Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Mate choice'
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Pitafi, Karim Dad. "Male mate choice in seaweed flies, Coelopa frigida." Thesis, University of Nottingham, 1991. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.293623.
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Choudhury, Sharmila. "Mate choice in Barnacle geese." Thesis, University of Oxford, 1992. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.306596.
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Vakirtzis, Antonios. "Nonindependent mate choice in humans." Thesis, University of Liverpool, 2012. http://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/5433/.
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Mate choice copying is the most studied type of nonindependent mate choice, i.e. mate choice that is influenced by the choices of other same-sex conspecifics (usually females). In copying, the probability of a male being chosen by a female ('focal' female) increases if he has previously been chosen by other females ('model' females) and decreases if he has been rejected. I critically review the non-human literature and conclude that from an evolutionary perspective copying is ill-suited to monogamous or relatively monogamous species like humans. I propose instead a related process where females are influenced not by a male‟s success at securing mates but by the quality of females that choose him. Although sometimes described as copying, this type of nonindependent mate choice is characterized by distinct evolutionary dynamics and ecological requirements, leads to different testable predictions and must therefore be urgently distinguished from mate choice copying. The term mate quality bias is suggested as an appropriate term for this phenomenon. I also report experimental studies that presented female raters with both static and video images of model females and their supposed partners. The two main findings to emerge from these experiments are a) the main - and perhaps the only - relevant cue in the model female is attractiveness and b) experimental studies can suffer from reduced external validity and need to be supplemented with non-experimental approaches. In line with this latter finding, I report one of the first non-experimental studies of nonindependent mate choice in humans. This involved the administration of a novel questionnaire to a large sample (n=401) of male and female undergraduates. The results of this study provide strong support support for nonindependent mate choice in humans a) being an empirical reality and b)influencing female, but not male choice. Finally, I report two experimental studies which examined how a man's partner influences male-male assessment and competition. The first used the dictator and ultimatum games to examine if offers made to male recipients were influenced by the attractiveness of the recipient‟s partner. The second used the Wason selection task to examine whether male subjects' cheater detection faculties are influenced by the attractiveness of the target male‟s partner (used here as a proxy for dominance). Although the results were generally in the expected direction, experimental manipulation of female partner attractiveness did not significantly affect male raters' perceptions of, and behaviour towards, the target male. The thesis concludes with a critical evaluation of the results obtained herein and suggestions for future research.
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Meyer, Timothy. "A Test of Two-axis Male Mate Choice in Schizocosa Ocreata (Hentz) Based on Experience and Cues Indicating Female State." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2017. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1505149313740743.
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Pribil, Stanislav. "Mate choice by female house wrens." Thesis, University of Ottawa (Canada), 1993. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/11084.
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This study examined female mate choice in the House Wren (Troglodytes aedon). The study was divided into two parts. The first part examined which territory or male traits contribute to female fitness. The second part examined whether females mate non-randomly with respect to those traits. Female fitness (nesting success, number of fledglings, nestling weight) was not related to any territory or male trait. Females mated randomly with respect to all traits except one: they preferred males who arrived early from migration to males who arrived late. However, the date of male arrival was not related to female fitness.
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Saxton, Tamsin K. "Individual Variation in Human Mate Choice." Thesis, University of Liverpool, 2008. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.507659.
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Huffman, Michael Alan. "MATE CHOICE IN FEMALE JAPANESE MONKEYS." 京都大学 (Kyoto University), 1989. http://hdl.handle.net/2433/86408.
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Whyte, Stephen G. "Decision making in mate choice markets." Thesis, Queensland University of Technology, 2018. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/118622/2/Stephen_Whyte_Thesis.pdf.
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Choosing a mate is arguably the largest decision a human can make. Mate choice can have significant short and long run impacts on the individual decision maker, as well as macroeconomic impacts for society. By studying individuals mating preferences and behaviours, and the factors at play when individuals make mate choice decisions, behavioural science can build a more developed understanding of the unseen mechanisms that drive large scale decision processes. Understanding the interplay of such factors as an individual's biology, personality, education, income, sex/gender, sexuality, and micro level behaviour, can inform and develop sciences understanding of how humans make decisions.
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Agnas, Axel Jönses Bernard. "Non-Independent Mate Choice in Female Humans (Homo sapiens) : Progression to the Field." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för biologisk grundutbildning, 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-278236.
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There is much evidence that mate-choice decisions made by humans are affected by social/contextual information. Women seem to rate men portrayed in a relationship as more desirable than the same men when portrayed as single. Laboratory studies have found evidence suggesting that human mate choice, as in other species, is dependent on the mate choice decisions made by same-sex rivals. Even though non-independent mate choice is an established and well-studied area of mate choice, very few field studies have been performed. This project aims to test whether women’s evaluation of potential mates desirability is dependent/non-independent of same-sex rivals giving the potential mates sexual interest. This is the first field study performed in a modern human’s natural habitat aiming to test for non- independent mate choice in humans. No desirability enhancement effect was found. The possibilities that earlier studies have found an effect that is only present in laboratory environments or have measured effects other than non-independent mate choice are discussed. I find differences in experimental design to be the most likely reason why the present study failed to detect the effect found in previous studies. This field study, the first of its sort, has generated important knowledge for future experimenters, where the most important conclusion is that major limitations in humans ability to register and remember there surrounding should be taken in consideration when designing any field study investigating human mate choice.
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Nash, Rebecca. "An evolutionary psychological analysis and evaluation of human male mate choice." Thesis, Bucks New University, 2005. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.419696.
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Houck, Amanda Karen. "Repeatability of Mate Preferences and Mate-Choice Copying in Female Zebra Finches." W&M ScholarWorks, 2007. https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd/1539626857.
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Belles-Isles, Jean-Claude. "Female mate choice in the house wren." Thesis, University of Ottawa (Canada), 1987. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/5086.
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Rupp, Jens C. "Mate choice and parasitism in freshwater snails." Thesis, University of Oxford, 1996. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.339354.
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Buchanan, Graeme Murray. "Mate choice in reed buntings (Emberiza schoeniclus)." Thesis, University of Sunderland, 2001. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.340397.
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Ophir, Alexander G. Galef Bennett G. "Mate assessment and non-independent mate choice by female Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) /." *McMaster only, 2003.
