Sexual selection and animal personality.

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Ecology
• Evolutionary Biology
• Animal Behavior

Background:

• Consistent individual behavioral differences, known as animal personalities, are widely observed.
• Existing explanations for animal personalities are primarily functional.
• The role of sexual selection in maintaining animal personality variation and consistency is understudied.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the literature on the role of personality traits in intrasexual competition and mate choice.
• To integrate findings into a framework explaining how sexual selection generates and maintains animal personality.
• To consider the evolution of both inter-individual variation and intra-individual consistency in animal personality.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of studies on animal personality, sexual selection, intrasexual competition, and mate choice.
• Synthesis of existing research to develop a theoretical framework.
• Analysis of both human and non-human animal examples.

Main Results:

• Personality traits play a role in both competition with rivals and mate choice.
• Sexual selection provides a viable mechanism for the evolution and maintenance of animal personality.
• Both the diversity of personalities among individuals and the stability of personalities within individuals can be influenced by sexual selection.

Conclusions:

• Sexual selection is a significant, yet underappreciated, factor in the evolution and maintenance of animal personalities.
• A sexual selection framework can explain the persistence of behavioral variation and consistency in animal populations.
• Further research integrating sexual selection into the study of animal personality is warranted.