Degree Type
Honors Capstone Project
Date of Submission
Spring 5-1-2007
Capstone Advisor
David Kelley
Honors Reader
Dr. Scott Pitnick
Capstone Major
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Capstone College
Engineering and Computer Science
Audio/Visual Component
no
Capstone Prize Winner
no
Won Capstone Funding
no
Honors Categories
Sciences and Engineering
Subject Categories
Computer Engineering | Other Computer Engineering
Abstract
Sexual conflict, which is expected to be ubiquitous among polygamous species, is known to occasionally result in male adaptations that are harmful to females. One theoretical model indicates that males may benefit from physically harming their mates by triggering a “terminal investment” reproductive response by them. Using dynamic programming, we explore how females optimize their lifetime egg allocation, how selection acts on males to exploit such allocation, and how females respond to resist this exploitation. The model reveals alternative female response pathways; one of the most effective of which is simply to forgo plasticity in egg allocation. By switching to a fixed reproductive schedule, females reduce their vulnerability to male manipulations. The results predict that terminal investment should be rare. In addition, terminal investment should occur at higher frequency among monogamous species, where male harm is never adaptive, than among polygamous species. Another unique conclusion of our model is that male harm should be exclusively or preferentially directed at older females and/or females in poor condition.
Recommended Citation
Kelley, David, "Sexual Conflict Over Egg Allocation: A Dynamic Programming Approach to Modeling the Evolution of Male Harm and Female Resistance" (2007). Honors Capstone Projects - All. 571.
https://surface.syr.edu/honors_capstone/571
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
