Dans un contexte de sélection sexuelle, les systèmes de communication permettant l’attraction et la stimulation du partenaire sexuel et la compétition entre individus du même sexe sont indispensables. Ceci est particulièrement vrai chez les espèces à système d’appariement polygyne de type lek, où les mâles rassemblés dans l’espace sont en compétition pour l’accès aux femelles. Chez notre sujet d’étude, l’outarde houbara nord-africaine les males réalisent des parades incluant des démonstrations visuelles et des vocalisations appelées booms, sur des sites espacés les uns des autres par des distances importantes dans un système qualifié de lek explosé. Notre objectif était d’étudier les systèmes de codage-décodage des informations exprimées durant la parade des mâles chez cette espèce. Nous avons démontré l’existence d’un codage de l’identité individuelle porté par des paramètres visuels et des paramètres acoustiques des vocalisations. Des associations significatives entre des paramètres des booms et des caractéristiques physiques et comportementales des mâles susceptibles de refléter leur qualité, ont également été mises en évidence. Ainsi, les mâles qui produisent les booms les plus graves avaient les masses les plus importantes et paradaient le plus intensément. Lorsque des interactions agonistiques étaient simulées expérimentalement en diffusant des leurres acoustiques, les mâles avaient des réponses comportementales différentes en fonction de la fréquence des booms diffusés. Ainsi le niveau fréquentiel des booms des autres mâles est effectivement perçu et décodé par les individus en compétition. Par ailleurs, plusieurs paramètres des booms sont génétiquement déterminés et héritables, et pourraient porter une information sur l’apparentement entre individus.Certains paramètres sont également liés à la consanguinité des individus. Nous avons montré également que les booms sont particulièrement bien adaptés à la communication à grande distance. En effet, les booms sont de très basse fréquence, se propagent à des distances supérieures à 640 m, et les paramètres supportant le codage-décodage de l’information sont résistants à la propagation et produits de manière redondante. Enfin, les signaux acoustiques et des signaux visuels et semblent agir en synergie (multimodalité) ce qui pourraient améliorer l’efficacité de la communication à grande distance. Ainsi notre étude a démontré que des informations complexes sont transmises durant la parade des mâles au travers de signaux acoustiques et visuels au sein d’un réseau de communication à grande distance. / Résumé en anglais ;In a context of sexual selection, the communication between individuals is essential to optimize both intra-sexual (competition between male) and inter-sexual (mate choice) processes. This is particularly true in species with lek mating systems, where both processes reach their full expression. The North African Houbara bustard, Chlamydotis undulata undulata, is a lekking bird where courting males aggregate in a so called ‘exploded-lek’, i.e. where aggregation is detectable only when mapped over a large area. During the breeding season, males perform a conspicuous and spectacular courtship including visual and acoustic (booms) signals. Our aim was to decipher the coding-decoding systems of the courtship in this species. We found that males can be individually discriminated on the basis of visual and acoustic parameters. The booms produced during the courtship are also related to males’ characteristics susceptible to reflect their quality. Individuals who produced the lowest frequency booms were those with the greatest weights and performed the highest intensity courtships. Playback experiment shows that the frequency content of the booms was perceived and decoded by males during agonistic interaction, leading to significantly different behavioural responses according to the frequency of the signals played back. Furthermore, several acoustic parameters of the booms are significantly heritable through genetic transmission and these parameters are also related to the level of inbreeding. Finally, we showed that the booms and the acoustic parameters supporting information are particularly well adapted to the transmission of information at long range as required in a long distance communication network constituted by an exploded lek. First, booms are of very low-frequency and propagate up to 640 m. Second, coding-decoding of information relies on sequentially redundant and propagation-resistant features. Third, acoustic signals are combined with visual signalling (multimodality) which may improve the long distance transmission of the information. This study brought evidence that complex information is conveyed by visual and acoustic signals during the courtship of males within a long distance network.

Evidence for reduced reproductive success (RS) of wild spawning hatchery-reared fish invites serious consideration with regard to the detrimental effects on subsequent generations of wild populations. Mate choice was evaluated as a potential mechanism contributing to these observed RS differences using a previous pedigree of wild spawning hatchery-reared and wild origin coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch). Genetic variance at immune-relevant genes was used as ametric toexaminematechoice. Twoyears (2005 and2006)of threewild spawning mate pair classes were examined: wild x wild (W x W), hatchery x hatchery (H x H), and wild x hatchery (W x H). We tested for: (1) a departure from random expectations with regard to mate pair allelic diversity at immune-relevant markers, (2) a correlation between immune-relevant gene diversity and mate pair RS, and (3) distinguishable differences between mate choice strategies used by hatchery-reared and wild origin coho. Eight immune-relevant gene-linked microsatellite markers were used to evaluate mate choice; four linked to immune-relevant expressed sequence tags (ESTs) and four linked to the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC). We found evidence for non-random mating between 2006 W x H mate pairs at BHMS429,an MHC-linked marker, and at SsalR016TKU,an immune-relevantEST-linked marker, which was identified as a vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein. Non-random mating was also evident between 2005 H x H pairs at SsalR015TKU,an immune-relevantEST-linkedmarker,thoughno putativegene was identified. All other pair classes did not display a significant mate choice signature. We found a significant correlation between mate pair RS and immune gene diversity among 2005 and 2006 W x W mate pairs as well as 2006 W x H mate pairs. Notably, H x H mate pair RS was not correlated to immune gene diversity in either year. Results suggest that mate choice and genetic compatibility may influence fitness of wild spawning coho. / Graduation date: 2013

In its current sense, courting means 'wooing'; but its original meaning was 'residing at court'. The amorous sense of the word developed from a purely social sense in most major European languages around the turn of the sixteenth century, a time when, according to some historians, Western states were gradually moving toward the genesis of absolutism and the establishment of courts as symbols and agents of centralised monarchical power. This study examines the shift in meaning of the words courtship and to court, seeking the origins of courtship in court society, with particular reference to the court and literature of the Elizabethan period. Chapter 1 charts the traditional association between courts and love, first in the historiography of 'courtly love', and then in historical and sociological accounts of court society. Recent studies have questioned the quasi- Marxist notion that the amorous practices of the court and the 'bourgeois' ideals of harmonious, fruitful marriage were antithetical, and this thesis examines whether the development of 'romantic love' has a courtly as well as a bourgeois provenance. Chapter 2 conducts a lexical study of the semantic change of the verb to court in French, Italian, and English, with an extended synchronic analysis of the word in Elizabethan literature. Chapter 3 goes on to diversify the functional classification required by semantic analysis and considers the implications of courtship as a social, literary and rhetorical act in the works of Lyly and Sidney. It considers the 'humanist' dilemma of a language that was aimed primarily at seduction, and suggests that, in the largely discursive mode of the courtly questione d'amore, courtship could be condoned as a verbalisation of love, and a postponement of the satisfaction of desire. Chapter 4 then moves away from the distinction between humanist and courtly concerns, to examine the practice of courtship at the court of Elizabeth I. It focuses on allegorical representations of Desire in courtly pageants, and suggests that the ambiguities inherent in the 'legitimised' Desire of Elizabethan shows exemplify the situation of poets and courtiers who found themselves at the court of a female sovereign. In chapter 5 discussions of the equivocation inveterate to courtly texts leads to a study of The Faerie Queene, and specifically to Spenser's presentation of courtship and courtly society in the imperialist themes of Book II and their apparent subversion in Book VI. The study concludes with a brief appraisal of Spenser's Amoretti as a model for the kind of courtship that has been under review.

