Natural Selection Vs Sexual Selection Essay

In an article by Lee Alan Dugatkin and Jean Guy J. Godin they discuss how women unknowingly select their mates based on what they believe to be their choices and personal preferences, but really their choices stem from their subconscious and biological pre-programing. One of the examples that are given in the article is how vibrant colors, although not evolutionarily smart in terms of camouflage, are effective when it comes to finding a mate. Like for instance guppies and peacocks, the males possess these vibrant, bright colors to attract females and innately that is what the females look for. The more colorful the male, the more likely the female will choose him to breed with because to them the brighter the males are the stronger their genes are and the more possible it is that their offspring will survive and continue passing on their genes (Dugatkin et Godin,

Sexual selection was an idea proposed by Darwin and refers to the process in which males and females attempt to maximize their chances of reproductive success. Within a species there are certain characteristics that make individuals attractive to potential mates. An example of this is in peacocks, female peacocks are attracted to males with long brightly colored tails, even though this makes them easier to be spotted by predators. This characteristic then evolves within the species due to how males with this characteristic have a higher chance of reproductive success and their characteristics being passed on to surviving offspring.

In his article, The Strategies of Finding a Mate, David M. Buss discusses the act of finding a mate and the characteristics that people are drawn to in a mate. He begins the article with a brief look at the history of mating and the theories that have previously been proposed. In particular he addressed Charles Darwin’s theory of sexual evolution and belief in preferential mate choice. Buss proposes that there are three components to human mating. He states that “human mating is inherently strategic… mating strategies are context-dependent… [and that] men and women have faced different mating problems over the course of human evolution and, as a consequence, have evolved different strategies” (Buss, 1994, p. 241). He uses this theory to propose nine different hypotheses to prove that despite humans being varied and different from each other, all humans look for similar characteristics when trying to find a mate (Buss, 1994).

Natural selection is the process in which heritable traits that make it more likely for organisms to survive and successfully reproduce become more common in a population over successive generations. Each of us individuals is specifically shaped and formed by our own genetic pattern. We inherit this pattern half from are mother and half from are father. The cause of this is the proximate cause that led it’s phenotype to ultimate causes. Much of we know today about evolution derives from the late great pioneer, Charles Darwin. Charles Darwin was an english naturalist that even from an early age was very interested in outdoor pursuits. Early in his prep career his father tried sending him to the University of Edinburg to pursue his medical

There are many theories that try to explain relationships between sexual selection and human reproductive behaviour. Evolutionary theory is one such theory.

Darwin suggested that females preferred certain phenotypic traits as females could gain direct benefit from these, for example, certain male characters are able to provide resources or offspring and increase fecundity (Mota, 2010) .

Albeit, the sexual selection theory is presumed force of natural selection causing individuals to develop reproductive strategies which maximize the like hood of their producing the fittest possible offspring. Otherwise, suggested a competition between males and competition for females as the two most likely mechanism of sexual selection theory.

Evolutionary history effects more than just genetic behaviour level. It also effects how society socializes its members. Males –despite having the innate behaviors and perspectives on relationships— experience socialization that, in essence, reinforces gender differences in perspectives and behavior. From early childhood up until adulthood, the individual is bombarded with a plethora of advertisments that portray males as more aggressive (Henslin p. 78). In television male newscasters turn female athletes into sexual objects (78). And socialization is not limited to the media. It begins in the home –within the family. In an experiment performed by Goldberg and Lewis, Mothers were more less likely to keep their boys

There are many factors that influence female attraction towards men, and many of them are driven by women’s menstrual cycle. Sexual attraction in females has been shown to increase during the ovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle, which is the period of most fertility (Gangestad & Thornhill, 1998). Evolutionarily, this time is beneficial because it would be more likely for a female to conceive if she were more prone to attraction towards men during her fertile period. It has also been shown that female mate preferences change across the ovulatory cycle. Men with particular attributes, such as facial symmetry, are preferred during the period of most fertility (Gangestad & Thornhill, 1998). This can be explained by the Ovulatory Shift Hypothesis, first proposed by Gangestad and Thornhill (1998). Gangestad and Thornhill (1998) make three predictions within this hypothesis. This first prediction includes the ‘good genes principle,’ that women are attracted to certain attributes that signify that a male has “high genetic quality” (Gildersleeve, Haselton, & Fales, 2014). This could mean that a certain individual possesses genes that would increase an offspring’s’ fitness and, therefore the parent’s fitness, or do not possess genes that would be harmful to an offspring. Therefore, theoretically, if a female were more attracted to a male based on the male having high quality genes, she would more likely conceive an offspring with that individual. This would, in turn,

Sexual selection can best be described by the definition given by Darwin himself. Sexual selection is “the advantage which certain individuals have over other individuals of the same species solely in respect of reproduction” (Hosken et al, 2011). Sexual selection occurs throughout the animal kingdom, where male frogs dominate through the depth of their croak, and certain peacocks reign superior based on the colour and intricate detail on their tails. They remain superior to their lesser counterparts as they bear more admirable characteristics, from which they are chosen by females of the same species.

Take the 1960s notion of free love, combine with today's sexually active teenagers who expect no emotional commitment, and you have the modern definition for “hook up.” The term evolved just as many ideas about sex have in this last century. Hooking up is no longer just kissing, it involves oral sex and also intercourse, it is all about the casual sex.

Another evolutionary explanation of gender development is mate choice, which suggests that gender role behaviours are related to reproductive strategies. It is thought that men will look for women who are young whereas women are usually more interested in the resources of a mate. This can be explained from an evolutionary perspective as mating with a physically attractive woman

The first few chapters discuss in depth both the general rules for mate selection and the differences in mate selection and varying preferences for male and female genders. As explained in the intro the author theorizes that the current behavior of humans in relation to mating behavior can be linked to our evolutionary past. He references Charles Darwin 's theory of evolution and his idea of natural selection, which is the the process through which organisms adapt to their environment and in doing so tend to

GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organism, which is the process of extracting genes from one species into another unrelated species. The process of transferring DNA from two distinct species is through genetic engineering. This displays the new traits of the first donor, which will be part of the genetic make up of the recipient organism. GMO is different from cross breeding or hybridization. Scientists developed GM plants by introducing genes that kill insects and protect crops against viruses. Many of these GM plants require less water so that they are able to grow in areas where water is scarce. The benefit of GMOs help crops grows and ripens faster so that farmers are able to grow more crops throughout the year. On the other hand, GMOs may be harmful to humans if they are not washed and cleaned properly before eating. GMOs include high risk of allergens, toxins, and other unknown side effects that are harmful.

In 1990 Barette and Vandal studied sparring in caribou. From the 713 matches between males of different antler sizes, 90% of the time males with the smaller antlers retreated. Also there is the intersexual selection, which is also known as the female choice. There are three cases of intersexual selection. Firstly, the female choice co-evolved with trait exaggeration, otherwise called Fisher’s process. Secondly, the choosy females gain direct benefit and thirdly, females are choosy because of sensory bias. Fisher’s process is divided in two phases. At phase one, the female preferences evolve because the trait that they prefer is favored by natural selection and as a result, their offspring are more likely to have the beneficial trait. When there is a distinct difference in a species, which is linked with the selective advantage, the females tend to choose the males that clearly distinguish the difference that is to be observed and they will prefer the most advantageous type. As for phase two, once the female preferences exist, males with the specific trait are more fit, which is both a natural and a sexual selection advantage. As a result there will be an increasing selective force favoring stronger preferences and more extreme traits. The runaway process will eventually stop, when there is no longer genetic variation for further trait or preference exaggeration or when the viability costs of the trait, balance sexual