Courtship and Mating

Abstract

Reproduction encompasses behaviors that range from the identification and courtship of a suitable mate to the successful rearing of offspring. Behavioral mechanisms determine the social, mating, and parental care systems of a particular species, and depend on complex interactions between anatomy and physiology on the one hand, and environmental factors, notably, habitat and predation, on the other. For example, high predator pressure may promote greater defense of young and, in turn, the extent to which the male can effectively contribute to this defense helps to determine the mating system (Chapter 15).