The handicap principle
Subtitle: a missing piece of Darwin's puzzle
By: Amotz and Avishag Zahavi ; with Naama Zahavi-Ely and Melvin Patrick Ely ; illustrations by Amir Balaban
Contributors: Zahavi, Avishag
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 1999
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Format: [electronic resource] :
Number of pages: 286
ISBN-13: 9780198026020
Subjects: Animal communication; Animal behavior; Life Sciences; Zoology; SCIENCE; General
Description: Ever since Darwin, animal behavior has intrigued and perplexed human observers. The elaborate mating rituals, lavish decorative displays, complex songs, calls, dances and many other forms of animal signaling raise fascinating questions. To what degree can animals communicate within their own species and even between species? What evolutionary purpose do such communications serve? Perhaps most importantly, what can animal signaling tell us about our own non-verbal forms of communication? In The Handicap Principle, Amotz and Ashivag Zahavi offer a unifying theory that brilliantly explains many p.
Notes: Translated from Hebrew.

Originally published in 1997.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 245-260) and index.

Description based on print version record.
Table of contents: title: pt. 1. Partners in communication : Prey-predator interactions; title: Communication between rivals; title: Mate selection. pt. 2. Methods of communication : The fallacy of species-specific signals; title: Movements and ritualization; title: Vocalizations; title: Body parts that serve as signals; title: The use of color for showing off; title: Chemical communications. pt. 3. The handicap principle in social systems : Testing the bond; title: Parents and offspring; title: Babblers, competition for prestige, and the evolution of altruism; title: The social insects : why help the queen?; title: The parenting couple; title: Social amebas (cellular slime molds); title: Parasite and host; title: Information centers. pt. 4. Humans : Humans.