Female choice linked to male dorsal fin height in a shortfin molly

Rebecca Jordan; David Howe; Tyson Knight; James Gould

doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-006-0196-4

Female choice linked to male dorsal fin height in a shortfin molly

Rebecca Jordan, David Howe, Tyson Knight, James Gould

SEBS - Human Ecology

Rutgers, The State University

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

10 Scopus citations

Abstract

Sexual selection is a possible mechanism of speciation. This could be true even in systems where female mate choice has not been clearly observed, because pre-existing biases may be expressed if female decision-making results in male trait evolution. In some mollies, males have enlarged dorsal fins and courtship display is the prevailing mating process. In others, male dominance is thought to play a greater role. We tested females of a species in the latter group, Poecilia mexicana, for consistent preference related to dorsal fin morphology. We found that females were biased toward larger dorsal fins. This latent preference could be an important driver in trait evolution.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	301-304
Number of pages	4
Journal	Journal of Ethology
Volume	24
Issue number	3
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-006-0196-4
State	Published - Jul 2006

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Animal Science and Zoology

Keywords

Female choice
Latent preference
Mollies
Poecilia
Pre-existing bias

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https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-006-0196-4

Cite this

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title = "Female choice linked to male dorsal fin height in a shortfin molly",

abstract = "Sexual selection is a possible mechanism of speciation. This could be true even in systems where female mate choice has not been clearly observed, because pre-existing biases may be expressed if female decision-making results in male trait evolution. In some mollies, males have enlarged dorsal fins and courtship display is the prevailing mating process. In others, male dominance is thought to play a greater role. We tested females of a species in the latter group, Poecilia mexicana, for consistent preference related to dorsal fin morphology. We found that females were biased toward larger dorsal fins. This latent preference could be an important driver in trait evolution.",

keywords = "Female choice, Latent preference, Mollies, Poecilia, Pre-existing bias",

author = "Rebecca Jordan and David Howe and Tyson Knight and James Gould",

note = "Funding Information: Acknowledgements We thank the Fisheries Department within the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries of Belize, and the Monkey Bay Ecological Reserve for making this work possible. We also thank Margaret Ptacek for her helpful advice, and two thoughtful reviewers who devoted substantial time to improvement of this manuscript. Finally, we acknowledge Princeton University, where this work was completed.",

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AU - Jordan, Rebecca

AU - Howe, David

AU - Knight, Tyson

AU - Gould, James

N1 - Funding Information: Acknowledgements We thank the Fisheries Department within the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries of Belize, and the Monkey Bay Ecological Reserve for making this work possible. We also thank Margaret Ptacek for her helpful advice, and two thoughtful reviewers who devoted substantial time to improvement of this manuscript. Finally, we acknowledge Princeton University, where this work was completed.

PY - 2006/7

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N2 - Sexual selection is a possible mechanism of speciation. This could be true even in systems where female mate choice has not been clearly observed, because pre-existing biases may be expressed if female decision-making results in male trait evolution. In some mollies, males have enlarged dorsal fins and courtship display is the prevailing mating process. In others, male dominance is thought to play a greater role. We tested females of a species in the latter group, Poecilia mexicana, for consistent preference related to dorsal fin morphology. We found that females were biased toward larger dorsal fins. This latent preference could be an important driver in trait evolution.

AB - Sexual selection is a possible mechanism of speciation. This could be true even in systems where female mate choice has not been clearly observed, because pre-existing biases may be expressed if female decision-making results in male trait evolution. In some mollies, males have enlarged dorsal fins and courtship display is the prevailing mating process. In others, male dominance is thought to play a greater role. We tested females of a species in the latter group, Poecilia mexicana, for consistent preference related to dorsal fin morphology. We found that females were biased toward larger dorsal fins. This latent preference could be an important driver in trait evolution.

KW - Female choice

KW - Latent preference

KW - Mollies

KW - Poecilia

KW - Pre-existing bias

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Female choice linked to male dorsal fin height in a shortfin molly

Abstract

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Keywords

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