title: Phylogenetic tests of the sensory exploitation model of sexual selection.
abstract: The diverse characteristics among closely related species are often involved in communication between the sexes. The traditional view that intersexual communication behaviors evolve in a complementary way is called into question by the sensory exploitation hypothesis. By predicting a lack of coordinated evolution between signals and preferences, the sensory exploitation hypothesis is distinct from other mechanisms of sexual selection. Tests of sensory exploitation have taken a multi-disciplinary approach, with insights from sensory physiology, behavior and phylogenetic comparisons. By demonstrating that signals and receivers are not closely coupled, and that signal preference pre-dates signal origin, proponents of the model argue that sensory exploitation is an evolutionary force responsible for the diversification of intersexual communication signals.
authors.affiliation: Section of Ecology and Systemarics and Section of Neurology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-2701, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shaw