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Living in mixed-sex groups limits sexual selection as a driver of pelage dimorphism in bovids

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  • Giacomo D’Ammando
  • Daniel W Franks
  • Jakob Bro-Jørgensen

Abstract

Among mammals, bovids provide some of the most striking examples of sexual dimorphism in colouration and pelage appendages, such as beards and manes. This dimorphism is usually assumed to have evolved through sexual selection on males in the context of intra- or intersexual communication. However, the sexes coloration and pelage appendages look similar between the two sexes in several bovid species thought to be characterized by large opportunities for sexual selection, hinting at fitness costs of dimorphic traits due to other selection pressures. This study applies the comparative method with phylogenetic control to identify the factors promoting and constraining the evolution of dimorphism in coloration and pelage appendages across bovids. We found that trait dimorphism correlated positively with large breeding group size, an indicator of the intensity of sexual selection, and negatively with male territoriality, which is also likely to affect the operation of sexual selection. The relative rarity of color and pelage dimorphism in species with territorial mating systems may be explained by weaker sexual selection due to difficulty in monopolizing females and/or sexual selection targeting other traits, such as territorial quality as an extended phenotype. We also found that dimorphism in color and pelage was reduced in species spending more time in mixed-sex groups outside the breeding season, possibly due to increased predation costs from non-uniformity. This suggests that benefits from integration into mixed-sex groups select against the extravagant male morphologies otherwise promoted by sexual selection.

Suggested Citation

  • Giacomo D’Ammando & Daniel W Franks & Jakob Bro-Jørgensen, 2022. "Living in mixed-sex groups limits sexual selection as a driver of pelage dimorphism in bovids," Behavioral Ecology, International Society for Behavioral Ecology, vol. 33(3), pages 541-548.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:beheco:v:33:y:2022:i:3:p:541-548.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/beheco/arac016
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Marcelo H Cassini & Michael Taborsky, 2020. "Sexual size dimorphism and sexual selection in artiodactyls," Behavioral Ecology, International Society for Behavioral Ecology, vol. 31(3), pages 792-797.
    3. Christopher R. Cooney & Zoë K. Varley & Lara O. Nouri & Christopher J. A. Moody & Michael D. Jardine & Gavin H. Thomas, 2019. "Sexual selection predicts the rate and direction of colour divergence in a large avian radiation," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 1-9, December.
    4. Cécile Vanpé & Petter Kjellander & Maxime Galan & Jean-François Cosson & Stéphane Aulagnier & Olof Liberg & A. J. Mark Hewison, 2008. "Mating system, sexual dimorphism, and the opportunity for sexual selection in a territorial ungulate," Behavioral Ecology, International Society for Behavioral Ecology, vol. 19(2), pages 309-316.
    5. Olaf R. P. Bininda-Emonds & Marcel Cardillo & Kate E. Jones & Ross D. E. MacPhee & Robin M. D. Beck & Richard Grenyer & Samantha A. Price & Rutger A. Vos & John L. Gittleman & Andy Purvis, 2007. "The delayed rise of present-day mammals," Nature, Nature, vol. 446(7135), pages 507-512, March.
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