A growing body of evidence has begun to reveal flaws in the
traditional assumption of female passivity and lack of
discrimination after copulation has begun. William Eberhard has
compiled an impressive array of research on the ability of females
to shape the outcome of mating. He describes studies of many
different cryptic mechanisms by which a female can accept a male
for copulation but nevertheless reject him as a father. Evidence
from various fields indicates that such selectivity by females may
be the norm rather than the exception. Because most post-copulatory
competition between males for paternity is played out within the
bodies of females, female behavior, morphology, and physiology
probably often influence male success in these contests. Eberhard
draws examples from a diversity of organisms, ranging from
ctenophores to scorpions, nematodes to frogs, and crickets to
humans.
Cryptic female choice establishes a new bridge between sexual
selection theory and reproductive physiology, in particular the
physiological effects of male seminal products on female
reproductive processes, such as sperm transport, oviposition, and
remating. Eberhard interweaves his review of previous studies with
speculation on the consequences of this theoretical development,
and indicates promising new directions for future research.
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