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Macario, Alessandro. "Ontogenetic environments and female mate choice in guppies, Poecilia reticulata." Thesis, University of Exeter, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10871/14288.
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Theoretical models of sexual selection assume that female mating preferences are fixed and variation found between individuals resulting solely from allelic variation at specific loci coding for sexual preferences. For the last decade, an increasing number of studies have demonstrated that individual phenotypic variation in preferences was common across a wide range of taxa and induced by the environmental context and the females’ condition. Further, developmental stages of life are crucial in the formation of behaviours in general and have proven to be determinant to learn sexual preferences in some species that dispense care for their young. However, very little studies have analysed how the early social and physical environments shape female mate choice in species that lack parental care. In this thesis, I used guppies (Poecilia reticulata), firstly, to investigate the influence of various aspects of the social environment provided by males during two ontogenetic phases. Secondly, I explored whether learned preferences in a foraging context during development could be transferred into a mating context. Considering the early social environment, I explored three distinctive features potentially displayed by males and that females might experience while growing. Females were reared with different values of a sexual trait not genetically preferred in the population (orange colour) and different values of a trait for which they had innate predisposition (total colour area). In both cases, females were exposed to the different treatments for the whole developmental period or for its later phase. My results indicated that females changed their sexual behaviours in response to both type of traits experienced, reversing sometimes their genetic preferences. Moreover, the timing of exposure seemed to be a key factor in the acquisition of preferences as females exposed only to the later part of development with different values of total colour didn’t rely anymore on colour patterns to discriminate among males. In a third body of experiment, I examined whether the overall phenotypic variance exhibited by males during whole development, independently of the values of a specific sexual cue, mediated female’s behaviours. In a context of high variance, female became choosier relatively to those experiencing less variance. As a response, males switched mating tactics and attempted more forced copulations. In its final part, my thesis searched for a link that might have arisen, owing to developmental conditions, between preferences using the same sensory modality in two behavioural contexts. Maturing females were given food that was associated to a certain colour and subsequently tested for both their coloured preference in a foraging and a sexual context. Although no foraging preference for the corresponding colour was detected, females that experienced a yellow stimulus preferred yellower males compared to females with other experiences. Taken together these results suggest that developmental conditions and especially the social environment play a pivotal role in the process of mate choice. Under some circumstances, learned mate preferences override genetically-based preferences highlighting the importance of non-genetic mechanisms. Accordingly, it is urgent to integrate in the study of sexual selection and reproductive isolation this dimension. In guppies, for instance, the effect of early social life might contribute to the maintenance of colour pattern polymorphism found in males.
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Head, Megan School of Biological Earth & Environmental Sciences UNSW. "Evolutionary consequences of the costs of mate choice." Awarded by:University of New South Wales. School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, 2005. http://handle.unsw.edu.au/1959.4/22414.
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While the existence of costs of mate choice is well accepted, the effects that these costs have on mating systems and the evolution of mate choice are controversial. The aim of this thesis is to explore a range of different types of costs, including costs of being choosy (using guppies, Poecilia reticulata) and costs of mating with attractive males (using house crickets, Acheta domesticus), and investigate how these costs influence female mating behaviour, sexual selection on males and the evolution of mate choice. I use a range of experimental techniques to investigate these questions including: comparisons of feral populations of guppies (Chapter Two), laboratory experiments that manipulate the social (sex ratio, density; Chapters Three and Four) and physical (water current; Chapter Five) environment in which guppies live, genetic paternity analysis and multivariate selection analysis (Chapter Four). I also conduct longitudinal studies of house crickets that estimate the net fitness consequences (Chapter Six) and indirect effects (Chapter Six and Seven) of mating with attractive males. My results demonstrate that the physical and social environment of individuals are important in determining the costliness of both sexual display and mate choice, and thus influence the mating behaviour of males and females. These differences in mating behaviour are often thought to lead to differences in sexual selection on males. My study of the effects of operational sex ratio and density on multivariate sexual selection, however, indicates that differences in behaviour may not necessarily translate into differences in selection. In contrast to predictions of recent theory, my results also indicate that although there are many costs to being choosy and to mating with attractive males, these may be outweighed by indirect benefits. Hence, despite direct costs of choice, mate choice may evolve via indirect benefits to females. Indirect benefits that are often neglected in sexual selection studies, that I show to be important in determining the net fitness of mating with attractive males, include the attractiveness of sons and the mate choice decisions of daughters. These results highlight the importance of examining the consequences of mate choice over multiple generations.
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Greenough, Julee Ann. "Signalling of genetic quality in mate choice models." Thesis, University of Oxford, 1991. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.302817.
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Green, Kelly-Ann. "Acoustic signalling and mate choice in field crickets." Thesis, University of Exeter, 2008. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.493641.
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In this thesis I investigate acoustic signalling and mate choice in the field crickets Giyllus bimaculatus and Gryllus campestris. I measured female response to calling song and courtship song In G. bimaculatus to address a number of questions. I looked at intrinsic factors affecting female mate choice by measuring female response to calling song throughout their reproductive lives and examining the effect of mating. I found that female choosiness but not magnitude of response to calling song was affected by age. I also found that non-virgin females were as choosy as virgin females but responded less. These results suggest that female choice is temporally plastic and that choosiness is costly.
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Fawcett, T. W. "Multiple cues and variation in mate-choice behaviour." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2003. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.598963.
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This thesis addresses two major questions commonly overlooked in studies of mate choice: how do animals use multiple cues to assess potential males, and why might there be substantial variation in mating preferences? I investigate these problems using a combination of mathematical models and choice-chamber experiments on the zebra finch, Taeniopygia guttata. I begin (Chapter 2) with a simple experiment to establish the consistency of mate preferences in female zebra finches. Consistency across repeated tests is not affected by experience of the parental phenotypes early in life. Interestingly, I find that the repeatability of two commonly used measures of preference is much lower than that for a third measure, hopping rate. Empirical studies have found evidence for multiple indicators of quality in several species, but less attention has been paid to how choosing individuals assess such multicomponent displays. In Chapter 3 I review published experiments on female choice using multiple cues, and conclude that preferences for multiple cues can only be demonstrated by independent manipulation of these cues. Costs of assessing cues and interactions between preferences for multiple cues are two topics that should be addressed in future research. Previous theoretical work has looked at multiple cues from the signaller’s point of view. In Chapter 4 I tackle the issue from the receiver’s perspective, constructing a model to predict the optimal strategy for assessing multiple cues. I find that the choosing sex should prioritise these cues differently depending on their own choosiness and the abundance of desirable mates. Counter-intuitively, the model predicts that animals should sometimes prioritise less accurate cues. In Chapter 5 I investigate female preferences for multiple cues in the zebra finch by experimentally manipulating beak colour and leg-band colour. In contrast to some widely cited studies. I find no overall preference for either of these cues, but substantial variation between females.
