Sex-ratio control erodes sexual selection, revealing evolutionary feedback from adaptive plasticity.

ABSTRACT: Female choice is a powerful selective force, driving the elaboration of conspicuous male ornaments. This process of sexual selection has profound implications for many life-history decisions, including sex allocation. For example, females with attractive partners should produce more sons, because these sons will inherit their father's attractiveness and enjoy high mating success, thereby yielding greater fitness returns than daughters. However, previous research has overlooked the fact that there is a reciprocal feedback from life-history strategies to sexual selection. Here, using a simple mathematical model, we show that if mothers adaptively control offspring sex in relation to their partner's attractiveness, sexual selection is weakened and male ornamentation declines. This weakening o

SUBMITTER: Fawcett TW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3179113 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature