Life Sciences Commons^™

Is Beauty Only Skin Deep? Mate Selection In Guppies, Tyson Alles, Amanda Cook, Alex Kunz, Jeff Merkley

Biology Posters

Our experiment sought to understand mate preference in female guppies, Poecilia reticulata. We observed behavioral differences between wild-type males caught from a local indoor pond and vibrant pet store males, who exhibited higher stress levels, likely due in part to being shipped long distances. Observing these behavioral differences, we hypothesized that females would prefer the less stressed males regardless of color. When a female guppy was presented with both a wild type and a pet store male, we predicted that she would prefer the wild-type male on account of their lower stress.

Do Female Guppies Really Know What They Want?, Jennica Blasi, Abby Keuhl-Coe, Hanna Kirkland, Michael Larson

Biology Posters

• Hypothesis: Female guppies do not influence each other’s choice of male guppy

• Predictions: If female guppies do not influence each other’s choice in males, then most females guppies will choose the same male whether alone or in the presence of other females

• Choice is defined as which pane of glass the female interacts more with from 1 to 3 minutes after being introduced to the tank

• 34 Females were used, 17 small and 17 large

Guppies: Sexy And You Know It?, Leslie Bredthauer, Katelin Boettcher, Landon Keller, Kim Sullivan

Biology Posters

We were curious to know if female guppies are more interested in the quality or quantity of males.

This Means War: Female Choice In Guppies, Nathan Payne, Zac Talbot, Garrett Rydalch, Kim Sullivan

Biology Posters

In many organisms, including guppies, females choose with whom they mate. This is called female selection. For our experiment male and female guppies have been isolated from each other and then we tested to see if females preferred similar looking males in a bright environment more than a male in a neutral colored environment. We hypothesized that the female would prefer the male in the brighter colored environment over the males in the neutral colored environment. We predicted that the female would touch the glass on the brighter side more frequently.