The models suggest that sometimes the larger individuals will give way to smaller ones because each individual places a different 'value' against the territory. A smaller individual may have more to gain from a fight, so would be willing to take far more risks to gain access to a particular territory. Fighting such a determined opponent may not always be wise, even for a larger, stronger individual. Heliconius seems to have two distinct mating strategies. One strategy is for female pupae to attract males by producing pheromones.
Males gather and await the emergence of the females from their pupae.
If several males are attracted to the same pupa, the larger and stronger males are more likely to 'win' the jostling match for the emerging females. The second strategy is to hold territories, and to court females that settle there. There are often territorial disputes, where males circle around attempting to evict each other. The found that territory holders are, on average, slightly smaller than butterflies caught away from specific territories. Moreover, intruders retreat faster when confronting smaller than average-sized butterflies.