Live Wire

Big Guys Don8217;t Always Win
Big, assertive guys don8217;t always get the girls. In some species, such as coho salmon and quail, weedier, less aggressive males are the top choice of females, New Scientist said.

8220;Females learn through personal experience that dominant males can be hurtful,8221; according to Alex Ophir, of Canada8217;s McMaster University in Ontario.

Ophir proved the point by observing Japanese quail. After female quail watched a fight between two males they were put in the same cage with the combatants. Virgin females preferred the winner but the females with sexual experience tended to choose the loser. Female coho salmon are also more likely to mate with males who stop growing earlier and are smaller than their competitors, said evolutionary biologist Steve Shuster of Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff.8220;The females may also prefer to avoid the physical abuse of mating with aggressive males,8221; the magazine added.