Sexual Selection and the Barn Swallow

by Anders Pape Moller, Jens Gregersen, A. P. Mller

Overview

This informative book details the important effects sexual selection has on barn swallow mating behavior, mating competition, parental care, host-parasite interactions, and migration strategies. The first two chapters present a concise, insightful review of the two main components of sexual selection theory—male-male competition and female choice. Citing evidence from the author's long-term field work on the monogamous barn swallow, subsequent chapters investigate the advantages held by males with colorful plumage and by females who are choosy when selecting a mating partner. In his exploration of the roles of behavior, ecology, morphology, genetics, and evolution, Møller provides an invaluable synthesis of barn swallow mating behavior research. Students and researchers of ecology, animal behavior, ornithology, and evolutionary biology will welcome this book.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198540281
Publisher:	Oxford University Press, USA
Publication date:	11/28/1996
Series:	Oxford Series in Ecology and Evolution Series
Product dimensions:	6.13(w) x 9.19(h) x 0.84(d)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
1.1. What is Sexual Selection?
1.2. A Brief History of Sexual Selection
1.3. Why is Sexual Selection Interesting?
1.4. The Role of Sexual Selection in Animal Life
1.5. Evolution Versus Maintenance of Sexual Displays
1.6. Outline of the Book
1.7. Summary
2. Models of Sexual Selection and Monogamy
2.1. Introduction
2.2. The Two Modes of Sexual Selection
2.3. Models of Male-Male Competition
2.4. Models of Mate Preferences
2.5. Sexual Selection and Monogamy
2.6. Summary
3. The Study Organism
3.1. Introduction
3.2. Morphology of the Barn Swallow
3.3. Natural History of the Barn Swallow
3.4. Sexual Behavior of Barn Swallows
3.5. Constraints on Evolution of Secondary Sexual Characters
3.6. Study Methods
3.7. Summary
4. Male Mating Advantages
4.1. Introduction
4.2. Components of Sexual Selection
4.3. Evaluation of Sexual Selection Components
4.4. Relative Importance of Mating Advantages
4.5. Summary
5. Benefits of Mate Choice
5.1. Introduction
5.2. Theory of Mate Preferences
5.3. Female Mate Preferences in the Barn Swallow
5.4. Benefits of Mate Choice
5.5. How Can Heritability of Fitness be Maintained?
5.6. Summary
6. Determinants of Tail Ornament Size
6.1. Introduction
6.2. Components of Morphological Variation
6.3. Ornaments as Indicators of Condition
6.4. Determinants of Feather Growth
6.5. Why are Ornaments Not Larger?
6.6. Summary
7. Advantages of Early Arrival
7.1. Introduction
7.2. Models of Optimal Arrival
7.3. Costs and Benefits of Early Arrival
7.4. Annual Variation in Arrival Time
7.5. Individual Quality and Early Arrival
7.6. Aerodynamics and Early Arrival
7.7. Summary
8. Options for Unmated Males
8.1. Introduction
8.2. The Sex Ratio
8.3. Characteristics of Unmated Males
8.4. Survival Prospects of Unmated Males
8.5. Extra-Pair Copulations
8.6. Infanticide Behavior
8.7. Summary
9. Parasites and Sexual Selection
9.1. Introduction
9.2. Models of Parasite-Mediated Sexual Selection
9.3. Description of Barn Swallow Parasites
9.4. Parasites and Parental Care
9.5. Avoidance of Contagious Parasites
9.6. Indirect Benefits of Choice of Parasite-Free Mates
9.7. Summary
10. Paternal Care and Male Ornamentation
10.1. Introduction
10.2. Models of Sexual Selection and Parental Care
10.3. Kinds of Male Parental Care
10.4. Patterns of Parental Care and Male Ornamentation
10.5. Differential Parental Effort
10.6. Summary
11. Sperm Competition and Sexual Selection
11.1. Introduction
11.2. Sperm Competition and Sexual Selection
11.3. Extra-Pair Copulation Behavior
11.4. Patterns of Extra-Pair Copulations
11.5. Extra-Pair Copulations and Extra-Pair Paternity
11.6. Paternity Guards
11.7. Costs and Benefits of Extra-Pair Copulations
11.8. Summary
12. Sexual Size Dimorphism and Female Ornaments
12.1. Introduction
12.2. Evolution of Sexual Dimorphism
12.3. Sexual Size Dimorphism in Barn Swallows
12.4. Female Ornaments as Signals of Female Quality
12.5. Female Ornaments and Reproduction
12.6. Summary
13. Geographic Variation in Ornament Size
13.1. Introduction
13.2. Clinal Variation in Ornaments
13.3. Geographic Variation in Barn Swallow Morphology
13.4. Geographic Variation in Costs and Benefits of Ornaments
13.5. Barn Swallow Subspecies
13.6. Summary
14. Synthesis
14.1. Introduction
14.2. Sexual Selection in the Life of Barn Swallows
14.3. Sexual Selection as a Continuously Reinforcing Process?
14.4. Which are the Benefits of Female Choice?
14.5. Mechanisms Versus Functions in Sexual Selection
14.6. Constraints on the Evolution of Secondary Sexual Characters
14.7. Mating Systems, Ornaments and Sexual Selection
14.8. Life-History Consequences of Sexual Selection
14.9. Summary

Editorial Reviews

"Moller's field studies are remarkable in scope, in the degree to which experimentation has been employed and in the extent to which they confirm a priori theory. Collectively they make one of the most complete cases so far for adaptive female choice of a sexual ornament..." —Nature

"This book is not confined to sexual selection in its narrow sense of reproductive competition; Moller uses barn swallows to examine virtually every important question in evolutionary biology....The book touches on topics ranging from speciation to life history theory, with nods along the way to foraging ecology, sex ratio evolution, migration, and the evolutionary consequences of geographic variation....Moller displays a remarkable opportunism in his research, losing no chance to turn the smallest piece of information into a test of a hypothesis....This dedication to detail is combined with a thorough grounding in theory throughout the book....Perhaps some of the biologists using Drosophila or Caenorhabditis elegans in their research might consider a shift toward the graceful and utilitarian subject of this book; Moller has demonstrated an ample payoff from his attentions." —Science

"Very thorough!!!"—Choice

From the Publisher