Spatial variation in sexual size dimorphism and mating associations in the color polymorphic Eastern Red-Backed Salamander (Plethodon cinereus).

ABSTRACT: Sexual selection due to mate preference for certain traits can maintain phenotypic diversity within populations and species. In taxa with discrete phenotypes, such as color polymorphic species, assortative mating may lead to disruptive selection and sympatric divergence, yet how such interactions vary over species' ranges remains poorly understood. To address this shortcoming, we examined spatial patterns of sexual size dimorphism and presumptive male-female mating pairs based on body size and coloration in the color polymorphic Eastern Red-backed Salamander, Plethodon cinereus. This species exhibits two common color morphs, striped and unstriped, that also differ in other elements of their biology, including ecology, behavior, and morphology. Across six populations that vary in color morp

SUBMITTER: Hantak MM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12589318 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature