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Órfão I, Carvalho C, Rodrigues I, Ascensão L, Pedaccini M, Vicente L, Barbosa M, Varela SAM. The role of intrasexual competition on the evolution of male-male courtship display: a systematic review. PeerJ 2023; 10:e14638. [PMID: 36751481 PMCID: PMC9899439 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.14638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2021] [Accepted: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Evidence of male-male courtship display is widespread across the animal kingdom. Yet, its function and evolutionary origin remain unclear. Here, we hypothesise that male-male courtship display evolved in response to selection pressure exerted by intrasexual competition during male-female courtship interactions. Intrasexual competition can be caused by bystander male pressure through eavesdropping and exploiting on displayer male's courtship interactions with females. This bystander pressure can lead to an audience effect by the displayer, who will change their courtship behaviour in the presence of bystanders and display directly towards them, even in the absence of females, as an intimidation strategy. In species where this selection pressure has taken place, we predict that the male courtship display will have a dual function: attract females and deter competitors. Therefore, we expected to find more evidence of bystander-related behaviours in species for which male-male courtship display is linked to intrasexual competition compared to species for which other explanatory hypotheses are more plausible (e.g., mistaken identity or courtship practice). Methodology We conducted two systematic reviews to test this hypothesis. First, we conducted a search for studies of species with courtship display between males and of the hypotheses provided to explain this behaviour. Our goal was to identify the species with male-male courtship display and evidence of intrasexual competition. Second, among the species with male-male courtship display, we searched for evidence of bystander-related behaviours, i.e., articles referring to eavesdropping, exploitation, and audience effect during male-female courtship interactions. Our goal was to test whether species with intrasexual competition are also more likely to show bystander-related behaviours. Results Although most studies reporting male courtship display towards other males do not suggest any explanatory hypothesis for this behaviour, the intrasexual competition hypothesis was largely mentioned and supported by some studies reviewed. Additionally, there is more evidence of eavesdropping and of all three bystander-related behaviours combined in species for which the intrasexual competition hypothesis was suggested. Conclusions Overall, our review supports the hypothesis that intrasexual competition can play a key role in male courtship display evolution, namely that male-male courtship display may have evolved as a secondary function of male-female courtship interactions via bystander male pressure. However, our review also shows that despite the increasing interest in same-sex sexual behaviours, and male-male courtship display in particular, most studies were found to be merely descriptive, and the hypotheses they suggested to explain courtship display between males mostly speculative. This highlights an important gap in the literature. To clarify both the evolution and the function of male-male courtship display, this behaviour needs to be empirically studied more often. Our review can help advancing this research area, as it makes the 20 species with male-male courtship display for which the intrasexual competition hypothesis was suggested excellent candidates for empirical research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inês Órfão
- CFCUL–Centre for Philosophy of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal,cE3c–Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal,MARE–Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre/ARNET–Aquatic Research Network, Agência Regional para o Desenvolvimento da Investigação Tecnologia e Inovação (ARDITI), Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
| | - Constança Carvalho
- CFCUL–Centre for Philosophy of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal,ISPA–Instituto Universitário, Lisboa, Portugal, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Inês Rodrigues
- Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Leonor Ascensão
- Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal
| | | | - Luís Vicente
- CFCUL–Centre for Philosophy of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal,Department of Animal Biology, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal,School of Psychology and Life Sciences of the Lusófona University, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Miguel Barbosa
- School of Biology, University of St Andrews, Centre for Biological Diversity, St Andrews, United Kingdom,CESAM–Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar, Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - Susana A. M. Varela
- cE3c–Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, Lisboa, Portugal,IGC–Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal,William James Center for Research, ISPA–Instituto Universitário, Lisboa, Portugal
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Davies AD, Lewis Z, Dougherty LR. A meta-analysis of factors influencing the strength of mate-choice copying in animals. Behav Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/araa064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Mate-choice copying is a form of social learning in which an individual’s choice of mate is influenced by the apparent choices of other individuals of the same sex and has been observed in more than 20 species across a broad taxonomic range. Though fitness benefits of copying have proven difficult to measure, theory suggests that copying should not be beneficial for all species or contexts. However, the factors influencing the evolution and expression of copying have proven difficult to resolve. We systematically searched the literature for studies of mate-choice copying in nonhuman animals and, then, performed a phylogenetically controlled meta-analysis to explore which factors influence the expression of copying across species. Across 58 published studies in 23 species, we find strong evidence that animals copy the mate choice of others. The strength of copying was significantly influenced by taxonomic group; however, sample size limitations mean it is difficult to draw firm conclusions regarding copying in mammals and arthropods. The strength of copying was also influenced by experimental design: copying was stronger when choosers were tested before and after witnessing a conspecific’s mate choice compared to when choosers with social information were compared to choosers without. Importantly, we did not detect any difference in the strength of copying between males and females or in relation to the rate of multiple mating. Our search also highlights that more empirical work is needed to investigate copying in a broader range of species, especially those with differing mating systems and levels of reproductive investment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice D Davies
- Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Biosciences Building, Crown Street, Liverpool, UK
| | - Zenobia Lewis
- School of Life Sciences, University of Liverpool, Biosciences Building, Crown Street, Liverpool, UK
| | - Liam R Dougherty
- Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Biosciences Building, Crown Street, Liverpool, UK
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Witte K, Baumgärtner K, Röhrig C, Nöbel S. Test of the Deception Hypothesis in Atlantic Mollies Poecilia mexicana-Does the Audience Copy a Pretended Mate Choice of Others? BIOLOGY 2018; 7:E40. [PMID: 30011804 PMCID: PMC6164261 DOI: 10.3390/biology7030040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2018] [Revised: 07/06/2018] [Accepted: 07/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Animals often use public information for mate-choice decisions by observing conspecifics as they choose their mates and then copying this witnessed decision. When the copier, however, is detected by the choosing individual, the latter often alters its behavior and spends more time with the previously non-preferred mate. This behavioral change is called the audience effect. The deception hypothesis states that the choosing individual changes its behavior to distract the audience from the preferred mate. The deception hypothesis, however, only applies if the audience indeed copies the pretended mate choice of the observed individual. So far, this necessary prerequisite has never been tested. We investigated in Atlantic molly males and females whether, first, focal fish show an audience effect, i.e., alter their mate choices in the presence of an audience fish, and second, whether audience fish copy the mate choice of the focal fish they had just witnessed. We found evidence that male and female Atlantic mollies copy the pretended mate choice of same-sex focal fish. Therefore, a necessary requirement of the deception hypothesis is fulfilled. Our results show that public information use in the context of mate choice can be costly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Klaudia Witte
- Research Group of Ecology and Behavioral Biology, Department of Chemistry-Biology, Institute of Biology, University of Siegen, Adolf-Reichwein-Str. 2, 57076 Siegen, Germany.
| | - Katharina Baumgärtner
- Research Group of Ecology and Behavioral Biology, Department of Chemistry-Biology, Institute of Biology, University of Siegen, Adolf-Reichwein-Str. 2, 57076 Siegen, Germany.
| | - Corinna Röhrig
- Research Group of Ecology and Behavioral Biology, Department of Chemistry-Biology, Institute of Biology, University of Siegen, Adolf-Reichwein-Str. 2, 57076 Siegen, Germany.
| | - Sabine Nöbel
- CNRS, Université Toulouse, IRD, UMR 5174, EDB (Évolution & Diversité Biologique), 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse CEDEX 9, France.
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Schlupp I. Male mate choice in livebearing fishes: an overview. Curr Zool 2018; 64:393-403. [PMID: 30402080 PMCID: PMC6007348 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoy028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2017] [Accepted: 04/01/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Although the majority of studies on mate choice focus on female mate choice, there is growing recognition of the role of male mate choice too. Male mate choice is tightly linked to 2 other phenomena: female competition for males and ornamentation in females. In the current article, I review the existing literature on this in a group of fishes, Poeciliidae. In this group, male mate choice appears to be based on differences in female quality, especially female size, which is a proxy for fecundity. Some males also have to choose between heterospecific and conspecific females in the unusual mating system of the Amazon molly. In this case, they typically show a preference for conspecific females. Whereas male mate choice is relatively well documented for this family, female ornamentation and female competition are not.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingo Schlupp
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, 730 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK 73019, USA
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Mate-choice copying, social information processing, and the roles of oxytocin. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016; 72:232-242. [PMID: 27923732 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2016] [Revised: 11/23/2016] [Accepted: 12/01/2016] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Social and sexual behaviors, including that of mate choice, are dependent on social information. Mate choice can be modified by prior and ongoing social factors and experience. The mate choice decisions of one individual can be influenced by either the actual or potential mate choice of another female or male. Such non-independent mate choice, where individuals gain social information and socially learn about and recognizes potential mates by observing the choices of another female or male, has been termed "mate-choice copying". Here we first briefly review how, why, and under what circumstances individuals engage in mate-choice copying. Secondly, we review the neurobiological mechanisms underlying mate-choice copying. In particular, we consider the roles of the nonapeptide, oxytocin, in the processing of social information and the expression of mate-choice copying.
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