Theory predicts that sexual selection via mate choice can be a primary driver of reproductive isolation when lineages exhibit divergence in sexual traits, there is variation in preference for those signals, and there is little/no evidence that ecological selection mediates trait divergence.
The red-eyed treefrog (RETF; Agalychnis callidryas), displays high levels of phenotypic variation for multiple sexual traits, including body size, colour pattern, advertisement call, and female courtship behaviour.
We addressed the role of female mate choice as a mechanism of sexual selection by testing its contributions along a speciation continuum. We estimated reproductive isolation as a function of mate recognition and mate preference in female RETFs using mate choice trials and tested their relationship against a species continuum of genetic distance.
This project was part of my M.S. thesis research in the Robertson lab at California State University, Northridge.
Red eye treefrog species continuum and treatments for behavioural trials
Adult male red-eyed treefrog and metamorph