Marlene Zuk

Leigh W. Simmons

A Very Short Introduction

Sexual Selection

The Bibbulman Track is a World class walking trail that runs just over 1000km through the forests and across the coastal heaths of southwestern Western Australia, from the towns of Kalamundain the North to Albany in the South. Naturalist on the Bibbulman is the story of one man's journey with his son through this ancient and extraordinary corner of the world. The biodiversity is so extensive that it is im-possible to provide a comprehensive field guide to the Bibbulmun Track. Nevertheless, the author mus-ters his expertise in ecology and evolutionary biology to document the animals and plants found during the Noongar seasons of kambarang and birak, from November to January, with colour photographs throughout. In so doing we learn how evolution has shaped the extraordinary diversity of animals and plants in this corner of the World, the important roles biodiversity plays in providing the stable ecosystem in which we live and prosper, and the serious impacts to that stability imposed by our increasing overexploitation of what is an ancient and fragile landscape. Naturalist on the Bibbulmun is both a witness statement of the current state of the natural regions of southwestern WA, and a call to arms to protect for our future generations what little remains of one of the world's most extraordinary natural habitats.

A Walking Companion

Naturalist on the Bibbulmun

What is responsible for the differences between the sexes in so many animals, from the brilliant plumage of birds of paradise to the antlers on deer? And why are the traits that distinguish the sexes sometimes apparently detrimental to survival? Even when they look more or less alike, why do males and females sometimes behave differently? Questions like these have intrigued scientists and the public alike for many years, and new discoveries are showing us both how wildly variable the natural world is, and how some basic principles can help explain much of that variation. Like natural selection, sexual selection is a process that results from differential representation of genes in successive generations. Under sexual selection, however, the crucial characteristics that determine whether an individual reproduces depend on sexual competition, rather than survival ability. This Very Short Introduction considers the history of our understanding of sexual selection, from Darwin's key insights to the modern day. Considering the investment animals place on reproduction, variation in mating systems, sexual conflict, and the origin of sexual dimorphism, Marlene Zuk and Leigh Simmons discuss questions such as whether females can really choose between males on aesthetic grounds, and how sexual conflict is resolved in different species. They conclude with a consideration of the thorny question of how, and even if, sexual selection theory applies to humans. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Sexual Selection: A Very Short Introduction

David M. Shuker

Updated version of: The evolution of insect mating systems / Randy Thornhill and John Alcock. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1983. (Preface).

The Evolution of Insect Mating Systems

One hundred years after Darwin considered how sexual selection shapes the behavioral and morphological characteristics of males for acquiring mates, Parker realized that sexual selection continues after mating through sperm competition. Because females often mate with multiple males before producing offspring, selection favors adaptations that allow males to preempt sperm from previous males and to prevent their own sperm from preemption by future males. Since the 1970s, this area of research has seen exponential growth, and biologists now recognize sperm competition as an evolutionary force that drives such adaptations as mate guarding, genital morphology, and ejaculate chemistry across all animal taxa. The insects have been critical to this research, and they still offer the greatest potential to reveal fully the evolutionary consequences of sperm competition. This book analyzes and extends thirty years of theoretical and empirical work on insect sperm competition. It considers both male and female interests in sperm utilization and the sexual conflict that can arise when these differ. It covers the mechanics of sperm transfer and utilization, morphology, physiology, and behavior. Sperm competition is shown to have dramatic effects on adaptation in the context of reproduction as well as far-reaching ramifications on life-history evolution and speciation. Written by a top researcher in the field, this comprehensive, up-to-date review of the evolutionary causes and consequences of sperm competition in the insects will prove an invaluable reference for students and established researchers in behavioral ecology and evolutionary biology.

Sperm Competition and Its Evolutionary Consequences in the Insects

T. James Ridsdill-Smith

This book describes the evolutionary and ecological consequences of reproductive competition for scarabaeine dung beetles. As well as giving us insight into the private lives of these fascinating creatures, this book shows how dung beetles can be used as model systems for improving our general understanding of broad evolutionary and ecological processes, and how they generate biological diversity. Over the last few decades we have begun to see further than ever before, with our research efforts yielding new information at all levels of analysis, from whole organism biology to genomics. This book brings together leading researchers who contribute chapters that integrate our current knowledge of phylogenetics and evolution, developmental biology, comparative morphology, physiology, behaviour, and population and community ecology. Dung beetle research is shedding light on the ultimate question of how best to document and conserve the world's biodiversity. The book will be of interest to established researchers, university teachers, research students, conservation biologists, and those wanting to know more about the dung beetle taxon.

Leigh W. Simmons

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