Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Female Choice

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior

  • 52 Accesses

Synonyms

Intersexual selection; Mate choice

Definition

Process by which females can bias paternity of their offspring to certain categories of males.

Introduction

Sexual selection acts on variation in traits that affect reproductive success. Sexual selection can occur via competition between members of the same sex for reproductive opportunities with members of the opposite sex (intrasexual selection) or through mate choice for attractive members of the opposite sex (intersexual selection). Whereas intrasexual selection has traditionally been thought to act more strongly on males via male-male competition leading to male weaponry and body size dimorphism (direct competition) and large testis volume (indirect competition), intersexual selection has been thought to act more strongly on females choosing males due to differences in life history and parental investment between the sexes. Female choice is a form of intersexual selection by which females can increase their reproductive...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Aeschlimann, P., Häberli, M., Reusch, T., Boehm, T., & Milinski, M. (2003). Female sticklebacks Gasterosteus aculeatus use self-reference to optimize MHC allele number during mate selection. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 54(2), 119–126.

    Google Scholar 

  • Alcock, J. (1987). Leks and hilltopping in insects. Journal of Natural History, 21(2), 319–328.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Allendorf, F. W., & Leary, R. F. (1986). Heterozygosity and fitness in natural populations of animals. In Conservation biology: The science of scarcity and diversity (pp. 57–76).

