QEIB: A Comprehensive Theory of Mating Systems

生殖行为的一般理论对于我们对进化过程的基本理解以及我们管理受威胁物种的能力都是必要的。 虽然最近的发展大大增加了我们对交配系统的理解，但它仍然没有一个全面的理论来预测和解释繁殖的一般模式。 许多重要的生物学因素都被孤立地对待，尽管我们知道每一个因素对我们理解进化都至关重要。 一个更全面的方法是必要的，如果我们想解释这样的不同的观察，女性与多个男性交配的精子限制和一个倾斜的交配分布的情况下，没有已知的男性或领土性状解释成功。 两性之间和两性内部的相互作用，生殖的时空动态，环境变化都是交配系统综合理论的重要组成部分。 虽然这些因素中的每一个都在某种程度上被孤立地解决了，但我们还没有研究这些因素中的每一个与特定交配行为的进化之间的联系。 例如，资源分散和社会条件的变化将影响个人之间的互动。 同时，关键资源的随机性将影响个体之间的相互作用以及它们的空间分散。 此外，尽管我们对种群水平的后果感兴趣，但相互作用只发生在空间和时间上相遇的个体之间。 为了建立一个普遍的理论，我们需要一个框架，使我们能够检查内部和性别之间的多种相互作用，以及考虑环境条件和空间动态的重要性。 这些相互作用的复杂性需要数学建模。 动态规划博弈使得考虑个体的社会和生态环境对生殖行为的影响成为可能。 我提出了一种新的方法，使人们有可能同时研究各种现象，相互作用，创造交配系统，并确定生殖策略。这种方法将被用来研究一般模型，研究随机性，空间和冲突之间的相互作用对特定的交配行为。 然而，理论并不只是因为它更复杂而更好。 相反，我所倡导的方法也将通过其增加我们对观察到的变化的理解的能力来验证。 它们解释观察到的行为的能力不仅会增加我们对单个物种的理解，而且对我们理解交配系统也有普遍的影响。

A general theory of reproductive behavior is imperative both to our basic understanding of evolutionary processes as well as our ability to manage threatened species. Although recent developments have greatly increased our understanding of mating systems, it has left us without a comprehensive theory for predicting and explaining general patterns of reproduction. A variety of important biological factors have been treated in isolation from one another, although we know that each one is critical to our understanding of evolution. A more comprehensive approach is necessary if we wish to explain such varied observations as females mating with multiple males in the absence of sperm limitation and a skewed mating distribution where no known male or territory trait explains success. Interactions within and between the sexes, spatial and temporal dynamics of reproduction, environmental variation are all be essential components of a comprehensive theory of mating systems. Although each of these elements has been addressed to some degree in isolation, we have not examined the connections between each of these factors to the evolution of specific mating behaviors. For example, resource dispersion and variability in social conditions will affect interactions between individuals. Concurrently stochasticity in critical resources will influence both the interactions between individuals as well as their spatial dispersion. Furthermore, although we are interested in population-level consequences, interactions only occur between individuals that encounter one another in space and time. To create a general theory, we need a framework which allows us to examine multiple interactions within and between the sexes as well as consider the importance of environmental conditions and spatial dynamics. The complexity of these interactions demand mathematical modeling. Dynamic programming games make it possible to consider the effect of an individual's social and ecological environment on reproductive behavior. I propose a new approach which makes it possible to simultaneously study a variety of phenomena that interact to create mating systems and determine reproductive strategies. This method will be used to study general models examining the interactions between stochasticity, space, and conflict on specific mating behaviors. Yet, theory is not better simply because it is more complex. Instead, the approach I am advocating will also be verified by its ability to increase our understanding of observed variation. Their ability to explain observed behavior will not only increase our understanding of a single species but also have general implications for our understanding of mating systems.