O estudo faz parte de pesquisa multicêntrica \"Estudo Internacional de Violência no Namoro - IDVS\", usando seu instrumento padronizado. Objetivou-se contribuir para o reconhecimento da ocorrência de violência entre parceiros íntimos na fase de namoro, tendo como base conceitual as questões de gênero e seus elementos para a compreensão da constituição da relação de intimidade. Dialoga, ainda, com as teorias do desenvolvimento humano, da aceitação da violência na resolução de conflitos e do aprendizado da violência da perspectiva geracional. Os recortes propostos foram três: um estudo descritivo sobre as prevalências da violência, ao longo do relacionamento de namoro e em seus diversos tipos; um segundo, abordou a violência e os fatores associados, e um terceiro, avaliou o impacto da violência na saúde mental a partir do quadro de depressão. O questionário foi auto preenchido por 362 alunos de duas universidades, uma pública e outra privada, do Estado de São Paulo, sendo 37% do sexo masculino e 63% do feminino, com idade mediana de 20 anos. Estimou-se a prevalência da violência em relacionamentos íntimos, sofrida ou perpetrada, para os tipos físico, psicológico e sexual, descrevendo-se as sobreposições entre eles. Quanto às violências, 75,9% sofreu algum tipo na vida e 76,4% as perpetraram. O tipo de violência mais prevalente, tanto sofrida como perpetrada, foi a psicológica, seguida da sexual. A grande sobreposição entre violências sofridas e perpetradas (83,9%) reflete a reciprocidade das agressões, sem diferença entre homens e mulheres. Na análise dos fatores associados ter vida sexual no namoro e aprovação da violência se mantiveram associadas a sofrer violência para as mulheres, enquanto para os homens ter tempo de namoro maior de 6 meses e uso associado de álcool e drogas mantiveram-se associados. No caso da violência perpetrada, mantiveram-se associadas para as mulheres o uso de substância 01psicoativa do tipo associação droga e álcool, ciúmes e tempo de namoro maior de dois anos. No modelo que considerou os tipos de violência e a associação com depressão, para as mulheres ter sofrido violência física exclusiva e física e sexual concomitantes mantiveram-se associadas. Os resultados estão em consonância com a literatura que analisa a violência no namoro, com alta prevalência de violências sofridas e perpetradas, além da reciprocidade tanto entre homens como entre mulheres. A situação de conjugalidade parece alterar quer a mutualidade das agressões, quer o sentido das violências e os agressores, para mulheres e para homens, em contraste com a situação de namoro. As consequências da vitimização no namoro para as mulheres são mais expressivas, enquanto que para os homens é importante se examinar com maior detalhamento as especificidades para a questão do ponto de vista masculino. Os achados trazem para o contexto brasileiro a confirmação da necessidade de ações e políticas públicas nesta direção, ao produzir conhecimento importante para programas de prevenção para jovens em fase de namoro, seja no plano dos serviços de saúde, seja no das escolas e universidades, onde se concentram os jovens, de forma a minimizar as chances de que as agressões continuem no casamento. / The study is part of a multicenter survey \"International Study of Violence in Dating - IDVS\" using its standardized instrument. The objective was to contribute for the recognition of the occurrence of intimate partner violence during phase dating, based on conceptual issues of gender and its elements for understanding the formation of intimate relationship. Dialogue also with theories of human development, the acceptance of violence in conflict resolution and learning the violence of generational perspective.The proposed cut were three: a descriptive study on the prevalence of violence over the dating relationship and its various types; a second, addressed the violence and associated factors; and a third, evaluated the impact of violence on mental health from the depression disorder. The questionnaire was self-reported by 362 undergraduate students from two universities, one public and one private, of the State of São Paulo, with 37% male and 63% female, median age 20 years. We estimated the prevalence among students of violence in intimate relationships, suffered or perpetrated, for the kinds physical, psychological and sexual, describing the overlap among them. As for violence, 75.9% suffered some sort in life and 76.4% were perpetrators. The most prevalent type of violence, both suffered as perpetrated, was psychological, followed by sexual. The large overlap between violence suffered and perpetrated (83.9%) reflects the reciprocity of aggression, with no difference between men and women. In the analysis of factors associated with sex life in dating and approval of violence remained associated to suffer violence for women, while for men longer relationship more than 6 months and use of alcohol and drugs concomitant remained associated. In the case of perpetrated violence, the use of drugs and alcohol concomitant, jealousy and long relationship more than two years remained associated for women. In the model considered the types of violence and the association with depression, for women have suffered physical violence exclusive and physical and sexual concurrent remained associated. The results are consistent with previous literature on dating violence that shows high prevalence of violence suffered and perpetrated, beyond reciprocity between both, men and women. The situation seems to change either marital mutuality of aggression, whether the meaning of violence and the perpetrators, for women and for men, in contrast to the dating situation. The consequences of victimization in dating for women are more expressive, while for men it is important to examine in greater detail the specifics for the issue of male point of view. The findings of this study bring to the Brazilian context confirming the need for action and public policy in this direction, to produce important knowledge for prevention programs for young people in the stage dating, either in the health service, either in schools and universities, which concentrates the specific population of young people, in order to minimize the chances that the assaults continue in the marriage.

