Title: | Repellent function of male pheromones in the red-spotted newt |
Address: | "Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona 86011, USA. dp27@dana.ucc.nau.edu" |
ISSN/ISBN: | 0022-104X (Print) 0022-104X (Linking) |
Abstract: | "Pheromones act as attractants and sexual stimulants in most vertebrates. For example, in red-spotted newts, Notophthalmus viridescens, female pheromones attract males, and male pheromones increase female receptivity. However, no studies have determined whether male vertebrates produce a pheromone that repels competing males. Through a series of olfactory mate selection tests, we found that sexually motivated male red-spotted newts produce a pheromone that functions to repel other approaching males. Our finding is the first report of a repelling function for pheromones in male vertebrates. The pheromones may act to increase both the sender's and receiver's mating success when the operational sex ratio (OSR) is male biased" |
Keywords: | "Animals Male Movement *Notophthalmus *Sex Attractants *Sexual Behavior, Animal;" |
Notes: | "MedlinePark, D Propper, C R eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't 2001/05/15 J Exp Zool. 2001 May 1; 289(6):404-8. doi: 10.1002/jez.1021" |