Tactical adjustment of sexual display behaviour: models and tests in invertebrates
Lead Research Organisation:
UNIVERSITY OF EXETER
Department Name: Psychology
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Sexual selection-Darwin's second great theory of evolution-explains why many animals possess elaborate courtship displays that attract potential mates, despite harming their survival. Most research has focused on morphological display traits (e.g. elongated appendages, bright colour patches), but we know relatively little about the striking behavioural displays performed in many taxa. For example, male fiddler crabs have a massively enlarged claw which they wave in the air and drum against their body and the substrate to tempt females into their burrow. This is a highly dynamic display that can be rapidly adjusted depending on the male's energy levels, the degree of interest from passing females, the intensity of competition from rival males and the current predation risk. This PhD project will combine evolutionary modelling with field experiments on a wild population of fiddler crabs in the Algarve, to determine how males adaptively adjust their courtship in a dynamically changing social environment.
AIMS & METHODS
The overall goal is to predict how males should flexibly adjust their courtship behaviour to maximise their reproductive success, and test these predictions in a wild population of fiddler crabs. Possible research questions include:
* How do males adaptively allocate their courtship effort across the tidal cycle?
* What are the physiological consequences of courtship and how do males balance the costs and benefits across multiple mating opportunities?
* How is dynamic courtship behaviour mechanistically linked to morphological traits (e.g. claw size) and aspects of male quality?
* How do males combine waving and drumming displays to attract females efficiently?
Sexual selection-Darwin's second great theory of evolution-explains why many animals possess elaborate courtship displays that attract potential mates, despite harming their survival. Most research has focused on morphological display traits (e.g. elongated appendages, bright colour patches), but we know relatively little about the striking behavioural displays performed in many taxa. For example, male fiddler crabs have a massively enlarged claw which they wave in the air and drum against their body and the substrate to tempt females into their burrow. This is a highly dynamic display that can be rapidly adjusted depending on the male's energy levels, the degree of interest from passing females, the intensity of competition from rival males and the current predation risk. This PhD project will combine evolutionary modelling with field experiments on a wild population of fiddler crabs in the Algarve, to determine how males adaptively adjust their courtship in a dynamically changing social environment.
AIMS & METHODS
The overall goal is to predict how males should flexibly adjust their courtship behaviour to maximise their reproductive success, and test these predictions in a wild population of fiddler crabs. Possible research questions include:
* How do males adaptively allocate their courtship effort across the tidal cycle?
* What are the physiological consequences of courtship and how do males balance the costs and benefits across multiple mating opportunities?
* How is dynamic courtship behaviour mechanistically linked to morphological traits (e.g. claw size) and aspects of male quality?
* How do males combine waving and drumming displays to attract females efficiently?
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Timothy Fawcett (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Joseph Wilde (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NE/S007504/1 | 01/10/2019 | 30/11/2027 | |||
| 2240122 | Studentship | NE/S007504/1 | 01/10/2019 | 31/07/2023 | Joseph Wilde |