Mate choice theory and the mode of selection in sexual populations.

Indirect new data imply that mate and/or gamete choice are major selective forces driving genetic change in sexual populations. The system dictates nonrandom mating, an evolutionary process requiring both revised genetic theory and new data on heritability of characters underlying Darwinian fitness. Successfully reproducing individuals represent rare selections from among vigorous, competing survivors of preadult natural selection.

Female choice in Drosophila: evidence from Hawaii and implications for evolutionary biology.

Details of female choice of mate in Drosophila silvestris of Hawaii strikingly parallels epigamic behavioral systems in many other animals and may be common in other species of Drosophilidae. Females respond selectively to male circling, wing displays, songs and tactile stimulation with foreleg cilia, a quantitative character that is highly variable in some populations. I hypothesize that the female can exert choice based on these cues from individual males that differ genetically by quantitative trait loci.

GENETIC VARIATION IN A COURTSHIP-RELATED MALE CHARACTER IN DROSOPHILA SILVESTRIS FROM A SINGLE HAWAIIAN LOCALITY.

The large Drosophila species of Hawaii display sexual dimorphism and elaborate species-specific courtship patterns. Male characters related to courtship attract particular attention since they frequently constitute the most conspicuous taxonomic differences between Hawaiian species. The present study concerns intraspecific genetic variation in a courtship-related male character.