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# A dynamic game theoretical model predicts variance in choosiness when mate availability fluctuates

Louise Chevalier, Jacques Labonne, François Xavier Dechaume-Moncharmont

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## To cite this version:

Louise Chevalier, Jacques Labonne, François Xavier Dechaume-Moncharmont. A dynamic game theoretical model predicts variance in choosiness when mate availability fluctuates. 2. Joint Congress on Evolutionary Biology (EVOLUTION 2018), Aug 2018, Montpellier, France. 2018. hal-02184256

HAL Id: hal-02184256

https://hal.science/hal-02184256

Submitted on 5 Jun 2020

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Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
# A DYNAMIC GAME THEORETICAL MODEL PREDICTS VARIANCE IN CHOOSINESS WHEN MATE AVAILABILITY FLUCTUATES

LOUISE CHEVALIER, JACQUES LABONNE, FRANÇOIS-XAVIER DECHAUME-MONCHARMONT

UMR INRA/UPPA 1224 ECOBIOP, ÉCOLOGIE COMPORTEMENTALE ET BIOLOGIE DES POPULATIONS DE POISSONS

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louise.chevalier@inra.fr

## INTRODUCTION

You are in the market for love, you want a partner of good quality to have many and healthy children. You have same sex competitors looking for mates therefore available partners become scarcer.

**How choosy should you be?**

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## OBJECTIVES

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Under what conditions should between sexes divergence evolve? Can choosiness evolve in the most common sex?

Do we observe intra-sex variance in choosiness and it is possible for both sexes?

Is flexibility in choosiness an optimal strategy for a large span of mating systems ?

## METHODS

### The theoretical game model (1-2)

* Individuals compete for mate

* The breeding season is finite

* The fitness payoff of an individual depends solely on the quality $q$ of his mating partner.

* Different mating systems are considered:

**Monogamy:** individuals mate once

**Repeated mating (from polygyny to polygynandry):** males and females can mate repeatedly and become available again after a latency period

### Dynamic Programming

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## RESULTS

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* Divergence of choosiness between sexes

* Intra-sex variance of choosiness for both sexes

* High quality males maintain high level of choosiness

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## CONCLUSION

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* Difference between the choosiness of males and females arises in asymmetric mating systems

* Despite this divergence between sexes, the model does not predict lack of choosiness in the most common sex

* Maintenance of intra-sex variance and flexibility in choosiness

* Consistency of our results with empirical studies (3-4)

## References:

1. Johnstone, R. A. (1997). The tactics of mutual mate choice and competitive search. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 40(1), 51-59.

2. Houston, A. I., & McNamara, J. M. (1999). Models of adaptive behaviour: an approach based on state. Cambridge University Press.

3. Candolin, U., & Salesto, T. (2008). Does competition allow male mate choosiness in threespine sticklebacks?. The American Naturalist, 173(2), 273-277.

4. Kraak, S. B., & Bakker, T. C. (1998). Mutual mate choice in sticklebacks: attractive males choose big females, which lay big eggs. Animal Behaviour, 56(4), 859-866.

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