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Lewis, Kevin. "Stratification in the Early Stages of Mate Choice." Thesis, Harvard University, 2012. http://dissertations.umi.com/gsas.harvard:10477.
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Sociologists have long studied mate choice patterns to understand the shape of stratification systems. Romantic pairing involves intimacy and trust, and is therefore a prime indicator of the extent to which members of different social groupings (race/ethnicity, social class, education, religion) accept each other as social equals. The majority of this literature focuses on marriage, given the commitment marriage implies and the availability of nationally-representative data. In this dissertation, I examine the opposite end of the relationship spectrum: The initial screening and sorting process whereby strangers consider each other as potential mates; express interest in some subset of this population but not others; and find that this interest is or is not reciprocated. This beginning stage in mate choice is particularly important for our understanding of social boundaries because personality factors are likely to matter less and social characteristics to matter more. Yet because these initial forays into relationships are typically unobserved, we know very little about whom people consider as potential mates in the first place. I ask the following questions, corresponding to three empirical chapters: First, how do individuals from different status backgrounds vary in the types of strategies that they pursue and the degree of success that they achieve? Second, what underlying dynamics of homophily, competition, and gender asymmetry give rise to observed patterns of interaction, and under what circumstances do some of these boundaries break down? Third, how do strategies as well as preferences vary at different stages of selection, and at what point is homogeneity created? To answer these questions, I use detailed longitudinal data from a popular online dating site. These data are particularly useful for the study of social inequality not only due to the unique quantity and nature of information that is available, but also because online dating has become one of the primary ways that singles meet and marry today.Sociology
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Tazzyman, S. J. "Modelling the evolution and consequences of mate choice." Thesis, University College London (University of London), 2010. http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/814889/.
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This thesis considers the evolution and the consequences of mate choice across a variety of taxa, using game theoretic, population genetic, and quantitative genetic modelling techniques. Part I is about the evolution of mate choice. In chapter 2, a population genetic model shows that mate choice is even beneficial in self-fertilising species such as Saccharomyces yeast. In chapter 3, a game theoretic model shows that female choice will be strongly dependent upon whether the benefits are fixed, so that females receive the same fitness boost from a mating with a given male regardless of how many matings that male has, or dilutable, where the more females a male mates with, the lower the expected benefit to each. This leads to the prediction that mating skew should be higher in species in which the benefits of mate choice are hypothesised to be due to good genes. Part II is about the consequences of mate choice. The theoretical prediction from chapter 3 is borne out by a literature review of studies of wild populations of birds in chapter 4. In chapter 5, a quantitative genetic model about poison-dart frogs suggests that sexual selection can speed up the effect of random genetic drift. This may be of more general importance, further widening the evolutionary impact of sexual selection. Finally, in chapter 6, a game theoretic model of sperm competition shows that pre-copulatory mate choice can also have evolutionary effects upon post-copulatory behaviour, affecting the optimal ejaculate expenditure of males. Overall, mate choice is shown to be an important evolutionary force, with wide-ranging ramifications across diverse taxa, and eects so varied as to include the evolution of sex, the genetic variation in species, speciation, and post-copulatory behaviour, amongst others. These effects can be effectively explored using mathematical modelling.
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Bonato, Maud. "Mate choice and immunocompetence in ostriches (Struthio camelus)." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/1257.
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Thesis (PhD (Botany and Zoology))—University of Stellenbosch, 2009.Females of many bird species prefer to mate with males exhibiting elaborate ornamentation, which serves as an indicator of male quality. Such ornaments, called secondary sexual traits, could act as signals to females that males could confer direct and/or indirect genetic benefits (when offspring inherit superior genes), on offspring. In particular, it has been suggested that these signals relate to male ability to resist infections, as only high quality individuals are able to invest both in high immune defence and elaborate ornament expression. The ostrich (Struthio camelus) is the largest living bird and is a member of the family of flightless birds, the ratites. They are sexually dimorphic, males displaying black plumage, and a pink-coloured neck and bill; whereas females display dull-brown plumage (both sexes have white feathers). Little is known about the mating system of ostriches: they are promiscuous and in the wild, males and females have multiple partners. The communal nesting system of ostriches is unique in that only the major female and major male provide parental care, in the form of incubation and guarding the offspring until independence. Furthermore, a remarkable feature of cohorts is that offspring may differ greatly in size, and these size differences are likely to have a genetic basis arising from differing parental genotypic differences. As a trade-off between immune response and life-history traits has been documented in various bird species, I examined the relationships between male secondary sexual traits (and specifically colouration) and maternal investment; levels of immunocompetence in both parents and chicks; and chick growth. This study showed that females invest more at the egg stage in response to traits involved in the male courtship display: the colour of the neck, white and black body feathers, and the brightness of black feathers. As these traits, which are exposed during the courtship display as well as during male-male interactions, were related to male immune responses, I suggest that only high quality males will be able to display their condition optimally. Chicks with higher growth rates were found to have intermediate responses to stimulation of their humoral immune system with diphtheria and tetanus vaccines, suggesting that not only fitness benefits, but also costs are associated with mounting an immune response; and that variation in humoral responses and growth rates relates to how individuals trade off these costs and benefits. In addition, chick humoral responses were found to be related to the humoral response of both parents, but through different antibody responses (maternal responses to tetanus and paternal responses to diphtheria), suggesting that this component of the immune system is heritable. As the colouration of white feathers predicted chick growth rates, as well as a male’s ability to raise an antibody response, I suggest that this visual cue could serve as a signal to females of male humoral immunocompetence, therefore forming the basis of mate choice whereby females could increase the fitness of their offspring through higher growth rates.
