Love is blind: indiscriminate female mating responses to male courtship pheromones in newts (Salamandridae).

ABSTRACT: Internal fertilization without copulation or prolonged physical contact is a rare reproductive mode among vertebrates. In many newts (Salamandridae), the male deposits a spermatophore on the substrate in the water, which the female subsequently takes up with her cloaca. Because such an insemination requires intense coordination of both sexes, male newts have evolved a courtship display, essentially consisting of sending pheromones under water by tail-fanning towards their potential partner. Behavioral experiments until now mostly focused on an attractant function, i.e. showing that olfactory cues are able to bring both sexes together. However, since males start their display only after an initial contact phase, courtship pheromones are expected to have an alternative function. Here we deve

SUBMITTER: Treer D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3574087 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature