2002
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2001.1891
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A possible non-sexual origin of mate preference: are male guppies mimicking fruit?

Abstract: In most animals, the origins of mating preferences are not clear. The 'sensory-bias' hypothesis proposes that biases in female sensory or neural systems are important in triggering sexual selection and in determining which male traits will become elaborated into sexual ornaments. Subsequently, other mechanisms can evolve for discriminating between high-and low-quality mates. Female guppies (Poecilia reticulata) generally show a preference for males with larger, more chromatic orange spots. It has been proposed… Show more

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Cited by 303 publications
(290 citation statements)
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“…This should constrain sensory trap signals to conform to the stimuli that elicit the response for the other function (Christy 1995); the response should produce signals that are better mimics of their models. This prediction has been confirmed in studies of (1) the orange colour spots on the tails of male guppys, Poecilia reticulata, that mimic fruits from the cabrehash tree, Sloanea laurifolia (Rodd et al 2002), (2) the yellow terminal tail stripe of some males of some species of Goodeinae fish that probably mimic damselfly larvae (Macías-Garcia & Ramirez 2005), and (3) the white silk-wrapped nuptial gifts that male nursery web spiders, Pisaura mirabilis, display to females that mimic females' egg sacs (Stålhandske 2002).…”
Section: Discussionsupporting
confidence: 50%
“…This should constrain sensory trap signals to conform to the stimuli that elicit the response for the other function (Christy 1995); the response should produce signals that are better mimics of their models. This prediction has been confirmed in studies of (1) the orange colour spots on the tails of male guppys, Poecilia reticulata, that mimic fruits from the cabrehash tree, Sloanea laurifolia (Rodd et al 2002), (2) the yellow terminal tail stripe of some males of some species of Goodeinae fish that probably mimic damselfly larvae (Macías-Garcia & Ramirez 2005), and (3) the white silk-wrapped nuptial gifts that male nursery web spiders, Pisaura mirabilis, display to females that mimic females' egg sacs (Stålhandske 2002).…”
Section: Discussionsupporting
confidence: 50%
“…Christy 1995). For example, across some populations of guppies the strength of attraction to orange objects in a non-mating context explains 94% of the inter-population variation in female mating preferences for orange male ornaments (Rodd et al 2002). Thus female sensitivity to orange-colored food items may be at least as important to the evolution of female mating preferences for males with large orange spots as any direct and indirect benefits that more-orange males deliver to their mates.…”
Section: Sensory Exploitationmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…This preference for orange appears to have arisen as a bias in the context of foraging: both sexes have a feeding preference for orange fruits (Rodd et al 2002). Among populations of guppies in Trinidad that have been tested, the strength of attraction to orange in a non-mating context explains 94% of the inter-population variation in female mating preferences for male orange traits (Rodd et al 2002). Thus, female sensitivity to orange food items may have played at least as important a role as direct or indirect benefits in the origin of female mating preferences for males with orange spots.…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…In the guppy (Poecilia reticulata), a small tropical live-bearing fish, females generally prefer to mate with males with orange spots on their body and tail fin (Houde 1997). This preference for orange appears to have arisen as a bias in the context of foraging: both sexes have a feeding preference for orange fruits (Rodd et al 2002). Among populations of guppies in Trinidad that have been tested, the strength of attraction to orange in a non-mating context explains 94% of the inter-population variation in female mating preferences for male orange traits (Rodd et al 2002).…”
Section: Introductionmentioning
confidence: 99%