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Johnson, Louise Janna. "Evolution of the mating system in saccharomyces." Thesis, Imperial College London, 2002. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.246311.
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Boogert, Neeltje. "The role of learned foraging behaviour in mate interactions and mate choice decisions in birds." Thesis, McGill University, 2011. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=97014.
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Successful foraging is essential for survival and reproductive success. Although many components of foraging are hard-wired, learning can affect the efficiency, techniques and food types chosen during searching, handling and feeding. It should therefore pay to choose and/or forage with a mate who has learned to be an efficient forager and can quickly exploit novel food sources. However, few studies have investigated whether learned foraging behaviour guides mate choice decisions, and whether mates actually profit from each other's foraging success. I addressed these questions using a combination of field and captive experiments in birds. I presented a novel foraging apparatus to territorial pairs of Zenaida doves (Zenaida aurita) in Barbados, and found that the same individual of a pair was always first to solve learning tests. Mates benefited by scrounging from each other's food discoveries and learned to exploit the novel food source as a result. When I presented food dispensers to flocks of wild zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) in Australia, mates visited the dispensers together more often than with other flock members. I then investigated whether learned foraging behaviour guides mate choice in zebra finches in captivity. Domesticated female zebra finches did not prefer the more efficient forager of two candidate mates, nor did they preferentially associate with males performing the same foraging technique as they had acquired as juveniles. When I released flocks of these birds into an aviary containing food patches that required different foraging techniques to exploit, they did not preferentially associate or form pair bonds with others exploiting the same patch. However, mates with different foraging techniques scrounged more from each other and thus benefitted from each other's skills more than did mates with the same technique. Overall, I found no evidence that foraging behaviour guides mate choice directly. However, in two further studies, one on zebra finches and one on song sparrows (Melospiza melodia), I demonstrated a positive correlation between song complexity and learning performance in a foraging context. These findings suggest that song complexity might indicate a male's learning abilities. Foraging behaviour is therefore a cognitive trait that may guide avian mate choice indirectly.S'approvisionner en nourriture est essentiel à la survie et au succès reproducteur. Même si plusieurs aspects des comportements d'approvisionnement sont innés, l'apprentissage influence souvent l'efficacité, les techniques et les choix alimentaires durant la recherche, la manipulation et l'ingestion des aliments. On peut donc s'attendre à ce qu'il soit avantageux de choisir et/ou de s'approvisionner avec un partenaire qui a appris à s'approvisionner efficacement et qui peut utiliser rapidement de nouvelles ressources. Cependant, peu d'études ont examiné si les comportements d'approvisionnement appris peuvent guider les décisions quant au choix de partenaire, et si les individus profitent du succès d'approvisionnement de leur partenaire. J'ai examiné ces questions en utilisant une combinaison d'expériences menées sur le terrain et en captivité. J'ai présenté une nouvelle tâche d'approvisionnement à des couples territoriaux de tourterelles à queue carrée (Zenaida aurita) à la Barbade, et découvert que le même membre d'un couple était toujours le premier à résoudre les tests d'apprentissage. Les partenaires chapardaient les aliments découverts et apprenaient ainsi à exploiter la nouvelle ressource alimentaire. Lorsque j'ai présenté des mangeoires à des volées de diamants mandarins (Taeniopygia guttata) sauvages en Australie, les partenaires ont visité les mangeoires ensemble plus souvent qu'avec d'autres membres du groupe. J'ai ensuite examiné si les comportements d'approvisionnement appris pouvaient guider le choix de partenaire chez le diamant mandarin en captivité. Les femelles diamants mandarin domestiquées n'ont pas préféré le plus efficace de deux partenaires potentiels, et n'ont pas choisi de s'associer à des mâles utilisant la même technique d'approvisionnement qu'elles avaient acquise comme juvéniles. Lorsque j'ai utilisé ces individus pour former des groupes dans des volières contenant des parcelles alimentaires qui devaient être exploitées avec différentes techniques, les individus n'ont pas préféré s'associer ou former des liens de couple avec d'autres individus utilisant le même type de parcelles. Cependant, les partenaires utilisant différentes techniques ont chapardé plus l'un de l'autre et ont ainsi davantage bénéficié d'aptitudes complémentaires que les partenaires utilisant tous deux la même technique. En résumé, le comportement d'approvisionnement ne semblait pas guider le choix de partenaire directement. Cependant, dans deux études conduites ultérieurement, une sur les diamants mandarins et une sur les bruants chanteurs (Melospiza melodia), j'ai démontré une corrélation positive entre la complexité du chant et certains aspects de la performance d'approvisionnement. Ces découvertes suggèrent que la complexité du chant pourrait indiquer la capacité d'apprentissage des mâles. Les comportements d'approvisionnement sont donc des processus cognitifs qui peuvent guider le choix du partenaire indirectement chez les oiseaux.
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Ord, Mark. "The bio-social influences over women's mate choice copying." Thesis, Northumbria University, 2017. http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/36279/.
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Background: Females assess the quality of potential mates based on the expression and presence of evolved cues and signals. Recent evidence shows that social information gained by observing the mate choices of same-sex peers can also influence mating decisions of females, i.e. mate choice copying (MCC). In humans, much of the MCC literature has focused on confirming the expression of this behaviour in women. Whilst findings are mixed, most research concludes that women do engage in MCC. Recent years have seen a shift away from confirming MCC in humans towards understanding how MCC alters the perception of traits possessed by males. Aims: This thesis sought to expand upon this research arc in three novel ways. First, it examines the interaction between known biological modulators of mate choice and MCC. Second, it explores the interaction between participant individual differences and MCC. Third, it investigates how MCC influences the perception of traits that are likely to increase the probability that a given male is selected as a mate. Method: Facial photographs of attractive and unattractive men were presented to participants in one of three conditions: i) men alone, without an accompanying image of a woman, and described as romantically single; ii) men presented alongside an attractive woman and described as her romantic partner; and iii) men presented alongside an unattractive woman and described as her romantic partner. Participants rated the photographs of men on questions specifically related to the three aims of this thesis. Results: Age and hormonal fluctuations associated with ovulation did not significantly alter MCC behaviour. There were no significant differences in MCC between younger and older participants, or between women at high or low fertility. Men who benefitted from MCC were perceived as significantly more faithful potential partners and were perceived as easier to acquire mates than men not benefiting from MCC. However, when participant individual differences (e.g. socio-sexual orientation, self-perceived mating success, self-esteem, big 5 personality factors and the dark triad factors) were factored into the analysis, MCC effects disappeared. Conclusion: Overall, MCC failed to replicate in 6 out of 7 experimental chapters contained within this thesis. This lack of replication occurs for both the novel, never before tested questions, but also for questions commonly asked and replicated in wider MCC literature. Replication failure raises questions about the context in which MCC occur. I call for a meta-analysis of existent data to clarify effect size, heterogeneity, and possible publication bias.
