ArticleEvolutionary biology
A Paradox of Genetic Variance in Epigamic Traits: Beyond "Good Genes" View of Sexual Selection.
Article in Evolutionary biology. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed.
- Experimental Evolution Under Biased Sex Ratios: Phenotypic and Genomic Responses in the Bulb Mite, Rhizoglyphus robini.Genome biology and evolution · 2026Article
- Life History Consequences of the Prevalence of Aggressive Males Carrying Costly Weapons.Ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- The Interplay of Biotic and Abiotic Factors in Shaping Genetic Variation atEcology and evolution · 2025Article
- Genomics of a sexually selected sperm ornament and female preference in Drosophila.Nature ecology & evolution · 2025Article
- Genomic evidence that a sexually selected trait captures genome-wide variation and facilitates the purging of genetic load.Nature ecology & evolution · 2022Article
- Strong spatial population structure shapes the temporal coevolutionary dynamics of costly female preference and male display.Evolution; international journal of organic evolution · 2022Article
- What do orange spots reveal about male (and female) guppies? A test using correlated responses to selection.Evolution; international journal of organic evolution · 2021Article
- Sexually selected male weapon is associated with lower inbreeding load but higher sex load in the bulb mite.Evolution; international journal of organic evolution · 2020Article
- Sexual selection, environmental robustness, and evolutionary demography of maladapted populations: A test using experimental evolution in seed beetles.Evolutionary applications · 2019Article
- Sexual selection drives the evolution of male wing interference patterns.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2019Article
- Habituation underpins preference for mates with novel phenotypes in the guppy.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2019Article
- Relative costs and benefits of alternative reproductive phenotypes at different temperatures - genotype-by-environment interactions in a sexually selected trait.BMC evolutionary biology · 2018Article
- Male-limited secondary sexual trait interacts with environment in determining female fitness.Evolution; international journal of organic evolution · 2018Article
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
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Abstract
Maintenance of genetic variance in secondary sexual traits, including bizarre ornaments and elaborated courtship displays, is a central problem of sexual selection theory. Despite theoretical arguments predicting that strong sexual selection leads to a depletion of additive genetic variance, traits associated with mating success show relatively high heritability. Here we argue that because of trade-offs associated with the production of costly epigamic traits, sexual selection is likely to lead to an increase, rather than a depletion, of genetic variance in those traits. Such trade-offs can also be expected to contribute to the maintenance of genetic variation in ecologically relevant traits with important implications for evolutionary processes, e.g. adaptation to novel environments or ecological speciation. However, if trade-offs are an important source of genetic variation in sexual traits, the magnitude of genetic variation may have little relevance for the possible genetic benefits of mate choice.
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