Mating Preference for Novel Phenotypes Can Be Explained by General Neophilia in Female Guppies.

Mating Preference for Novel Phenotypes Can Be Explained by General Neophilia in Female Guppies.
Am Nat. 2020 Oct;196(4):414-428
Authors: Daniel MJ, Koffinas L, Hughes KA
Abstract
AbstractUnderstanding how genetic variation is maintained in ecologically important traits is a fundamental question in evolutionary biology. Male Trinidadian guppies (Poecilia reticulata) exhibit extreme genetic diversity in color patterns within populations, which is believed to be promoted by a female mating preference for rare or novel patterns. However, the origins of this preference remain unclear. Here, we test the hypothesis that mating preference for novel phenotypes is a by-product of general neophilia that evolved in response to selection in nonmating contexts. We measured among-female variation in preference for eight different, novel stimuli that spanned four ecological contexts: mate choice, exploration, foraging, and social (but nonsexual) interactions. Females exhibited preference for novelty in six out of eight tests. Individual variation in preference for novelty was positively correlated among all eight types of stimuli. Furthermore, factor analysis revealed a single axis of general neophilia that accounts for 61% of individual variation in preference for novel color patterns. The single-factor structure of neophilia suggests that interest in novelty is governed primarily by shared processes that transcend context. Because neophilia likely...

Source: The American Naturalist - September 26, 2020 Category: Biology Authors: Daniel MJ, Koffinas L, Hughes KA Tags: Am Nat Source Type: research