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Padilla-Bautista, Joaquin Alberto, Rolando Díaz-Loving, Isabel Reyes-Lagunes, Christian Enrique Cruz-Torres, and Nélida Padilla-Gámez. "Locus of control in mate choice: Etno-Psychometric validation." Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, 2017. http://repositorio.pucp.edu.pe/index/handle/123456789/123828.
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Today it seems as if each individual is responsible for choosing his/her mate. Historically, this process has been mainly regulated by culture, family and society, which make the rules and norms, and defines suitable behaviors in the mate selection process. This research aimed at constructing a scale to analyze if people consider themselves responsible for the choice of their partner and to what extent. A qualitative study using ATLAS.ti content analysis resulted in different theoretical factors. A second study sought to corroborate the theoretical factors using a principal component analysis, determining the following factors: Destiny-Predestination, Powerful Microcosm, and Internal Control factor, which explain 50.94% of the variance with 17 items. The instrument shows that the locus of control in mate choice is not a continuum that moves between internality and externality but, rather, it is multidimensional.En la actualidad pareciera que cada individuo es responsable de la elección de pareja, sin embargo, históricamente ha sido regulado por la cultura, familia y sociedad, quienes marcan las reglas, normas y conductas adecuadas para dicha elección. Esta investigación tuvo como propósito la construcción de una escala que analiza si una persona se considera a sí misma como responsable de la elección de su pareja; para ello se cuestiona la globalidad del proceso de locus de control. Un primer estudio, cualitativo, obtuvo indicadores usando ATLAS.ti, para obtener factores teóricos. Un segundo estudio corroboró los factores teóricos mediante un análisis de componentes principales, mostrando la existencia de los factores de: DestinoPredestinación, Poderosos del Microcosmos, y Control Interno, explicando con sus 17 ítems el 50.94% de varianza. Se concluye que el locus de control en la elección de pareja no es un continuo que se mueva entre internalidad y externalidad, sino que es multidimensional.
Actuellement, il semble que chaque individu est responsable du choix d’un couple, mais, historiquement, il a été réglementé par la culture, la famille et la société, qui marquent les règles, les normes et les comportements appropriés pour cette élection. Le but de cette recherche était la construction d’une échelle qui analyse si une personne se considère comme responsable du choix de son partenaire; pour cela, la globalité du processus de locus de contrôle est mise en question. Une première étude qualitative a obtenu des indicateurs en utilisant ATLAS.ti, pour obtenir des facteurs théoriques. Une deuxième étude a corroboré les facteurs théoriques au moyen d’une analyse des composantes principales, montrant l’existence des facteurs: Fate-Pré- destination, Microcosme Puissant et Contrôle Interne, expliquant avec leurs 17 items les 50.94% de variance. Nous concluons que le locus de contrôle dans le choix du couple n’est pas un continuum qui se déplace entre l’internalité et l’externalité, mais qu’il est multidimensionnel.
Hoje, parece que cada indivíduo é responsável pela escolha de seu parceiro, no entanto, tem sido historicamente regulado pela cultura, família e sociedade, que estabelecem regras, normas e comportamentos adequados a essa escolha. Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo construir uma escala que analise se uma pessoa se considera responsável pela escolha de seu parceiro; para isso, a globalidade do processo de locus de controle é questionada. Um primeiro estudo qualitativo, obteve indicadores usando ATLAS.ti, para obter fatores teóricos. Um segundo estudo corroborou os fatores teóricos através de uma análise de componentes principais, mostrando a existência dos fatores de Destinação-Predestinação, Poderosa do Microcosmo e Controle Interno, explicando com seus 17 itens 50.94% de variância. Concluímos que o locus de controle na escolha do par não é um continuum que se move entre internidade e externalidade, mas é multidimensional.
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Crabtree, Timothy Ryan. "Energetically Costly Mate Sampling and Female Zebra Finch Choice." W&M ScholarWorks, 2004. https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd/1539626452.
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Suvanto, L. (Leena). "Mate choice and genetic variation in male courtship song in Drosophila montana." Doctoral thesis, University of Oulu, 1999. http://urn.fi/urn:isbn:9514251911.
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Abstract
This thesis deals with factors affecting mate choice as well
as with genetic variation in male courtship song in Drosophila
montana. Males, which produced song with a high carrier
frequency, were found to court females, and also to succeed in
their courtship more often than the males producing low frequency
song. Male mating success correlated with the carrier frequency
of his song recorded after, but not before, an "artificial
winter", which suggests that a sexually selected male
trait is sensitive to environmental factors. A high carrier frequency
of male courtship song correlated positively with the survival
rate of the male's progeny from egg to adulthood (indirect
benefit for the female), but not with the fecundity of his mating
partner (no direct benefit for the female).
The heritabilities and the amount of additive and residual
variation in male courtship song characters were measured in two
populations using father-son regression and sib analysis. The songs
of the males from one of these populations were analysed for a
second time after the cold treatment. Most heritability values
were insignificant, largely due to high residual variation. During
the cold treatment, the additive variation increased and the residual
variation decreased in almost all song traits. Increased variation
in sexually selected traits may help the females to exercise selection between
the males during the mating season of the flies in the wild in
spring. This, and the fact that male song gives the female information
about the male's condition/genetic quality suggests
that in this species the evolution of female preferences for male
song characters could have evolved through condition-dependent
viability selection as postulated by "good genes" models.
Variation and inbreeding depression/heterosis were
studied in traits associated with fly reproduction using inbred
D. montana strains. Songs, hydrocarbons and some behavioural traits
of the flies varied significantly between strains. The strain of
both sexes affected female egg-laying, and the female strain, also,
the survival rate of the flies' progeny, in different
intra- and interspecific combinations. Heterosis was found in the
mating propensity of the flies and in the carrier frequency of
the male song. Diallel analysis revealed unidirectional dominance
towards higher carrier frequency. This direction is the same as
the direction of sexual selection exercised by the females of this
species suggesting that sexual selection could be a driving force
in evolution of this song trait.
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Peters, Marianne. "The role of male secondary sexual traits in human mate choice : are they preferred by females and do they signal mate quality ?" University of Western Australia. School of Psychology, 2008. http://theses.library.uwa.edu.au/adt-WU2008.0201.
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[Truncated abstract]Judgements of physical attractiveness are thought to reflect evolved preferences for a high quality mate. The central aim of this thesis was to investigate the hypothesis that female preferences are adaptations for finding good quality mates and that faces and bodies signal honest information about mate quality. To date, most human mate preference studies have examined face or body attractiveness alone, and many have created stimuli using computer graphic techniques. Throughout these studies, I endeavoured to maximise the biological relevance of my studies by incorporating both face and body attractiveness, and using photographs of individual participants. Most research on attractiveness has focused on faces or bodies separately, while our preferences have evolved based on both seen together. A fundamental requirement of studying face and body attractiveness independently is that there is no interaction between the two. My first study confirmed that the face and body did not interact when an overall attractiveness judgment was made. I also investigated the independent contributions of rated attractiveness of the face and the body to ratings of overall attractiveness. Face and body attractiveness each made significant independent contributions to overall attractiveness in males and females. For both sexes, facial attractiveness predicted overall attractiveness more strongly than did body attractiveness, and this difference was significant in males. ... This study indicates that although current levels of T covary with male mating success, this effect may not be mediated by women's preferences for visual cues to T levels conveyed in static face or body features. The fourth study in this thesis investigated the phenotype-linked fertility hypothesis, which proposes that females obtain reliable information on male fertility from male expression of sexual traits. A previous study of Spanish men reported that facial attractiveness was positively associated with semen quality. I aimed to determine whether this effect was widespread by examining a large sample of Australian men. I also extended my study to determine whether cues to semen quality are provided by components of attractiveness: masculinity, averageness, and symmetry. I found no significant correlations between semen quality parameters and attractiveness or attractive traits. While male physical attractiveness may signal aspects of mate quality, my results suggest that phenotype-linked cues to male fertility may not be generalised across human populations. Together, these studies challenge current methodologies and theories of preferences for secondary sexual traits as honest signals of mate quality. The findings show that it is important to study human mate preferences in biologically relevant contexts, for example by using photographs of both faces and bodies, to maximise the real life application of results. In addition, the findings suggest that male attractiveness does not signal cues to testosterone or semen quality, although testosterone is associated with mating success. The implications of these findings and possible avenues for future research are discussed.
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Persaud, Kamini N. Galef Bennett G. "Male sexual coercion, female mate choice and control of fertilization in Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) /." *McMaster only, 2005.
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Birkinshaw, Lucy A. "Mate choice in Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) : the role of male-produced aggregation pheromone." Thesis, University of Leicester, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/2381/29773.
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Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) is a destructive pest of stored maize and cassava that has recently been accidentally introduced into tropical Africa. Males produce an aggregation pheromone when on food, that attracts dispersing males and females. P. truncatus aggregation pheromone is being used to monitor the spread of P. truncatus (Larger Grain Borer) across Africa. The biological function of this pheromone is controversial. This thesis investigates the role of aggregation pheromone in mate choice in P. truncatus. The literature on Coleopteran aggregation pheromones was reviewed, with particular reference to the possible adaptive functions of aggregation pheromones. Variation in Prostephanus truncatus aggregation-pheromone signalling was detected. Conspecifics can detect these differences and are preferentially attracted to some males more than others. Both males and females 'agree' which males are most attractive (shown in a laboratory bioassay and in trapping experiments in the field). Females also discriminate between potential mates on contact by a stylised pushing behaviour. Some males consistently secure more matings than others when two males are presented at once to a female. Discrimination between males mediated on contact through pushing is not influenced by the male's aggregation pheromone signal (both natural variation and manipulation of the pheromone signal were studied). Observation of adult beetles in an artificial host sandwiched between two glass plates revealed that males and females pair up, and cohabit within the same tunnel system. Pairs mate multiply (up to 20 times per 12 hours) and dissection of recently mated females revealed that males deliver an oversized ejaculate (approx. 50 000 sperm) as an oval spermatophore. Male investment in ejaculate was not found to be influenced by male crowding or the presence of Female Factor (an involatile pheromone produced by females, which can trigger aggregation pheromone shut down in males).
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Widemo, Maria. "Mutual Mate Choice in the Deep Snouted Pipefish Syngnathus typhle." Doctoral thesis, Uppsala universitet, Zooekologi, 2003. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-3303.
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This thesis integrates the fields of sexual selection, parental investment and sex role theory by investigating mutual mate choice and mate competition in the sex role reversed deep snouted pipefish Syngnathus typhle (Pisces: Syngnathidae) through a series of laboratory experiments. In S. typhle, the female transfers her eggs to the male's brood pouch where they are nourished and oxygenated for about a month, when the male gives birth to the independent fry. Mate choice was found to be adaptive. Both sexes benefited from mating with preferred partners in terms of increased offspring viability and got larger, or faster growing, offspring when mating with large fish. Females were also shown to prefer males with thicker brood pouches. Thus, females, the more competitive sex, had multiple preferences. Both male and female choice behaviour was found to be flexible and influenced by available information on partner quality. In addition, males, but not females, copied the mate choice of consexuals. Both sexes were found to take their own quality in relation to surrounding competitors into account when deciding whether to display to potential partners. Male-male competition was found to influence both the mate choice of males and, potentially, overrule the mate choice of females. Males did not compete as intensely as females, nor did they use their sexual ornament in this context as females do. Rather, the ornament was used in interactions with females, and males that displayed more received more eggs. The findings in this thesis emphasise the importance of not viewing mate choice and competition as opposite behaviours, but rather to apply a dynamic approach in mate choice studies, integrating choice and competition in both sex
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Forsberg, Lars. "Genetic Aspects of Sexual Selection and Mate Choice in Salmonids." Doctoral thesis, Uppsala universitet, Populationsbiologi, 2008. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-8837.
