Dugatkin L A, Godin J G
Department of Biology, Mount Allison University, Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada.
Proc Biol Sci. 1992 Aug 22;249(1325):179-84. doi: 10.1098/rspb.1992.0101.
Ever since Fisher (1958) formalized models of sexual selection, female mate choice has been assumed to be a genetically determined trait. Females, however, may also use social cues to select mates. One such cue might be the mate choice of conspecifics. Here we report the first direct evidence that a female's preference for a particular male can in fact be reversed by social cues. In our experiments using the Trinidadian guppy (Poecilia reticulata), this reversal was mediated by mate-copying opportunities, such that a female (the 'focal' female) is given the opportunity to choose between two males, followed by a period in which she observes a second female (the 'model' female) displaying a preference for the male she herself did not prefer initially. When allowed to choose between the same males a second time, compared with control tests, a significant proportion of focal females reversed their mate choice and copied the preference of the model female. These results provide strong evidence for the role of non-genetic factors in sexual selection and underlie the need for new models of sexual selection that explicitly incorporate both genetic and cultural aspects of mate choice.
自费希尔（1958年）将性选择模型形式化以来，雌性配偶选择一直被认为是一种由基因决定的特征。然而，雌性也可能利用社会线索来选择配偶。这样一种线索可能是同种个体的配偶选择。在此，我们报告首个直接证据，即雌性对特定雄性的偏好实际上可以被社会线索逆转。在我们使用特立尼达孔雀鱼（孔雀鱼）进行的实验中，这种逆转是由模仿配偶机会介导的，即让一只雌性（“焦点”雌性）有机会在两只雄性之间进行选择，随后让她观察另一只雌性（“示范”雌性）表现出对她自己最初不喜欢的雄性的偏好。当再次让焦点雌性在相同雄性之间进行选择时，与对照测试相比，相当一部分焦点雌性逆转了她们的配偶选择并模仿了示范雌性的偏好。这些结果为非遗传因素在性选择中的作用提供了有力证据，并凸显了需要新的性选择模型，这些模型要明确纳入配偶选择的遗传和文化方面。
