Mate choice, male morphology and mating systems: Patterns and processes

我和我的学生研究动物繁殖策略的进化和灵活性。 该研究项目的目的是了解动物色彩，行为和交配系统的巨大多样性的进化机制。 我们利用淡水鱼，包括孔雀鱼，自然选择和性选择的研究模型的自然种群的形态和行为的显着的种群内和种群间的变化。我们将野外实验与实验室项目配对，并对单一物种的重复种群和在一个或多个生态因子中变化的多个物种进行比较研究。这项研究将为行为和进化中的几个主要问题提供新的见解，包括择偶偏好的起源，神经递质在介导这些偏好中的近端作用，以及性选择和自然选择之间的相互作用对交配系统的影响。 这些研究将为动物颜色多样性的广泛模式提供解释，并深入了解环境有助于塑造这种多样性的方式。 *** 这些项目，每个提供团队研究，研究生论文，本科生项目和博士后工作的机会，将有助于更深入，更全面地了解动物繁殖的生态和进化。该研究将导致高素质的学生和博士后研究员在生态学，行为和进化生物学方面的专业知识，谁将在高影响力的期刊上发表他们的研究培训。该研究计划提供的广泛培训强调实地和实验室实验，结合统计和分子技能，将使学生能够在环境，保护和健康科学等领域的大学研究，政府，非政府组织和商业部门就业。 很少有研究记录了多个种群的择偶偏好的变化，随着我们对孔雀鱼生态学和进化的丰富了解，这是一个难得的机会来充分了解造成这种变化的因素。在这个提议中，我们还扩展了我们的研究，以检查多个密切相关的物种之间的择偶偏好的变化，再次检查导致变化的环境因素。 管理和保护加拿大野生动物的生物学家将从我们的研究结果中受益;例如，我们的见解（i）可能会加强动物不愿意交配的圈养繁殖计划，（ii）应该提高我们对当地适应的理解，以便可以评估种群内与种群间杂交的成本和收益。

My students and I study the evolution of and flexibility in animal reproductive strategies. The objective of this research program is to understand the mechanisms driving evolution of the tremendous diversity in animal colouration, behaviour and mating systems. We take advantage of the striking intra- and inter-population variation in the morphology and behaviour of natural populations of freshwater fish, including guppies, a model for the study of natural and sexual selection. We pair field experiments with lab projects, and do comparative studies on replicate populations of a single species and on multiple species that vary in one or more ecological factors. This research will provide novel insights into several major questions in behaviour and evolution including the origins of mate choice preferences, the proximate role of a neurotransmitter in mediating those preferences, and the effects of interactions between sexual and natural selection on mating systems. These studies will provide explanations for broad patterns in diversity in animal colouration and insights into the ways in which the environment helps to mold this diversity. *** These projects, each providing opportunities for team research, graduate theses, undergraduate projects and post-doctoral work, will contribute towards a deeper, more comprehensive understanding of the ecology and evolution of animal reproduction. The research will result in the training of high caliber students and postdoctoral fellows with expertise in ecology, behaviour and evolutionary biology, who will publish their research in high-impact journals. The broad training provided by this research program with its emphasis on both field and lab experiments, incorporating statistical and molecular skills, will equip students for employment in university research, government, NGOs and the business sector in such fields as the environment, conservation, and the health sciences.*** Few studies have documented variation in mate choice preferences across multiple populations and, with our rich understanding of guppy ecology and evolution, this is a rare opportunity to fully understand the factors responsible for this variation. In this proposal, we also extend our studies to examine variation in mate choice preferences across multiple, closely-related species, again examining environmental factors that contribute to the variation. Biologists managing and conserving Canadian wildlife will benefit from our findings; for example, our insights (i) may enhance captive breeding programs where animals have been reluctant to mate, and (ii) should improve our understanding of local adaptation so that the costs and benefits of within- versus between population crosses can be evaluated.**