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The long-term genetic consequences of supportive breeding programs are not well understood. Nevertheless, stocking populations with hatchery-produced fish to compensate for losses of natural production are common practice, for example after constructions of hydroelectric power dams. Hatcheries typically fertilize eggs using ‘mixed-milt fertilizations’, without consideration to natural reproductive behaviours, and hence, natural selective regimes would be altered. Here, a series of experiments with focus on Mhc and mate choice in a population of brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) with a history of long-term stocking are presented. The major histocompatibility complex (Mhc) constitutes of genes coding for antigen presentation in the vertebrate immune system. In addition to the immunological function, Mhc genes might also influence reproductive behaviours such as mate choice. For example, in some species individuals are able to recognize Mhc genotypes of potential mates and to some extent base their mate choice on this information. Here, I address these questions on brown trout. Can the phenomena be observed in brown trout? Could such mechanisms help individuals to avoid inbreeding, or are other mechanisms important? How does the artificial rearing of fish for enhancement of natural populations relate to these issues? The results presented here, in combination with previous work, shows that several factors are important in the process of pair formation in salmonid species. For example, females of the studied population used more than a single criterion when choosing among the available mates Mhc genes and males with certain Mhc genotypes achieved more matings, possibly an effect from increased fighting ability. Further, the population appears to contain an unnatural high level of Mhc variation, and some results indicate that the population might suffer from outbreeding depression at the Mhc. These negative effects are most likely derived from compression of sub-populations after dam-construction, in combination with supportive breeding with no consideration to natural spawning behaviour.
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White, David J. "Social influences on mate choice in Japanese quail, Coturnix japonica." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2000. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk2/ftp03/NQ66302.pdf.
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Burke, Monica D. "Falling in love as a heuristic for mate choice decisions." [Tampa, Fla] : University of South Florida, 2007. http://purl.fcla.edu/usf/dc/et/SFE0002023.
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Ames, Caroline Elizabeth. "Extra-pair mate choice in the song sparrow (Melospiza melodia)." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/14734.
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Extra-pair paternity (EPP) is common in birds yet its adaptive significance remains
unclear. Since the strategy of EPP is thought to carry costs, females are predicted to obtain indirect genetic benefits (e.g. ‘good genes’) or direct material benefits (e.g. fertility
insurance) from pursuing extra-pair copulations (EPCs). Breeding synchrony may also influence the costs and benefits of EPP to males and females. I examine ‘good genes’
benefits of EPP and the effect of breeding synchrony on EPP in a socially monogamous
population of song sparrows wherein 29% of 751 offspring were sired by extra-pair
males. The good genes hypothesis predicts that females mate with extra-pair males that have higher expected fitness than their social mate in order to improve the fitness of extra-pair young (EPY) compared to within-pair maternal half-siblings. Using traits closely linked to lifetime reproductive success, I found no evidence that EPY were fitter than their maternal half-siblings or that extra-pair males were fitter than cuckolded males. However, I found that middle-aged males on average were 3.1 —4.7 times more likely to sire EPY than first-year males and 1.3 —2.0 times more likely to sire EPY than very old males. This is consistent with similar, well-established patterns of age-related variation in annual reproductive success in song sparrows, suggesting that male success in siring
EPY is influenced by experience and ability, rather than quality. I found a significant negative relationship between breeding synchrony among neighbors and the proportion of EPY within broods of focal males. This result supports the ‘mate Extra-pair paternity (EPP) is common in birds yet its adaptive significance remains unclear. Since the strategy of EPP is thought to carry costs, females are predicted to obtain indirect genetic benefits (e.g. ‘good genes’) or direct material benefits (e.g. fertility insurance) from pursuing extra-pair copulations (EPCs). Breeding synchrony may also influence the costs and benefits of EPP to males and females. I examine ‘good genes’ benefits of EPP and the effect ofbreeding synchrony on EPP in a socially monogamous population of song sparrows wherein 29% of 751 offspring were sired by extra-pair males. The good genes hypothesis predicts that females mate with extra-pair males that have higher expected fitness than their social mate in order to improve the fitness of extra-pair young (EPY) compared to within-pair maternal half-siblings. Using traits closely linked
to lifetime reproductive success, I found no evidence that EPY were fitter than their
maternal half-siblings or that extra-pair males were fitter than cuckolded males.
However, I found that middle-aged males on average were 3.1 —4.7 times more likely to
sire EPY than first-year males and 1.3 —2.0 times more likely to sire EPY than very old
males. This is consistent with similar, well-established patterns of age-related variation in annual reproductive success in song sparrows, suggesting that male success in siring EPY is influenced by experience and ability, rather than quality. I found a significant negative relationship between breeding synchrony among neighbors
and the proportion of EPY within broods of focal males. This result supports the ‘mate guarding constraint’ hypothesis predicting that EPP decreases as synchrony increases
because a larger proportion of males allocate time toward guarding their fertile social mate, instead of toward pursuing EPCs. However, I found that paternity loss was similar for males that sired EPY outside their social mate’s fertile period (40.4% of 57 males lost paternity) and for males that sired EPY during their mate’s fertile period (37.8% of 37 males lost paternity). This result suggests that mate guarding did not constrain males in the pursuit of EPCs; however, the exact timing of EPCs was unknown and may have influenced this result.
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Tomlinson, Ian Philip Mark. "Theoretical and experimental studies of the evolution of mate choice." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 1989. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.303163.
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Pemberton, A. J. "Aspects of mate choice in the colonial ascidian Diplosoma listerianum." Thesis, University of Aberdeen, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.593279.
