Peacock Characteristics and Genetic Traits for Natural Selection

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Recommended: Understanding natural selection essay

Noun Biology.

a special type of natural selection in which the sexes acquire distinct forms either because the members of one sex choose mates with particular features or because in the competition for mates among the members of one sex only those with certain traits succeed.1

Attraction and certain traits are an important part in the selection of a significant other. Certain people are attracted to that muscular baseball player out at first base, while others could be into the photographer kneeling down behind the fence. There are several examples of what a person might find attractive. The way someone smiles or maintain their hair could be a major deal breaker; therefore, a person with an awkward smile or messy hair can be either beautiful or hideous to another person. Humans are not the only mammals that choose their significant other based on specific features and characteristic traits.

“The peacocks or technically, the pea fowls (the collective name for the peacock and peahen), belong to the pheasant family.”2 They are large birds that weigh approximately 8-13 lbs. and have a body length, including its tail, up to 5 feet. Peacocks and peahens, like us, have specific features and characteristics that base their sexual selection. Male peacocks express complex courtships during the process of finding their peahen. Multiple traits may express information on the genetic and characteristic quality of male peacocks. “In particular, fixed characters, such as feather ornaments might convey information about past male condition; whereas flexible traits such as behavioral displays should be sensitive to present condition.”3 Because the peacocks feathers present information of their past condition, they are very important in th...

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...tisements honestly reflect health status in Peacocks (Pavo Cristatus). Behav Ecol and Sociobiol [Internet]. 2005 [cited 2014 Feb 18]; 58(6): 552-557. Available from: http://commons.wvc.edu/library

4. Takahashi M, Arita H, Hirala-Hasegawa M, Hasegawa T. Peahens do not prefer Peacocks with more elaborate trains. Anim Behav [Internet]. 2008 Apr [cited 2014 Feb 26]; 75(4):1209. Available from: http://commons.wvc.edu/library

5. Dakin R, Robert M. Peacocks orient their courtship displays towards the sun. Behav Ecolo Sociobiol [Internet]. 2009 Apr [cited 2014 Feb 18]. 63(6): 825-834. Available from: http://commons.wvc.edu/library

6. Petrie M, Krupa A, Burke T. Peacock’s lek with relatives even in the absence of social and environmental cues. LDN J Nature [Internet]. 1999 Sep [cited 2014 Feb 18]; 401(6749): 155-157. Available from: http://commons.wvc.edu/library

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