This study examines how females use complex male traits to make mate choices. Female preference for both dynamic (changing during a lifetime) and static (do not changing over a lifetime) components of the vertical bars, a pigment pattern found on swordtail fishes, will be examined. A newly developed video technique will be used to determine how components of the bars (bar number, bar intensity) and their interactions influence mate choice. Videotapes of males courting females are manipulated frame by frame to vary different components of the bars while holding all other aspects of a male constant. The responses of females to the videos will be compared to variation in the male trait in nature and relationship between the trait and male condition to determine the following: 1 ) Does female preference responsible for variation in the bars? 2) Are females are more likely to prefer components of the bars that provide static over dynamic information about male condition?
Female choice is often influenced by complex male traits, composed of multiple components, and yet little is known about how females make mate choices in these situations. Dynamic components, which may reflect a male's health, physical condition, his recent feeding history, immediate social circumstances, and his sexual interest, have the potential of providing females with different kinds of information as compared to static components which are more likely to provide information about species identity and genetic quality. Identifying the relative roles of static and dynamic trait components in mate choice will allow for a clearer understanding of why females are choosey and how the male traits they prefer evolve
