title: Do male house mice (Mus musculus) discriminate between females that differ in nutritional status?
abstract: Most studies of mate choice have focused on female preference for male traits because it is generally assumed that since males provide less parental investment they are not choosy. However, if males suffer missed opportunity costs by mating with lower quality females, selection should favor males with the ability to discriminate among females. We tested the hypothesis that male house mice (Mus musculus) discriminate between females that differ in nutritional status (non-food-deprived versus food-deprived). We recorded the time males spent investigating either type of female and used that to determine preference (spending > or = 55% of their total investigation time with one female). We also examined the effects of female nutritional status and female preference status (preferred versus non-preferred) on the reproductive success of males. Males did not display a preference for non-food-deprived females nor did their reproductive success vary with nutritional status or preference status of females. Interestingly, males spent more time investigating females that were closest to the male's own weight. In addition, pairs that were closer in weight were more likely to produce a litter. These results suggest that male house mice are capable of discriminating among females and that such discrimination may influence their reproductive success.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056-1400, USA. costelak@muohio.edu
authors.forename: Aron Keith
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Costello
authors.forename: Joshua David
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Pultorak
authors.forename: Douglas Bradford
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Meikle
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological; D005260:Female; D005508:Food Deprivation; D008297:Male; D052586:Mating Preference, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D051379:Mice; D009752:Nutritional Status; D012098:Reproduction / Q000502:physiology; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal