Female mate choice and male parental defense behaviour in the cichlid fish Cichlasoma nigrofasciatum

1985 ◽  
Vol 63 (11) ◽  
pp. 2489-2493 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miles H. A. Keenleyside ◽  
Robert W. Rangeley ◽  
Bryan U. Kuppers
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Aggressive Behaviour ◽  
Cichlid Fish ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Cichlasoma Nigrofasciatum ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Size Classes ◽  
Adult Conspecific ◽  
Brood Guarding

Female Cichlasoma nigrofasciatum presented with three potential spawning partners of different sizes spawned most often near the medium-sized male. When mate choice was restricted to males of two size classes, females consistently spawned near the larger male. In the former experiment, small males courted females more actively than medium or large males did. This may explain why females occasionally spawned near small males in both experiments. Larger brood-guarding males showed more intensive aggressive behaviour towards an adult conspecific confined near their offspring than did smaller brood-guarding males. Selection will therefore favour the female choice of relatively large mates because such males are likely to be more effective defenders of their offspring.

Female Choice in Middendorff's Grasshopper-Warbler (Locustella Ochotensis)

The Auk ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 103 (4) ◽  
pp. 694-700 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hisashi Nagata
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Food Abundance ◽  
Territory Size ◽  
Territory Quality ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Nest Sites ◽  
Grasshopper Warbler

Abstract Morphological and territorial factors that influence female mate choice were examined in the monogamous Middendorff's Grasshopper-Warbler (Locustella ochotensis) on an islet near Fukuoka, Japan. I assumed that pairing date corresponded with female mate choice. Pairing date was correlated with both territory size and food abundance but was not correlated with selected morphological characteristics of males. Territorial quality was assumed to be correlated with territory size because preferable food resources and nest sites were distributed randomly. I conclude that female mate choice was influenced by territory quality rather than by the morphological characteristics of males.

scholarly journals Dual functions of a melanin-based ornament in the common yellowthroat

2005 ◽  
Vol 272 (1568) ◽  
pp. 1121-1127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott A Tarof ◽  
Peter O Dunn ◽  
Linda A Whittingham
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Male Competition ◽  
Male Quality ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Common Yellowthroat ◽  
Mask Size ◽  
The Common ◽  
Dual Functions

Melanin-based ornaments often function as signals in male–male competition, whereas carotenoid-based ornaments appear to be important in female mate choice. This difference in function is thought to occur because carotenoid pigments are more costly to produce than melanins and are thus more reliable indicators of male quality. We examined the role of melanin- and carotenoid-based ornaments in male–male competition and female choice in the common yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas , a sexually dichromatic passerine. Males display a black facial mask produced by melanin pigmentation and a bright yellow bib (throat, breast and belly) produced by carotenoid pigmentation. In controlled aviary experiments, mask size was the best predictor of both male–male competition and female mate choice, and, therefore, mask size may be regarded as an ornament of dual function. These dual functions may help to maintain the reliability of mask size as an indicator of male quality, despite the potentially low cost of production. The size of the bib was unrelated to male–male competition or female choice, but there was a tendency for females to prefer males with more colourful bibs. We propose that the black mask is important in competition for territories with other males and for attracting females. Our results highlight the need for more studies of the mechanisms of sexual selection in species with ornaments composed of different pigment types.

scholarly journals Sexual conflict over mating in Gnatocerus cornutus ? Females prefer lovers not fighters

2014 ◽  
Vol 281 (1785) ◽  
pp. 20140281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kensuke Okada ◽  
Masako Katsuki ◽  
Manmohan D. Sharma ◽  
Clarissa M. House ◽  
David J. Hosken
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Sexual Conflict ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Indirect Costs ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Male Competition ◽  
Female Fitness ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
Horned Beetle

Female mate choice and male–male competition are the typical mechanisms of sexual selection. However, these two mechanisms do not always favour the same males. Furthermore, it has recently become clear that female choice can sometimes benefit males that reduce female fitness. So whether male–male competition and female choice favour the same or different males, and whether or not females benefit from mate choice, remain open questions. In the horned beetle, Gnatocerus cornutus, males have enlarged mandibles used to fight rivals, and larger mandibles provide a mating advantage when there is direct male–male competition for mates. However, it is not clear whether females prefer these highly competitive males. Here, we show that female choice targets male courtship rather than mandible size, and these two characters are not phenotypically or genetically correlated. Mating with attractive, highly courting males provided indirect benefits to females but only via the heritability of male attractiveness. However, mating with attractive males avoids the indirect costs to daughters that are generated by mating with competitive males. Our results suggest that male–male competition may constrain female mate choice, possibly reducing female fitness and generating sexual conflict over mating.

scholarly journals Female mate choice across spatial scales: influence of lek and male attributes on mating success of blue-crowned manakins

2009 ◽  
Vol 276 (1663) ◽  
pp. 1875-1881 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renata Durães ◽  
Bette A. Loiselle ◽  
Patricia G. Parker ◽  
John G. Blake
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Genetic Quality ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Genetic Benefits

Lekking males compete for females within and among leks, yet female choice is expected to work differently at each of these spatial scales. We used paternity analyses to examine how lek versus male attributes influence mate choice in the blue-crowned manakin Lepidothrix coronata . We tested the hypotheses that females prefer (i) to mate at larger leks where a larger number of potential mates can be assessed, (ii) to mate with unrelated or highly heterozygous males expected to produce high-quality offspring, (iii) to mate with males that display at higher rates, and that (iv) display honestly reflects male genetic quality. Our results show that (i) males at larger leks are not more likely to sire young, although females nesting close to small leks travel further to reach larger leks, (ii) siring males are not less related to females or more heterozygous than expected, (iii) within a lek, high-display males are more likely to sire young, and (iv) both male heterozygosity and display rate increased with lek size, and as a result display does not reliably reflect male genetic quality across leks. We suggest that female mate choice in this species is probably driven by a Fisherian process rather than adaptive genetic benefits.

scholarly journals Neural and molecular mechanisms underlying female mate choice decisions in vertebrates

2020 ◽  
Vol 223 (17) ◽  
pp. jeb207324
Author(s):  
Ross S. DeAngelis ◽  
Hans A. Hofmann
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Social Behaviors ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
The Brain

ABSTRACTFemale mate choice is a dynamic process that allows individuals to selectively mate with those of the opposite sex that display a preferred set of traits. Because in many species males compete with each other for fertilization opportunities, female mate choice can be a powerful agent of sexual selection, often resulting in highly conspicuous traits in males. Although the evolutionary causes and consequences of the ornamentation and behaviors displayed by males to attract mates have been well studied, embarrassingly little is known about the proximate neural mechanisms through which female choice occurs. In vertebrates, female mate choice is inherently a social behavior, and although much remains to be discovered about this process, recent evidence suggests the neural substrates and circuits underlying other fundamental social behaviors (such as pair bonding, aggression and parental care) are likely similarly recruited during mate choice. Notably, female mate choice is not static, as social and ecological environments can shape the brain and, consequently, behavior in specific ways. In this Review, we discuss how social and/or ecological influences mediate female choice and how this occurs within the brain. We then discuss our current understanding of the neural substrates underlying female mate choice, with a specific focus on those that also play a role in regulating other social behaviors. Finally, we propose several promising avenues for future research by highlighting novel model systems and new methodological approaches, which together will transform our understanding of the causes and consequences of female mate choice.

scholarly journals Does divergence in female mate choice affect male size distributions in two cave fish populations?

2008 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
pp. 452-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Tobler ◽  
Ingo Schlupp ◽  
Martin Plath
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Selection ◽  
Body Size ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Female Preference ◽  
Large Male ◽  
Male Body ◽  
Male Size ◽  
Female Mate

Sexual selection by female choice can maintain male traits that are counter selected by natural selection. Alteration of the potential for sexual selection can thus lead to shifts in the expression of male traits. We investigated female mate choice for large male body size in a fish ( Poecilia mexicana ) that, besides surface streams, also inhabits two caves. All four populations investigated, exhibited an ancestral visual preference for large males. However, only one of the cave populations also expressed this female preference in darkness. Hence, the lack of expression of female preference in darkness in the other cave population leads to relaxation of sexual selection for large male body size. While P. mexicana populations with size-specific female mate choice are characterized by a pronounced male size variation, the absence of female choice in one cave coincides with the absence of large bodied males in that population. Our results suggest that population differences in the potential for sexual selection may affect male trait variation.

scholarly journals Female mate choice for multimodal courtship and the importance of the signaling background for selection on male ornamentation

2013 ◽  
Vol 59 (2) ◽  
pp. 200-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jay A. Stafstrom ◽  
Eileen A. Hebets
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Female Choice ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Direct Selection ◽  
Mating Frequency ◽  
Complex Nature ◽  
Successful Transmission ◽  
Female Mate ◽  
Sensory Modalities ◽  
Courtship Displays

Abstract Conspicuous visual ornaments are frequently incorporated into complex courtship displays that integrate signal components from multiple sensory modalities. Mature male Schizocosa crassipes (Walckenaer, 1837) wolf spiders wave, arch, and tap their ornamented forelegs in a visual courtship display that simultaneously incorporates seismic components. To determine the importance of modality-specific signal components in female mate choice, we used a signal ablation design and compared the mating frequency of female-male pairs across signaling environments with manipulated modality-specific transmission properties. We found that the successful transmission of isolated visual or seismic signaling was sufficient for mating success; neither signaling modality was necessary. Additionally, the environment enabling the successful transmission of composite, multimodal displays yielded the highest mating frequencies. Our results indicate the presence of selection from S. crassipes females for multimodal courtship and suggest that multimodal signaling may facilitate mating across variable signaling environments. We next explored the influence of ornamentation per se on female choice by phenotypically manipulating males into two groups: (i) intact (brushes present) and (ii) shaved (brushes absent). We compared the mating frequencies of intact versus shaved males in the presence versus absence of seismic signaling. Males with brushes intact had higher mating frequencies than shaved males, but only under specific signaling conditions – in the presence of seismic signaling. Female choice for male brushes then appears dependent on the signaling background, making brushes themselves an unlikely target of direct selection. Our results emphasize the complex nature of female choice, highlighting the potential for both trait interactions and environment-dependent selection.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document