A pheromone antagonist liberates female sea lamprey from a sensory trap to enable reliable communication.

ABSTRACT: The evolution of male signals and female preferences remains a central question in the study of animal communication. The sensory trap model suggests males evolve signals that mimic cues used in nonsexual contexts and thus manipulate female behavior to generate mating opportunities. Much evidence supports the sensory trap model, but how females glean reliable information from both mimetic signals and their model cues remains unknown. We discovered a mechanism whereby a manipulative male signal guides reliable communication in sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus). Migratory sea lamprey follow a larval cue into spawning streams; once sexually mature, males release a pheromone that mimics the larval cue and attracts females. Females conceivably benefit from the mimetic pheromone during mate searc

SUBMITTER: Buchinger TJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7132252 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature