Abstract:
Extensive studies have been conducted on mate-choice and courtship behaviour in
animals. It has been established that certain traits have an evolutionary advantage in
terms of getting selected by the opposite sex. Previous work with the model
organism, zebra finch has shown that females tend to prefer male traits such as
specific song features, bright beak colour and such like. But we don’t have much
clarity on the exact dynamics of the courtship ritual. Though our study we address
this very question of preference establishment in female zebra finches. We
conducted preference assays using live males in a choice chamber setup to explore
the events that occur during preference development, the parameters that can be
used to judge this preference and the factors that could influence the same. Also, we
tested the effect of varying the distance between participating females and
introducing a peer on a female’s preference. We found multiple parameters that can
be used to judge female preference, the most robust one being the time spent next
to a certain male. Next we moved on to show that preference dynamics can be
described in terms of female activity, male-female interactions and evolvability of
preference. Lastly, we demonstrated that reducing the distance between
participating individuals or, introducing a pair female led to an increase in female
activity and delay in preference establishment. Also, we found that in the presence of
males, any existent social hierarchy between the females is revealed, by one female
being dominant over the other. But she need not necessarily have an influence on
preferences of the submissive female. Collectively, our findings paint a picture of the
details involved in the process of mate-choice decision making and the influence of
external conditions on female preference in zebra finches.
