Sexual selection in mammals

[[File:Elephant seals fighting.jpg|thumb|right|Male [[northern elephant seal]]s fight fiercely each year. Unsuccessful males may not mate at all, while successful males have harems of 30 to 100 females.]]

[[File:Elephant seals fighting.jpg|thumb|right|Male [[northern elephant seal]]s fight fiercely each year. Unsuccessful males may not mate at all, while successful males have harems of 30 to 100 females.]]

In the case of ''intrasexual selection'', adorned males may gain a reproductive advantage without the intervention of female preference. This advantage will be conferred by weapons used in the process of resolving disputes, such as those over territorial rights. The use of sexual ornamentation as a [[signalling theory|signaling device]] to create a [[dominance hierarchy]] among males, also known as a [[pecking order]], allows struggle to proceed without excessive injury or fatality. It is predominantly when two opposing males are so closely matched, as would be found in males not having established themselves in a dominance hierarchy, that asymmetries cannot be found and the confrontation escalates to a point where the asymmetries must be proved by aggressive use of ornamentation.

In the case of ''intrasexual selection'', adorned males may gain a [[reproductive advantage]] without the intervention of female preference. This advantage will be conferred by weapons used in the process of resolving disputes, such as those over territorial rights. The use of sexual ornamentation as a [[signalling theory|signaling device]] to create a [[dominance hierarchy]] among males, also known as a [[pecking order]], allows struggle to proceed without excessive injury or fatality. It is predominantly when two opposing males are so closely matched, as would be found in males not having established themselves in a dominance hierarchy, that asymmetries cannot be found and the confrontation escalates to a point where the asymmetries must be proved by aggressive use of ornamentation.

How often males will physically engage each other, and in what manner, can best be understood by applying [[game theory]] developed for biology, most notably by [[John Maynard Smith]].[[John Maynard Smith|Maynard Smith, J]] (1982) ''[[Evolution and the Theory of Games]]''. Cambridge University Press, pp. 131–137. {{ISBN|0-521-28884-3}}

How often males will physically engage each other, and in what manner, can best be understood by applying [[game theory]] developed for biology, most notably by [[John Maynard Smith]].[[John Maynard Smith|Maynard Smith, J]] (1982) ''[[Evolution and the Theory of Games]]''. Cambridge University Press, pp. 131–137. {{ISBN|0-521-28884-3}}