What Males Choose: Differences in Female Quality

Abstract

In female choice, differences in male quality are very important. Males display to females to provide information often via costly ornaments. Females also differ in quality, but what they display to males is less clear. Also, how males evaluate differences in female quality is not well understood. From the literature on male mate choice one might conclude that female fecundity is the most important feature a female can display to a choosy male, but I argue that there must be many more features of females that are important in male mate choice, maybe even indirect benefits.