Shaw K L, Herlihy D P
Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
Proc Biol Sci. 2000 Mar 22;267(1443):577-84. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2000.1040.
Female preference functions for different sexual traits can differ significantly, from 'unimodal' to 'open ended'. Through the study of acoustic communication in anurans, several studies have reported an association between static (stereotyped) traits versus dynamic (variable) traits and preference function shape (unimodal versus open ended, respectively). Observing a similar pattern in a phylogenetically independent group would suggest that deterministic forces have caused a relationship between signal variability and preference function shape in acoustic signalling systems. We examined this phenomenon in crickets, another animal characterized by intersexual acoustic communication. We measured the within-male variability for three acoustic features of the male calling song in Laupala cerasina and the corresponding shape of the female preference function for each of these features. We offer support for the generalization that open-ended preference functions correspond to relatively dynamic courtship traits and unimodal preference functions correspond to relatively static courtship traits. We discuss the evolutionary significance of these findings in the context of the natural history of the Laupala species radiation.
雌性对不同性特征的偏好函数可能有显著差异，从“单峰”到“开放式”。通过对无尾两栖类动物声学通讯的研究，多项研究报告了静态（刻板）特征与动态（可变）特征分别与偏好函数形状（分别为单峰与开放式）之间的关联。在一个系统发育独立的群体中观察到类似模式，将表明决定性力量导致了声学信号系统中信号变异性与偏好函数形状之间的关系。我们在蟋蟀中研究了这一现象，蟋蟀是另一种以两性间声学通讯为特征的动物。我们测量了角蝉属劳氏角蝉雄性求偶鸣声的三个声学特征在雄性个体内的变异性，以及雌性对这些特征各自的偏好函数形状。我们支持这样的普遍观点，即开放式偏好函数对应相对动态的求偶特征，而单峰偏好函数对应相对静态的求偶特征。我们在劳氏角蝉物种辐射的自然史背景下讨论了这些发现的进化意义。
