1980/11/01 by Mart R. Gross, Eric L. Charnov · 402 citations
Environmental Science · Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Fish Ecology and Management Studies #Marine and fisheries research #Animal Behavior and Reproduction #Biology #Mating #Brood #Paternal care #Natural selection #Zoology #Parental investment #Frequency-dependent selection #Mating system #Ecology #Selection (genetic algorithm) #Evolutionary biology #Demography #Genetics #Artificial intelligence #Offspring #Computer science
paper · open access · doi:10.1073/pnas.77.11.6937
published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 77(11), 6937-6940 (National Academy of Sciences)
openalex publication_date 1980/11/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
MALE BLUEGILL SUNFISH ARE SHOWN TO HAVE TWO ALTERNATIVE MATING STRATEGIES: cuckoldry or parental care. Cuckolder males first mature at age 2. They follow a developmental sequence of sneaking and then mimicking female behavior to deceptively gain access to spawnings. Males who become parentals (construct nests, attract females, provide brood care) delay maturation until age 7. The parental investment of these males is parasitized by the cuckolders. This system is an example of a truly parasitically dependent mating strategy in vertebrates. A natural selection model is developed to predict the equilibrium frequencies of the two male types. A preliminary test of the model provides qualitative agreement.