Learning and experience shape mate preferences in many species. My thesis investigates the role of experience on mating behavior of male and female sailfin mollies (Poecilia latipinna). In the first chapter I explore whether adult experience influences male sailfin molly mate preference for their sexual parasite, the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa), and whether experience could account for reproductive character displacement (RCD) of male mate preference in this species. Sailfin males from sympatric populations show a stronger preference for conspecific females over Amazon mollies than do males from allopatric populations. I exposed males from sympatric and allopatric populations to either a sailfin female or an Amazon prior to a mating trial with an Amazon. For the allopatric population, males with recent experience with an Amazon directed fewer mating behaviors towards an Amazon during mating trials than did males with recent experience with a sailfin. Males from the sympatric population, however, performed the same amount of mating behaviors towards an Amazon regardless of experience. Thus adult experience influences mating preferences and suggests that experience may play a role in RCD in this species. In the second chapter I investigate whether a learned sensory bias could influence female mate preferences. Sensory biases that influence mate preferences can arise through selection on the sensory system in foraging and predator detection domains. I tested whether a learned preference originating outside of the mating domain, specifically a color-based food preference, can be transferred to a color-based preference for a male trait. I trained female sailfin mollies to associate either green or blue with food and then tested their preference for animated male sailfins featuring either a blue or green spot. I found that females did not prefer the male with the same color spot to which they had been conditioned. I discuss the problem of learned preference transfer and suggest directions for future research into the role of learning in sensory bias.

Twenty-one specially-commissioned articles provide a clear picture of the current state of thinking about mate choice. Brings together modern thinking on the various functions of mate choice and its role in evolution.

The last decade has seen a surge of interest among biologists in a range of social animal phenomena, including collective behaviour and social networks. In ‘Animal Social Behaviour’, authors Ashley Ward and Michael Webster integrate the most up-to-date empirical and theoretical research to provide a new synthesis of the field, which is aimed at fellow researchers and postgraduate students on the topic. ​

The history of biology is populated by numerous model species or organisms. But few vertebrate groups have aided evolutionary and ecological research more than the live-bearing fishes of the family Poeciliidae. Found throughout tropical and subtropical waters, poeciliids exhibit a fascinating variety of reproductive specializations, including viviparity, matrotrophy, unisexual reproduction, and alternative mating strategies, making them ideal models for research on patterns and processes in ecology, behavior, and evolution. Ecology and Evolution of Poeciliid Fishes is a much-needed overview of the scientific potential and understanding of these live-bearing fishes. Chapters by leading researchers take up a wide range of topics, including the evolution of unisexual reproduction, life in extreme environments, life-history evolution, and genetics. Designed to provide a single and highly approachable reference, Ecology and Evolution of Poeciliid Fishes will appeal to students and specialists interested in all aspects of evolutionary ecology.

"The sex imperative - the irresistible impulse to engage in sexual relations - has enabled animals to share their genes and evolve. Maxwell traces the progress of sex from the simple sharing of genes between cells to the elaborate courtship rituals that developed so sperm could merge with egg. In the effort to join sperm and egg, species have developed some astounding and unusual sexual adaptations. As Maxwell vividly describes the sex lives of various creatures, he attests to the resiliency and amazing adaptability of life to its everchanging environment. By focusing on the diversity of animal sexual relationships, Maxwell enables us to question the very basis of sexuality: What is sex? Why did it evolve? How does sexuality and survival shape the social behavior of animals and humans? The sex imperative is indeed the driving force behind Darwin's theory of random variation and natural selection, better known as "survival of the fittest." Maxwell goes so far as to investigate our latest accomplishment in the science of begetting offspring: genetic engineering." "This awe-inspiring and unique work celebrates the power and wonder of life and sexuality of all creatures - including humans. After reading this engrossing and illuminating work, no one will ever think of evolution in the same way."--Jacket

A major new look at the evolution of mating decisions in organisms from protozoans to humans The popular consensus on mate choice has long been that females select mates likely to pass good genes to offspring. In Mate Choice, Gil Rosenthal overturns much of this conventional wisdom. Providing the first synthesis of the topic in more than three decades, and drawing from a wide range of fields, including animal behavior, evolutionary biology, social psychology, neuroscience, and economics, Rosenthal argues that "good genes" play a relatively minor role in shaping mate choice decisions and demonstrates how mate choice is influenced by genetic factors, environmental effects, and social interactions. Looking at diverse organisms, from protozoans to humans, Rosenthal explores how factors beyond the hunt for good genes combine to produce an endless array of preferences among species and individuals. He explains how mating decisions originate from structural constraints on perception and from nonsexual functions, and how single organisms benefit or lose from their choices. Both the origin of species and their fusion through hybridization are strongly influenced by direct selection on preferences in sexual and nonsexual contexts. Rosenthal broadens the traditional scope of mate choice research to encompass not just animal behavior and behavioral ecology but also neurobiology, the social sciences, and other areas. Focusing on mate choice mechanisms, rather than the traits they target, Mate Choice offers a groundbreaking perspective on the proximate and ultimate forces determining the evolutionary fate of species and populations.