A distinct neurogenomic response to a tradeoff between social challenge and opportunity in male sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus)

Animals frequently make adaptive decisions about what to prioritize when they are faced with multiple, conflicting demands at the same time. However, the proximate mechanisms of decision-making in the face of competing demands are not well understood. We explored this question using brain transcriptomics in a classic model system: threespined sticklebacks, where males face conflict between courtship and territorial defense. The outcome of decisions made by breeding males over whether to court mates or defend against territory intrusion are profoundly important to fitness. We characterized the behavior and brain gene expression profiles of males confronted by a tradeoff between courtship and territorial defense by comparing them to males not confronted by this tradeoff. When faced with the tradeoff, males behaviorally prioritized defense over courtship, and this decision was reflected in their brain gene expression profiles. A distinct set of genes and biological processes was recruited ...