Shared Preferences by Predators and Females for Male Ornaments in Swordtails

Rosenthal,; Martinez, None Tania Y. Flores; León, Francisco J. Garcı́a de; Ryan, Martin

doi:10.2307/3079159

Cited by 39 publications

(55 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…Many components of male sexual signals that are preferred by females are also those most attractive to predators (Rosenthal et al 2001), and female mate choice can be sensitive to such predation risks; females may mate randomly or with less-preferred males when the predation risks of responding to preferred male signals are high (e.g. Hedrick and Dill 1993;Grafe 1997).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Receiving behaviour is sensitive to risks from eavesdropping predators

2009

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Conspicuous signals may attract both intended receivers as well as unintended receivers such as predators. However, signalling individuals are not the only ones at risk when communicating, as the intended receiver may encounter eavesdropping predators that are attracted to the same signals. Here, we show that the house mouse (Mus domesticus) behaviourally responds to social signals (scents) as though receiving carries a risk of predation. We presented mice with their own scents (low social benefit to receiving) and those from an unknown "intruder" (high social benefit to receiving) under high (cat urine added) and low (water added) perceived predation risk. Mice traded-off the potential social benefits of receiving a signal against the costs of potential predator encounter. Receiving rates of both social signals (own and intruder) were high under low predation risk. Mice reduced receiving of both social signals when predation risk was increased; however, the effect was greater for their own low value scent than for the high social value intruder scent. Notably, rates of signalling did not vary with the level of perceived predation risk. Our findings suggest that mice traded-off the potential social benefits of receiving a signal (scent mark) against the costs of potential predator encounter. We suggest that, for some species, the costs of communication are borne more by the receivers than the signallers, and that the influence of risks to receivers on the design of communication systems may have been underestimated.

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confidence: 99%

Receiving behaviour is sensitive to risks from eavesdropping predators

2009

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“…The relatively shorter sword of males captured in the field may suggest that the wild population is composed mainly of younger males than the ones reared in this study. Our results show that the sword continues growing with age, which is accompanied by the increasing energetic cost of swimming (Basolo and Alcaraz 2003), and possibly higher predation risk (Rosenthal et al 2001). Thus, the increase in sword length through life may play an important role in male survival, making it costly for males in the wild to have long swords.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

“…However, maturation in this species, as in other swordtails (Xiphophorus nigrensis, Ryan et al 1992;Xiphophorus helleri, Basolo 2008), may be costly in terms of the decrease in both growth rate and size at maturity. Additionally, in swordtails, maturation is also accompanied by increasing fitness costs associated with the sword: energetic costs of swimming (Basolo and Alcaraz 2003), reduced swimming velocity (Kruesi and Alcaraz 2007), and increased predation risk (Rosenthal et al 2001). Several lines of evidence suggest that sexual selection favoring sword elongation is counterbalanced by natural selection.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nevertheless, the sword has been secondarily lost several times in the history of the swordtail lineage (Marcus and McCune 1999), and varies considerably in size and elaboration among species (Rauchenberger et al 1990). Both predation risk (Rosenthal et al 2001;Cummings et al 2003) and changes in female preference (Rosenthal et al 2002;Wong and Rosenthal 2006) are likely to drive the secondary loss of elaborate swords.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Growth and male ornamentation inXiphophorus montezumae

Kruesi

Rosenthal

Alcaraz

2011

Marine and Freshwater Behaviour and Physiology

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Juvenile growth rate is an important life-history trait that affects the size at maturity, and may influence the development of sexual ornamentation. The sword of several species of the genus Xiphophorus (Teleostei: Poeciliidae) is an elaborate secondary sexual trait that confers an advantage in terms of sexual selection, counterbalanced by locomotive and predatory costs. This study assesses differences in male juvenile growth, age, and size at maturation and their relationship with maximum body size and sword elongation in Montezuma swordtails (Xiphophorus montezumae). Fish size and sword length were measured over the course of 20 months. The size at which individual males initiated sword elongation varied considerably among individuals. Male maximum body size was correlated with early growth rate and age of maturation, and sword growth rate was positively correlated with male size at the onset of sword growth. Early growth in X. montezumae may provide valuable information about performance in subsequent stages and about probable future reproductive success.

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“…For example, males may have a reduced survival compared with females due to increased conspicuousness and not due to a reduction in locomotor performance. In fact, studies have demonstrated a repeated correlation of sword reduction with the presence of predators (Basolo and Wagner 2004) and that females as well as predators prefer males with longer swords (Rosenthal et al 2001). Costs may also occur through increased metabolic demands throughout life and via shorter life spans in males with longer swords.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

As the Sword Grows: Individual Variation and Ontogenetic Effects of a Sexually Selected Trait on Locomotor Performance inXiphophorus hellerii

Oufiero

Jugo

Tran

et al. 2012

Physiological and Biochemical Zoology

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Previous studies aimed at detecting costs of sexually selected traits have yielded mixed results partly because of variable methods. We present a novel approach: a repeated-measures design to examine individual variation in locomotor performance of male Xiphophorus hellerii as the sexually selected sword develops ontogenetically and to determine whether the growth of a sexually selected trait alters consistency of performance. Individual differences in sprint speed, critical swimming speed (stamina), and relative sword length were statistically repeatable over 9 wk. However, using the Akaike Information Criterion corrected for small sample sizes, the best-fit predictive models for swimming performance did not include sword length or relative sword length. Furthermore, in less supported models and within-week comparisons, there was no statistically significant effect of sword length on performance. These results suggest little effect of the sword on locomotor abilities, which is inconsistent with results from some previous experimental manipulations, possibly because compensatory traits develop ontogenetically in parallel with the sword. However, our results are consistent with correlational studies of natural variation that suggest no locomotor cost of the sword. These results do not necessarily imply a complete lack of a cost to the sword but rather lack of a functional cost for swimming performance.

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Shared Preferences by Predators and Females for Male Ornaments in Swordtails

Cited by 39 publications

References 20 publications

Receiving behaviour is sensitive to risks from eavesdropping predators

Receiving behaviour is sensitive to risks from eavesdropping predators

Growth and male ornamentation inXiphophorus montezumae

As the Sword Grows: Individual Variation and Ontogenetic Effects of a Sexually Selected Trait on Locomotor Performance inXiphophorus hellerii

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