scholarly journals Context-dependent mate choice in relation to social composition in green swordtails Xiphophorus helleri

2008 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 998-1005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick J. Royle ◽  
Jan Lindström ◽  
Neil B. Metcalfe
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Xiphophorus Helleri ◽  
Social Composition ◽  
Context Dependent

scholarly journals Context-dependent male mate choice: the effects of competitor presence and competitor size

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 355-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophia Callander ◽  
Patricia R. Y. Backwell ◽  
Michael D. Jennions
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Male Mate Choice ◽  
Context Dependent ◽  
Male Mate

scholarly journals Context-dependent female mate choice maintains variation in male sexual activity

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (7) ◽  
pp. 170303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolin Sommer-Trembo ◽  
Martin Plath ◽  
Jakob Gismann ◽  
Claudia Helfrich ◽  
David Bierbach
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Sexual Activity ◽  
Balancing Selection ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Sexually Active ◽  
Male Harassment ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
The Social ◽  
Choice Tests ◽  
Context Dependent

The existence of individual variation in males' motivation to mate remains a conundrum as directional selection should favour high mating frequencies. Balancing selection resulting from (context-dependent) female mate choice could contribute to the maintenance of this behavioural polymorphism. In dichotomous choice tests, mosquitofish ( Gambusia holbrooki ) females preferred virtual males showing intermediate mating frequencies, reflecting females' tendencies to avoid harassment by highly sexually active males. When tested in the presence of a female shoal—which protects females from male harassment—focal females showed significantly stronger preferences for high sexual activity. A trade-off between (indirect) benefits and (direct) costs of mating with sexually active males probably explains context-dependent female mate choice, as costs depend on the social environment in which females choose their mates. No preference was observed when we tested virgin females, suggesting that the behavioural pattern described here is part of the learned behavioural repertoire of G. holbrooki females.

scholarly journals Meta-analysis shows that context-dependent mating behaviour is inconsistent or weak across animals

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liam R. Dougherty
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Effect Sizes ◽  
Sexual Signals ◽  
Average Effect ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Sexual Signalling ◽  
Context Dependent ◽  
Density Population

AbstractAnimals often need to invest significantly in mating behaviour in order to successfully mate. However, the expression of mating behaviour can be costly, especially in unfavourable environments, so animals are expected to adjust their behaviour in a context-dependent way to mitigate these costs. I systematically searched the literature for studies measuring animal mating behaviour (sexual signalling, response to sexual signals, or the strength of mate choice) in more than one environment, and used a phylogenetically-controlled meta-analysis to identify environmental factors influencing these behaviours. Across 222 studies, the strength of mate choice was significantly context-dependent, and most influenced by population density, population sex ratio, and predation risk. However, the average effect sizes were typically small. The amount of sexual signalling and the strength of response to sexual signals were not significantly related to the environment. Overall, this suggests that the evidence for context-dependent mating behaviour across animals is surprisingly weak.

Context-dependent visual preferences in starlings and blue tits: mate choice and light environment

2002 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sam A. Maddocks ◽  
Andrew T.D. Bennett ◽  
Sarah Hunt ◽  
Innes C. Cuthill
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Light Environment ◽  
Visual Preferences ◽  
Context Dependent ◽  
Blue Tits

scholarly journals Sex differences in behavioural and anatomical estimates of visual acuity in the green swordtail Xiphophorus helleri

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eleanor M. Caves ◽  
Fanny de Busserolles ◽  
Laura A. Kelley
Keyword(s):  
Visual Acuity ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Ganglion Cells ◽  
Visual Signals ◽  
Temporal Area ◽  
Xiphophorus Helleri ◽  
Eye Size ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Colour Patterns ◽  
Agonistic Encounters

Among fishes in the family Poeciliidae, signals such as colour patterns, ornaments, and courtship displays play important roles in mate choice and male-male competition. Despite this, visual capabilities in Poeciliids are understudied, in particular visual acuity, the ability to resolve detail. We used three methods to quantify visual acuity in male and female green swordtails (Xiphophorus helleri), a species in which body size and the length of the male's extended caudal fin (‘sword’) serve as assessment signals during mate choice and agonistic encounters. Topographic distribution of retinal ganglion cells (RGC) was similar in all individuals and characterized by areas of high cell densities located centro-temporally and nasally, as well as a weak horizontal streak. Based on the peak density of RGC in the centro-temporal area, anatomical acuity was estimated to be approximately 3 cycles/degree (cpd) in both sexes. However, a behavioural optomotor assay found significantly lower mean acuity in males (0.8 cpd) than females (3.0 cpd), which was not explained by differences in eye size between males and females. An additional behavioural assay, in which we trained individuals to discriminate striped gratings from grey stimuli of the same mean luminance, also showed lower acuity in males (1-2 cpd) than females (2-3 cpd). Thus, although retinal anatomy predicts identical acuity in males and females, two behavioural assays found higher acuity in females than males, a sexual dimorphism which is rare outside of invertebrates. Overall, our results have implications for understanding how Poeciliids perceive visual signals during mate choice and agonistic encounters.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document