    Google Scholar 

  • Andersson, M. (1986). Evolution of condition-dependent sex ornaments and mating preferences: Sexual selection based on viability differences. Evolution, 40, 804–816.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Andersson, M. B. (1994). Sexual selection. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barker, D. M. (1994). Copulatory plugs and paternity assurance in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Animal Behaviour, 48(1), 147–156.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Birkhead, T. R., & Møller, A. P. (1992). Sperm competition in birds: Evolutionary causes and consequences. London: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Birkhead, T. R., & Møller, A. P. (1998). Sperm competition and sexual selection. London: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, J. L. (1997). A theory of mate choice based on heterozygosity. Behavioral Ecology, 8(1), 60–65.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bruce, H. M. (1960). A block to pregnancy in the mouse caused by proximity of strange males. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility, 1(1), 96–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clutton-Brock, T., & McAuliffe, K. (2009). Female mate choice in mammals. The Quarterly Review of Biology, 84(1), 3–27.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cox, C. R., & Le Boeuf, B. J. (1977). Female incitation of male competition: A mechanism in sexual selection. The American Naturalist, 111(978), 317–335.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Domeier, M. L., & Colin, P. L. (1997). Tropical reef fish spawning aggregations: Defined and reviewed. Bulletin of Marine Science, 60(3), 698–726.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ekblom, R., Saether, S. A., Grahn, M., Fiske, P., KÃ¥lÃ¥s, J. A., & Höglund, J. (2004). Major histocompatibility complex variation and mate choice in a lekking bird, the great snipe (Gallinago media). Molecular Ecology, 13(12), 3821–3828.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fisher, R. A. (1915). The evolution of sexual preference. The Eugenics Review, 7(3), 184.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Gomes, C. M., & Boesch, C. (2009). Wild chimpanzees exchange meat for sex on a long-term basis. PLoS One, 4(4), e5116.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gouzoules, H., Gust, D. A., Donaghey, B., & Andre, E. S. (1998). Estrus vocalizations in two primate species (Cercocebus torquatus atys and Macaca nemestrina): Evidence for an effect of intrasexual competition. Evolution of Communication, 2(2), 189–215.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Halliday, T. (1977). The courtship of European newts: An evolutionary perspective. In The reproductive biology of amphibians (pp. 185–232). Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton, W., & Zuk, M. (1982). Heritable true fitness and bright birds: A role for parasites? Science, 218(4570), 384–387.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harcourt, A., Purvis, A., & Liles, L. (1995). Sperm competition: Mating system, not breeding season, affects testes size of primates. Functional Ecology, 9, 468–476.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Helversen, D., & Helversen, O. (2004). Pre-mating sperm removal in the bushcricket Metaplastes ornatus Ramme 1931 (Orthoptera, Tettigonoidea, Phaneropteridae). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 28(6), 391–396.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Knapp, R. A., & Kovach, J. T. (1991). Courtship as an honest indicator of male parental quality in the bicolor damselfish, Stegastes partitus. Behavioral Ecology, 2(4), 295–300.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koprowski, J. L. (1993). Behavioral tactics, dominance, and copulatory success among male fox squirrels. Ethology Ecology & Evolution, 5(2), 169–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maestripieri, D., & Roney, J. R. (2005). Primate copulation calls and postcopulatory female choice. Behavioral Ecology, 16(1), 106–113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Markow, T. A., Quaid, M., & Kerr, S. (1978). Male mating experience and competitive courtship success in Drosophila melanogaster. Nature, 276, 821.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McClintock, M. K., Anisko, J. J., & Adler, N. T. (1982). Group mating among Norway rats II. The social dynamics of copulation: Competition, cooperation, and mate choice. Animal Behaviour, 30(2), 410–425.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McKinney, F., Derrickson, S. R., & Mineau, P. (1983). Forced copulation in waterfowl. Behaviour, 86(3), 250–293.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Møller, A. P., & Gregersen, J. (1994). Sexual selection and the barn swallow. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nakatsuru, K., & Kramer, D. L. (1982). Is sperm cheap? Limited male fertility and female choice in the lemon tetra (Pisces, Characidae). Science, 216(4547), 753–755.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nisbet, I. C. (1973). Courtship-feeding, egg-size and breeding success in common terns. Nature, 241, 141–142.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nunn, C. L. (1999). The evolution of exaggerated sexual swellings in primates and the graded-signal hypothesis. Animal Behaviour, 58(2), 229–246.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olsson, M., Madsen, T., Nordby, J., Wapstra, E., Ujvari, B., & Wittsell, H. (2003). Major histocompatibility complex and mate choice in sand lizards. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences, 270(Suppl 2), S254–S256.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Petrie, M. (1983). Female moorhens compete for small fat males. Science, 220(4595), 413–415.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Poole, J. H. (1989). Mate guarding, reproductive success and female choice in African elephants. Animal Behaviour, 37, 842–849.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pradhan, G. R., Engelhardt, A., van Schaik, C. P., & Maestripieri, D. (2006). The evolution of female copulation calls in primates: A review and a new model. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 59(3), 333–343.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, E. K., Lu, A., Bergman, T. J., & Beehner, J. C. (2012). A Bruce effect in wild geladas. Science, 335(6073), 1222–1225.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rubenstein, D. I. (1986). 13. Ecology and sociality in horses and zebras.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rutowski, R. L. (1979). Courtship behavior of the checkered white, Pieris protodice (Pieridae). Journal of the Lepidopterists’ Society, 33, 42.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schwensow, N., Eberle, M., & Sommer, S. (2008). Compatibility counts: MHC-associated mate choice in a wild promiscuous primate. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences, 275(1634), 555–564.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Setchell, J. M. (2005). Do female mandrills prefer brightly colored males? International Journal of Primatology, 26(4), 715–735.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Snow, L. S. E., Abdel-Mesih, A., & Andrade, M. C. B. (2006). Broken copulatory organs are low-cost adaptations to sperm competition in redback spiders. Ethology, 112(4), 379–389.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thornhill, R. (1976). Sexual selection and nuptial feeding behavior in Bittacus apicalis (Insecta: Mecoptera). The American Naturalist, 110(974), 529–548.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thornhill, R., & Alcock, J. (1983). The evolution of insect mating systems. Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yasukawa, K. (1981). Male quality and female choice of mate in the red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus). Ecology, 62(4), 922–929.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yeon, S. C., Jeon, J. H., Houpt, K. A., Chang, H. H., Lee, H. C., & Lee, H. J. (2006). Acoustic features of vocalizations of Korean native cows (Bos taurus coreanea) in two different conditions. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 101(1), 1–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ziegler, A., Dohr, G., & Uchanska-Ziegler, B. (2002). Possible roles for products of polymorphic MHC and linked olfactory receptor genes during selection processes in reproduction. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 48(1), 34–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ziegler, A., Kentenich, H., & Uchanska-Ziegler, B. (2005). Female choice and the MHC. Trends in Immunology, 26(9), 496–502.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. New York University, New York, NY, USA

    Rachel M. Petersen

Authors
  1. Rachel M. Petersen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rachel M. Petersen .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland University , Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Jennifer Vonk

  2. Department of Psychology, Oakland University Department of Psychology, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK

    Constance Dubuc

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Petersen, R.M. (2018). Female Choice. In: Vonk, J., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_308-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_308-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-47829-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-47829-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation