Call Duration as an Indicator of Genetic Quality in Male Gray Tree Frogs

The "good genes" hypothesis predicts that mating preferences enable females to select mates of superior genetic quality. The genetic consequences of the preference shown by female gray tree frogs for long-duration calls were evaluated by comparing the performance of maternal half-siblings...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 1998-06, Vol.280 (5371), p.1928-1930
Main Authors: Welch, Allison M., Semlitsch, Raymond D., Gerhardt, H. Carl
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amphibia and reptilia
Animal behavior
Animal ethology
Animal reproduction
Animal sexual behavior
Animals
Anura - genetics
Anura - physiology
Biological and medical sciences
Body Composition
Classical genetics, quantitative genetics, hybrids
Crosses, Genetic
Evolution
Evolutionary genetics
Feedback (Response)
Female
Female animals
Females
Field Studies
Freshwater
Frogs
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Genes
Genetics
Genetics of eukaryotes. Biological and molecular evolution
Hyla versicolor
Laboratory Experiments
Larvae
Larval development
Male
Male animals
Males
Mating behavior
Metamorphosis
Phenotype
Preferences
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Reptiles & amphibians
Scientific Concepts
Sexual behavior
Sexual behavior in animals
Sexual Behavior, Animal
Social Environment
Tadpoles
Vertebrata
Vocalization, Animal
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Summary:The "good genes" hypothesis predicts that mating preferences enable females to select mates of superior genetic quality. The genetic consequences of the preference shown by female gray tree frogs for long-duration calls were evaluated by comparing the performance of maternal half-siblings sired by males with different call durations. Offspring of male gray tree frogs that produced long calls showed better performance during larval and juvenile stages than did offspring of males that produced short calls. These data suggest that call duration can function as a reliable indicator of heritable genetic quality.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.280.5371.1928