scholarly journals Homosexual behaviour increases male attractiveness to females

2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 20121038 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Bierbach ◽  
Christian T. Jung ◽  
Simon Hornung ◽  
Bruno Streit ◽  
Martin Plath
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Reproductive Fitness ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Animal Kingdom ◽  
Male Attractiveness ◽  
Mate Choice Copying ◽  
Poecilia Mexicana ◽  
Direct Benefits ◽  
Opposite Sex

Male homosexual behaviour—although found in most extant clades across the Animal Kingdom—remains a conundrum, as same-sex mating should decrease male reproductive fitness. In most species, however, males that engage in same-sex sexual behaviour also mate with females, and in theory, same-sex mating could even increase male reproductive fitness if males improve their chances of future heterosexual mating. Females regularly use social information to choose a mate; e.g. male attractiveness increases after a male has interacted sexually with a female (mate choice copying). Here, we demonstrate that males of the tropical freshwater fish Poecilia mexicana increase their attractiveness to females not only by opposite-sex, but likewise, through same-sex interactions. Hence, direct benefits for males of exhibiting homosexual behaviour may help explain its occurrence and persistence in species in which females rely on mate choice copying as one component of mate quality assessment.

scholarly journals Same-Sex Gaze Attraction Influences Mate-Choice Copying in Humans

PLoS ONE ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. e9115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica L. Yorzinski ◽  
Michael L. Platt
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Mate Choice Copying

scholarly journals Mathematical toy model inspired by the problem of the adaptive origins of the sexual orientation continuum

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (9) ◽  
pp. 160403
Author(s):  
Brian Skinner
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Orientation ◽  
Sexual Behaviour ◽  
Mathematical Form ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Animal Kingdom ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Sex Attraction ◽  
Opposite Sex

Same-sex sexual behaviour is ubiquitous in the animal kingdom, but its adaptive origins remain a prominent puzzle. Here, I suggest the possibility that same-sex sexual behaviour arises as a consequence of the competition between an evolutionary drive for a wide diversity in traits, which improves the adaptability of a population, and a drive for sexual dichotomization of traits, which promotes opposite-sex attraction and increases the rate of reproduction. This trade-off is explored via a simple mathematical ‘toy model’. The model exhibits a number of interesting features and suggests a simple mathematical form for describing the sexual orientation continuum.

scholarly journals The role of model female quality in the mate choice copying behaviour of sailfin mollies

2005 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah E Hill ◽  
Michael J Ryan
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Choice Behaviour ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Mate Choice Copying ◽  
Female Quality ◽  
Phenotypic Quality ◽  
Similar Body ◽  
Sailfin Mollies

Female mate choice copying is a socially mediated mate choice behaviour, in which a male's attractiveness to females increases if he was previously chosen by another female as a mate. Although copying has been demonstrated in numerous species, little is known about the specific benefits it confers to copying females. Here we demonstrate that the mate choice behaviour of female sailfin mollies ( Poecilia latipinna ) is influenced by the phenotypic quality of model females with whom males are observed consorting. Test females choosing between two males of similar body length were found to significantly increase time spent with previously non-preferred males after having observed them with a relatively high-quality female. Conversely, females were found to significantly decrease time spent with previously preferred males after having observed them with a relatively low-quality female. Female mate choice copying might be maintained by selection based on the heuristic value it provides females choosing between males whose quality differences are not easily distinguishable.

scholarly journals Divergent Evolution of Male Aggressive Behaviour: Another Reproductive Isolation Barrier in Extremophile Poeciliid Fishes?

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Bierbach ◽  
Moritz Klein ◽  
Vanessa Sassmannshausen ◽  
Ingo Schlupp ◽  
Rüdiger Riesch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Reproductive Isolation ◽  
Hydrogen Sulphide ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Aggressive Behaviour ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Divergent Evolution ◽  
Poecilia Mexicana ◽  
Spring Area

Reproductive isolation among locally adapted populations may arise when immigrants from foreign habitats are selected against via natural or (inter-)sexual selection (female mate choice). We asked whether also intrasexual selection through male-male competition could promote reproductive isolation among populations of poeciliid fishes that are locally adapted to extreme environmental conditions [i.e., darkness in caves and/or toxic hydrogen sulphide (H2S)]. We found strongly reduced aggressiveness in extremophile Poecilia mexicana, and darkness was the best predictor for the evolutionary reduction of aggressiveness, especially when combined with presence of H2S. We demonstrate that reduced aggression directly translates into migrant males being inferior when paired with males from nonsulphidic surface habitats. By contrast, the phylogenetically old sulphur-endemic P. sulphuraria from another sulphide spring area showed no overall reduced aggressiveness, possibly indicating evolved mechanisms to better cope with H2S.

scholarly journals Test of the Deception Hypothesis in Atlantic Mollies Poecilia mexicana—Does the Audience Copy a Pretended Mate Choice of Others?

