Female preference for sympatric vs. allopatric male throat color morphs in the mesquite lizard (Sceloporus grammicus) species complex.

ABSTRACT: Color polymorphic sexual signals are often associated with alternative reproductive behaviors within populations, and the number, frequency, or type of morphs present often vary among populations. When these differences lead to assortative mating by population, the study of such polymorphic taxa may shed light on speciation mechanisms. We studied two populations of a lizard with polymorphic throat color, an important sexual signal. Males in one population exhibit orange, yellow, or blue throats; whereas males in the other exhibit orange, yellow, or white throats. We assessed female behavior when choosing between allopatric and sympatric males. We asked whether females discriminated more when the allopatric male was of an unfamiliar morph than when the allopatric male was similar in colorat

SUBMITTER: Bastiaans E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3981705 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature