The evolution of experience-mediated plasticity in mate preferences

Experience of sexual signals can alter mate preferences and influence the course of sexual selection. Here, we examine patterns of experience-mediated plasticity in mate preferences that can arise in response to variation in the composition of mates in the environment. We use these patterns to test hypotheses about potential sources of selection favouring experience-mediated plasticity. We manipulated signal experience of female Enchenopa treehoppers (Hemiptera: Membracidae) in a vibrational playback experiment with the following treatments: silence; two types of non-preferred signal; preferred signals; and a mixture of preferred and non-preferred signals. This experiment revealed plasticity in mate preference selectivity, with greatest selectivity in the mixed signal treatment, followed by the preferred signal treatment. We found no plasticity in peak preference. These results suggest that females have been selected to adjust preference selectivity according to the variability of poten...

性信号体验可改变配偶偏好，并影响性选择的进程。本研究探讨了环境中配偶组成变化所引发的配偶偏好中经验介导可塑性（experience-mediated plasticity）的模式，进而检验了关于偏好该可塑性的潜在选择来源的假设。我们通过振动回放实验（vibrational playback experiment）操纵雌性恩氏叶蝉（Enchenopa treehoppers，半翅目：角蝉科）的信号体验，设置了以下处理条件：静默、两种非偏好信号、偏好信号，以及偏好与非偏好信号的混合。实验结果显示配偶偏好选择性存在可塑性，其中混合信号处理组的选择性最强，其次是偏好信号处理组；而峰值偏好未表现出可塑性。