Biology ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaudia Witte ◽  
Katharina Baumgärtner ◽  
Corinna Röhrig ◽  
Sabine Nöbel
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Behavioral Change ◽  
Public Information ◽  
Information Use ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Audience Effect ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Poecilia Mexicana ◽  
Focal Fish ◽  
Males And Females

Animals often use public information for mate-choice decisions by observing conspecifics as they choose their mates and then copying this witnessed decision. When the copier, however, is detected by the choosing individual, the latter often alters its behavior and spends more time with the previously non-preferred mate. This behavioral change is called the audience effect. The deception hypothesis states that the choosing individual changes its behavior to distract the audience from the preferred mate. The deception hypothesis, however, only applies if the audience indeed copies the pretended mate choice of the observed individual. So far, this necessary prerequisite has never been tested. We investigated in Atlantic molly males and females whether, first, focal fish show an audience effect, i.e., alter their mate choices in the presence of an audience fish, and second, whether audience fish copy the mate choice of the focal fish they had just witnessed. We found evidence that male and female Atlantic mollies copy the pretended mate choice of same-sex focal fish. Therefore, a necessary requirement of the deception hypothesis is fulfilled. Our results show that public information use in the context of mate choice can be costly.

Colourful males hold high quality territories but exhibit reduced paternal care in barn swallows

Behaviour ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 151 (5) ◽  
pp. 591-612 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masaru Hasegawa ◽  
Emi Arai ◽  
Mamoru Watanabe ◽  
Masahiko Nakamura
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Feeding Rate ◽  
Paternal Care ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Breeding Habitat ◽  
Territory Quality ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Direct Benefits ◽  
Barn Swallows

The European barn swallow, Hirundo rustica rustica, is a model system of female mate choice for indirect benefits. Its long tail, which is the target of female mate choice, is positively related to the genetic quality of males, whereas direct benefits in terms of territory quality and paternal care are unimportant in the choice of long-tailed males. However, the situation may differ in other subspecies where male ornaments other than tail length are elaborate and appear to be the main target of female choice. Here we studied whether throat colouration, a sexually selected trait, provides direct benefits in terms of territory quality and parental care in a population of Japanese barn swallows, H. r. gutturalis, which have short tails and large throat patches. We compared dyads of males occupying neighbouring territories to study the relationship between male ornamentation and territory quality in our sparse population. Males with higher quality territories had more colourful throat patches than males with lower quality territories, indicating a positive relationship between male throat colouration and the quality of their territory. In contrast, male feeding rate decreased with increasing colourfulness of male throat patch without confounding with female feeding rate. These results are consistent with previous studies showing a positive association between plumage colouration and testosterone levels. The trade-off between the two direct benefits of mate choice, i.e., territory quality and paternal care, can explain sexual selection for colourful throat patches rather than long tails in our sparse outdoor population, a typical breeding habitat in Japan, whereas it predicts a reverse pattern in dense indoor populations as found in Europe.

scholarly journals The complexities of female mate choice and male polymorphisms: Elucidating the role of genetics, age, and mate-choice copying

2015 ◽  
Vol 61 (6) ◽  
pp. 1015-1035 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kasey D. Fowler-Finn ◽  
Laura Sullivan-Beckers ◽  
Amy M. Runck ◽  
Eileen A. Hebets
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Genetic Basis ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Mate Choice Copying ◽  
Male Phenotype ◽  
Sexual Traits ◽  
The Difference

Abstract Genetic, life history, and environmental factors dictate patterns of variation in sexual traits within and across populations, and thus the action and outcome of sexual selection. This study explores patterns of inheritance, diet, age, and mate-choice copying on the expression of male sexual signals and associated female mate choice in a phenotypically diverse group of Schizocosa wolf spiders. Focal spiders exhibit one of two male phenotypes: ‘ornamented’ males possess large black brushes on their forelegs, and ‘non-ornamented’ males possess no brushes. Using a quantitative genetics breeding design in a mixed population of ornamented/non-ornamented males, we found a strong genetic basis to male phenotype and female choice. We also found that some ornamented males produced some sons with large brushes and others with barely visible brushes. Results of diet manipulations and behavioral mating trials showed no influence of diet on male phenotype or female mate choice. Age post maturation, however, influenced mate choice, with younger females being more likely to mate with ornamented males. A mate-choice copying experiment found that, following observations of another female’s mate choice/copulation, virgin mature females tended to match the mate choice (ornamented vs. non-ornamented males) of the females they observed. Finally, analyses of genetic variation across phenotypically pure (only one male phenotype present) vs. mixed (both phenotypes present) populations revealed genetic distinction between phenotypes in phenotypically-pure populations, but no distinctionin phenotypically-mixed populations. The difference in patterns of genetic differentiation and mating across geographic locations suggests a complex network of factors contributing to the outcome of sexual selection.

scholarly journals How the Presence of Others Affects Desirability Judgments in Heterosexual and Homosexual Participants

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
John E. Scofield ◽  
Bogdan Kostic ◽  
Erin Michelle Buchanan
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Contextual Information ◽  
Enhancement Effect ◽  
Homosexual Men ◽  
Human Species ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Mate Choice Copying ◽  
Sexual Orientations ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
Opposing Effects

Mate-choice copying is a mating strategy wherein females rely on contextual information to assist in securing accurate assessments of potential mates. Mate-choice copying has been extensively studied in non-human species and has begun to be examined in humans as well. Hill and Buss (2008) found evidence of opposing effects for men and women in desirability judgments based on the presence of other opposite-sex people. The current project successfully replicated these findings with 44 heterosexual females and 73 heterosexual males, finding support for the desirability enhancement effect in female participants and the desirability diminution effect in male participants. The current project also extended these findings to include 73 male and 32 female participants identifying as homosexual. Homosexual men exhibited the desirability enhancement effect, and homosexual women exhibited the desirability diminution effect, revealing sex differences in mate-choice copying spanning different sexual orientations.

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