Male body length influences mate-choice copying in the sailfin molly <i>Poecilia latipinna</i>

Abstract

Females can choose a male independently of other females' mate preferences, or they can copy the mate choice of other females. Alternatively, mate-choice copying and independent mate choice can interact if females assess male traits when deciding whether or not to copy. We investigated how mate-choice copying interacts with a preference for large males in the sailfin molly (Potecilia latipinna). Sailfin molly females exhibited a preference for larger males. They also copied the mate choice of other females when males were of similar body length. Females did not copy, however, when males differed substantially in body length. Our results show that conspecific mate copying occurs in the sailfin molly but does not override a preference for larger males.