The evolution of social and sexual behaviour: conflict and cooperation

同性成员之间往往在获得配偶和其他生殖资源方面存在激烈的竞争。这种互动导致了多样化和奢侈的特征和适应的演变，例如武器和充满活力的装饰。通常，男性被认为是竞争的性别，而女性是被动的或挑剔的。然而，雌性竞争，甚至攻击性，在整个动物界都很普遍，并直接影响到雌性的健康和繁殖成功。激烈的男性与男性对配偶的竞争也可能导致对配偶的伤害，从而导致性冲突。以前解释性行为进化的尝试通常只从个体的角度来考虑--通过评估交配对繁殖成功的直接代价和好处。然而，人们希望个体能够最大限度地提高自身的包容性--包括这样一个事实，即个体可以通过帮助亲属的生育成功将共同的基因传递给下一代。我们将试图理解亲属之间的互动如何影响性冲突和性内部竞争。女性与女性之间的竞争在历史上一直被忽视，我们将尝试通过应用包容性适应方法来研究其演变。我们还将试图通过研究人口粘性作为减少性别冲突的驱动因素，来弥合理论和先前的实证研究之间的不协调。最后，动物经常面临不同的社会和生态条件，必须根据可获得的信息反复做出最佳决定。振动交流非常普遍--从大象到线虫--被认为是昆虫最主要的和祖先的交流形式。然而，由于它不是一种突出的人类感觉方式，它在很大程度上被研究人员忽视了。我们希望通过考虑振动的作用来更好地理解驱动性行为和社会行为的机制。BBSRC的关键优先领域：了解生命规则/变革性技术/可持续农业和食品的生物科学

There is often intense competition amongst members of the same sex for access to mates and other reproductive resources. Such interactions lead to the evolution of diverse and extravagant traits and adaptations, such as weaponry and vibrant ornamentation. Typically, males are considered to be the sex that competes whereas females are passive or choosy. However, female competition, and even aggression, is widespread throughout the animal kingdom, and has direct influences on the fitness and reproductive success of the female. Intense male-male competition for mates can also lead to mate harm which results in sexual conflict. Previous attempts to explain the evolution of sexual interactions have typically only been considered from the individual's perspective - by assessing the direct costs and benefits to the reproductive success of the mating pair. However, individuals are expected to maximise their inclusive fitness - incorporating the fact that individuals can pass shared genes onto the next generation by aiding the reproductive success of their relatives. We will attempt to understand how interactions between relatives can influence sexual conflict and intra-sexual competition. Female-female competition has historically been overlooked and we will attempt to study its evolution by applying an inclusive fitness approach. We will also attempt to bridge a discord between theory and previous empirical research, by studying population viscosity as a driver of reduced sexual conflict. Finally, animals are constantly faced with varying social and ecological conditions and must repeatedly make optimal decisions based on the information available. Vibrational communication is extremely widespread - from elephants to nematode worms - and is believed to be the primary and ancestral form of communication in insects. Yet because it is not a prominent human sensory modality it has been largely overlooked by researchers. We hope to better understand the mechanisms driving sexual and social behaviours by considering the role of vibrations.Key BBSRC Priority Areas: Understanding the rules of life / Transformative technologies / Bioscience for sustainable agriculture and food