Journal
BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY AND SOCIOBIOLOGY
Volume 64, Issue 9, Pages 1437-1447Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s00265-010-0959-3
Keywords
Extended phenotype; Mate choice; Bower; Multiple signals; Lake Tanganyika
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Funding
- Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives of Zambia
- Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) [3100-064396, 3100A0-105626]
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In many species of East African cichlids, males build sand craters or bowers to attract females for spawning. It is commonly assumed that these exaggerated sexual traits have a function similar to bodily ornaments. In non-bodily ornaments, however, the behaviour creating the structure may serve as an additional source of information to potential partners, providing multiple signals for mate choice. We tested whether and to what extent females use these signals for choosing males by observing the individual sampling behaviour of female Cyathopharynx furcifer in the field. In addition, we experimentally manipulated crater characteristics in the field and laboratory. We found that females spawn preferably with owners of large and well-maintained craters, but when crater size was enlarged or reduced, the resulting building activity of crater owners affected female choice more strongly than the manipulated crater size per se. We discuss the importance of multiple signals in species constructing extended phenotypes.
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