Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Trends Ecol Evol. 2010 Mar;25(3):145-52. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2009.09.008. Epub 2009 Oct 21.
Empirical studies of sexual traits continue to generate conflicting results, leading to a growing awareness that the current understanding of this topic is limited. Here we argue that this is because studies of sexual traits fail to encompass three important features of evolution. First, sexual traits evolve via natural selection of which sexual selection is just one part. Second, selection on sexual traits fluctuates in strength, direction and form due to spatial and temporal environmental heterogeneity. Third, phenotypic plasticity is ubiquitous and generates selection and responses to selection within and across generations. A move from purely gene-focused theories of sexual selection towards research that explicitly integrates development, ecology and evolution is necessary to break the stasis in research on sexual traits.
性特征的实证研究不断产生相互矛盾的结果，这使得人们越来越意识到，目前对这一主题的理解是有限的。在这里，我们认为这是因为性特征的研究未能包含进化的三个重要特征。首先，性特征是通过自然选择进化的，而性选择只是其中的一部分。其次，由于时空环境的异质性，性特征的选择在强度、方向和形式上都在不断变化。第三，表型可塑性是普遍存在的，它在代内和代间产生选择和对选择的反应。从纯粹以基因为中心的性选择理论向明确整合发育、生态和进化的研究转变，对于打破性特征研究的停滞局面是必要的。
