A biological ornament is a characteristic of an animal that appears to serve a decorative function rather than a utilitarian function. Many are secondary sexual characteristics, and others appear on young birds during the period when they are dependent on being fed by their parents. Ornaments are used in displays to attract mates, which may lead to the evolutionary process known as sexual selection. An animal may shake, lengthen, or spread out its ornament in order to get the attention of the opposite sex, which will in turn choose the most attractive one with which to mate. Ornaments are most often observed in males, and choosing an extravagantly ornamented male benefits females as the genes that produce the ornament will be passed on to her offspring, increasing their own reproductive fitness. As Ronald Fisher noted, the male offspring will inherit the ornament while the female offspring will inherit the preference for said ornament, which can lead to a positive feedback loop known as a Fisherian runaway. These structures serve as cues to animal sexual behaviour, that is, they are sensory signals that affect mating responses. Therefore, ornamental traits are often selected by mate choice.[1]
^van Dijk, D; Sloot, P.M.A.; Tay, J.C.; Schut, M.C. (May 2010). "Individual-based simulation of sexual selection: A quantitative genetic approach" (PDF). Procedia Computer Science. 1 (1): 2003–2011. doi:10.1016/j.procs.2010.04.224.
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A biologicalornament is a characteristic of an animal that appears to serve a decorative function rather than a utilitarian function. Many are secondary...
element in architecture and the decorative arts Ornamental turning Biologicalornament, a characteristic of animals that appear to serve only a decorative...
preference' in the female. Signallers have sometimes evolved multiple sexual ornaments, and receivers have sometimes evolved multiple trait preferences. In biology...
that rule out such error sources include expensive sexually selected ornaments having negative effects on the ability to survive natural selection, as...
abbreviation of "biological diversity") describes the diversity of life from genes to ecosystems and spans every level of biological organization. The...
assuming genetic correlation between the preference and the ornament, that initially the ornament signalled greater potential fitness (the likelihood of leaving...
to Ancient Greece by the 7th century BC, but few varieties were made. Ornaments made of alloys containing 80–90% zinc, with lead, iron, antimony, and...
with white or purple foliage or flowerheads are also sometimes grown for ornament. Brassica species are sometimes used as food plants by the larvae of a...
smooth sumac (R. glabra), and the staghorn sumac (R. typhina) are grown for ornament, either as the wild types or as cultivars. The dried fruits of some species...
According to Spoto all three films featured her "essentially [as] a sexy ornament", but she received some praise from critics: Bosley Crowther of The New...
to reproduce. In pipefish (Syngnathus typhle), females use a temporary ornament, a striped pattern, to both attract males and intimidate rival females...
association applies to the about thirty found stone battle axes. A gold ornament found in County Down that closely resembles a pair of ear-rings from Ermegeira...
heterogenous Garamantian population. Power et al. (2019) states: "This ornament demonstrates that some Garamantes individuals shared aspects of their material...
father's poem. She is allowed back into the palace and, in a Christmas ornament made by the late king, finds a secret proclamation that declares Richard...
to support these ornaments as feminine, and rather this particular ear ornament has been seen on male and female gods. The short skirt seen worn by figures...
Slovakia, with princely equipment consisting of richly decorated vessels, ornaments and decorations. The burial rites consisted entirely of cremation. Common...
grouse shooting. The male black grouse's tail feathers are a traditional ornament for hats in areas such as Scotland and the Alps. Folk dances from the Alps...
Americans." 2003. pp. 139–144. In: Zhamilya Boldykova, Assel Berdigulova: Ornament as a Universal Language of Peace (Basee on Comparative Analysis of Cultures...
millennia. People use plants for many purposes, such as building materials, ornaments, writing materials, and, in great variety, for medicines. The scientific...
that can survive indefinitely, and are attractive enough to be grown for ornament; e.g. some variegated Abutilon varieties. Nutrient deficiency symptoms...
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