the first time. Besides defining a cause-and-effect relationship between selection and adaptation, Darwin emphasized that we should not expect organisms to be perfectly adapted to their environment. In fact, this emphasis was a large component of his argument against divine creation. For example, Darwin recognized, through his experience with artificial selection, that different aspects of morphology were in some way “tied” to one another so that selection on one trait would cause correlated changes in others that were not necessarily adaptive. He also recognized that organisms were subject to constraints that might limit their ability to adapt. Finally, he argued that how organisms evolved was a function of their history, so that the response to selection on the same trait would vary among lineages. A more telling criticism considers the application of cause-and-effect reasoning to the interpretation of features of organisms as adaptations, and hence to the empirical study of adaptation.

Darwinism

On Purpose ◽

10.23943/princeton/9780691195957.003.0006 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 91-113

Author(s):

Michael Ruse

Keyword(s):

Sexual Selection ◽

Natural Selection ◽

Scientific Community ◽

Charles Darwin ◽

Slow Process ◽

End Point ◽

Julian Huxley ◽

The World ◽

Hans Christian Andersen ◽

This chapter describes how Charles Darwin changed the world after publishing On the Origin of Species in 1859 and The Descent of Man in 1871. Although there were those who continued generally to stand firm against evolution, even the religious accepted that organisms, including humans, are the end point of a long, slow process of natural development. As in the Hans Christian Andersen tale about the lad who said openly that the king has no clothes, so when Darwin said “evolution,” almost everyone said that they had known it all along! Natural selection had more mixed success. Everyone accepted it to some extent. Julian Huxley, for instance, always had some doubts about its universal power and applicability, but when it came to humans physically, he was fully convinced of its overwhelming importance. This said, the scientific community was slower in coming to full acceptance, and it was more in the popular domain that natural selection—and even more sexual selection—was a huge success. Poets, novelists, politicians, and many others also harped on and on about its importance.