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The hermaphrodite, colonial ascidian Diplosoma listerianum (Chordata: Urochordata) mates by releasing sperm that disperse to neighbours, where they fertilise eggs that have been retained internally rather than spawned. The species is able to utilise highly dilute sperm: comparison with published information on a sea urchin, which released both eggs and sperm for external fertilisation, showed that D. listerianum maintained comparable levels of fertilisation at sperm concentrations two or three orders of magnitude lower than the echinoderm. Laboratory clones of D. listerianum displayed surprisingly high levels of sexual incompatibility. Fecundities of numerous pairwise crosses varied widely and suggested a continuous scale of computability. Although correlations of computability between reciprocal crosses appeared positive, considerable noise was present in the data and some crosses showed strongly asymmetrical compatibility. Patterns of sperm precedence with a five-day mating internal showed clear initial bias towards the first of two acting males. The proportion of second-male paternity (P2) subsequently increased with time. Estimated P2 for entire progeny arrays was consistently greater than 0.5, but varied widely. When mating interval was reduced, mate order effects appeared to be moderated. In competition with an alternative sperm source, acting males fathered more progeny if previously mated to a particular female than if no mating history existed, an advantage probably derived from fertilisations by stored sperm. When virgin acting female colonies were given mixtures of sperm at widely divergent concentrations, offspring were shared between the two sperm sources in approximately the ratio of each mixture. However, there existed a small but statistically significant deviation from the fair raffle model, in that sperm at the lower concentration consistently achieved a greater than expected share of paternity. Environmentally-determined fixed female preferences could be responsible for this negative frequency dependence ('rare male effect').
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Shohet, Adam Joseph. "Mate choice and sexual selection in the guppy, Poecilia reticulata." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2002. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.269307.
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Sheridan, Letitia Anne Devoy. "Sexual selection symmetry, inbreeding and mate choice in Trinidadian guppies." Thesis, University College London (University of London), 1997. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.263266.
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Smith, Elizabeth Jane. "Ultraviolet vision and mate choice in the guppy, Poecilia reticulata." Thesis, University of Bristol, 2001. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.390642.
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Blyth, Jennifer Elizabeth. "Sexual conflict and cryptic female mate choice in the Coelopidae." Thesis, University of Leicester, 2005. http://hdl.handle.net/2381/29730.
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This thesis describes a collection of experiments investigating sexual conflict and cryptic female choice in the Coelopidae. An experiment examining the effect of the alphabeta inversion karyotype in C. frigida revealed that male karyotype has no direct influence on male willingness to mate or other mating interactions, however, male size and karyotype have an influence over the female rejection response. There appears to be no clear genetic effect of female karyotype on female rejection behaviour, which leaves the question as to why alphaalpha females are mated with more often, unanswered. Females were found to mate hundreds of times in their lifetimes, making C. frigida an extremely promiscuous species with great potential for post-copulatory sexual selection to occur in this species. Evidence was found for cryptic female choice as females may have the ability to select sperm from within the ejaculate of a single heterokaryotypic male to produce fitter heterokaryotypic offspring. Time interval between copulations and the order of polyandrous copulations with males of different chromosomal karyotypes were found to interact in their effects on P 2values. The mating systems of 5 Australasian coelopids were examined and a comparative analysis of sexually antagonistic co-evolution in 13 coelopids was carried out. Female-mediated sexual conflict appears to have played a role in increasing male size and variation in male size, though large male reluctance to mate may mask evidence for antagonistic co-evolution. ISSRs were found to be a very useful tool in determining genetic variation in C. frigida and the possible future use of this technique in paternity analysis is discussed.
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Stoffer, Brent M. "Social Context and Mate-Choice Plasticity in a Wolf Spider." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2015. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1448037275.
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Costello, Aron K. "Female Characteristics that Influence Male Mate Preference in House Mice (Mus Musculus)." Miami University / OhioLINK, 2010. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1280754434.
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Curtis, Caroline C. "Active female mate choice in the weakly electric fish brachyhypopomus pinnicaudatus." FIU Digital Commons, 1999. http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/2700.
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B. pinnicaudatus is a nocturnal, pulse type weakly electric fish. Males are larger than females and emit a longer duration, higher amplitude electric organ discharge (EOD), Sexual dimorphism in electric communication signals is used as a model for neurobiology and endocrinology, but the relevant behavior (e.g. mate choice) has been largely neglected. I conducted a series of unforced mate choice tests on gravid females in the lab. Females given a choice between a female and a male actively chose a male if he was relatively large. Females given a choice between large and small males chose larger males. Three correlated sexually dimorphic characters (body length, EOD duration, EOD amplitude) were larger for the chosen males. To dissociate these correlated male characters, I tested females on electric playback stimuli of large and small males. Results were inconclusive because female behavior changed over the period of the study.
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Lozano, George A. "Parental care and female mate choice in yellow warblers (Dendroica petechia)." Thesis, McGill University, 1996. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=40389.
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In this thesis my initial goal was to use yellow warblers to examine the effect of paternal care on female mate choice. I first examined whether mate choice based on paternal care could be considered adaptive. Paternal care was variable among males and important to female fitness, but, contrary to a previous report, male chest striping could not be used to predict paternal care. Females did not compensate for reductions of male parental care, which resulted in significantly reduced nestling growth. In chapter two I tested the idea that monogamy in birds is maintained because of the need for biparental care. I reduced the need of strict biparental care by providing pairs at some nests with supplemental food, and found that the main effect of supplemental food was on maternal, not paternal behaviour. The first two chapters suggest that males and females provide for their brood independently from each other, which is in disagreement with current models on the maintenance of biparental care. These models assume that any given factor must affect maternal and paternal care equally for biparental care to be maintained. In Chapter three I showed that the effects of brood size and nestling age on parental care are similar for both sexes. In Chapter four I deal with age-related changes in reproductive success and the possible effects on female mate choice. Age affected the likelihood of breeding in females, but only the time of breeding in males. These changes were accompanied by age-related increases in size in both sexes. These results raise the possibility of age-related increases in parental ability, and female preference for older males.
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Vernon, Jennifer G. "Kin recognition and mate choice in the freshwater snail, Biomphalaria glabrata." Thesis, University of Oxford, 1993. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.357595.
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Dick, Jaimie T. A. "Assessments and decisions during mate choice in Gammarus pulex (Crustacea: amphipoda)." Thesis, Queen's University Belfast, 1989. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.336112.
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Fry, Rodney. "Self-adaptive mate choice : extending the selection model in genetic programming." Thesis, University of York, 2004. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.437598.
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