Acoustic communication in orthopterans and anurans provides a suitable model system for studying the evolutionary mechanisms of sexual selection mainly because males use acoustic signals to attract females over long distances for pair formation. Females use these signals not only to localize conspecific males but also to discriminate between potential mates. Investigations on the effect of sexual selection on acoustic signals requires an understanding of how female preferences for different features of the acoustic signal affect male mating success under ecological constraints in wild populations. The effect of female preferences on male mating success depends on the mate sampling strategy that females employ to search for potential mates. Despite its relevance, female mate sampling strategies based on male acoustic signals have rarely investigated in orthopterans and anurans, especially in the field. Considering the elaborate knowledge of the role of sensory physiology in female phonotaxis behaviour and characterization of the male acoustic signal, I used the field cricket species Plebeiogryllus guttiventris as a model system in this study. In this thesis, I first investigated the ecology of callers in wild populations. I then investigated female mate sampling strategies by incorporating relevant information on the ecology of signalers and the sensory physiology of receivers. Amount of calling activity is a strong determinant of male mating success in acoustically communicating species such as orthopterans and anurans. While many studies in crickets have investigated the determinants of calling effort, patterns of variability in male calling effort in natural choruses remain largely unexplored. I therefore investigated the spatio-temporal dynamics of acoustic chorusing behaviour in a wild population. I first studied the consistency of calling activity by quantifying variation in male calling effort across multiple nights of calling using repeatability analysis. Callers were inconsistent in their calling effort across nights and did not optimize nightly calling effort to increase their total number of nights spent calling. Next, I investigated calling site fidelity of males across multiple nights by quantifying movement of callers. Callers frequently changed their calling site across calling nights with substantial displacement but without any significant directionality. Finally, I investigated trade-offs between within-night calling effort and energetically expensive calling song features such as call intensity and chirp rate. Calling effort was not correlated with any of the calling song features, suggesting that energetically expensive song features do not constrain male calling effort. The two key features of signaling behaviour, calling effort and call intensity, which determine the duration and spatial coverage of the sexual signal, are uncorrelated and function independently Acoustic signal variation and female preference for different signal components constitute the prerequisite framework to study the mechanisms of sexual selection that shape acoustic communication. Despite several studies of acoustic communication in crickets, information on both male calling song variation in the field and female preference in the same system is lacking for most species. First, I quantified variation in the spectral, temporal and amplitudinal characteristics of the male calling song in a wild population, at two temporal scales, within and across nights, using repeatability analysis. Carrier frequency (CF) was the most repeatable call trait across nights, whereas chirp period (CP) had low repeatability. I further investigated female preferences based on song features with high and low repeatability (CF and CP respectively). Females showed no consistent preferences for CF but were more attracted towards calls with higher rates (shorter CP). I also examined the effect of signal intensity, which is known to play a critical role in female phonotaxis behaviour, on female preferences for faster calls. Females preferred louder calls over faster ones, implying a dominant role for signal intensity in female evaluation of potential mates based on acoustic signals. Call intensity was also the only signal feature that was positively correlated with male size. In the final chapter, I investigated female mate sampling strategies based on acoustic signals using both theoretical and empirical approaches. Analytical models of mate sampling have demonstrated significant differences in individual fitness returns for different sampling strategies. However these models have rarely incorporated relevant information on the ecology of signalers and the sensory physiology of receivers. I used simulation models to compare the costs and benefits of different mate sampling strategies by incorporating information on relative spacing of callers in natural choruses and the effect of signal intensity on female phonotaxis behaviour. The strategy of mating with males that were louder at the female position emerged as the optimal sampling rule in the simulations. When tested empirically in the field using callers in natural choruses, females seemed to follow the optimal strategy of mating with males that were perceived as louder at their position.

Mating behaviour of cockroaches is spectacular phenomenon with three different mating patterns traditionally distinguished. The most common and probably ancestral is type A - female climbing. Then it is type B - male climbing and type C - no climbing. Mating type was described in around 30 Blaberidae species. As it is the only cockroach family where all three types are present, it is an interesting model group for studying evolutionary questions. The main goal of the thesis was detail exploration and description of mating sequences in 21 Blaberidae species, 17 of which haven't been examined in this aspect before. An intrageneric diversity in mating patterns (genus Pycnoscelus) was described for the first time. Moreover, in case of P. tenebrigera, it was not possible to assign its mating pattern to any of the three traditional types. Multidimensional statistical analysis and biological interpretation of qualitative behavioural elements revealed two well separated clusters of mating sequensces. Consequently, we propose to distinguish only two types of mating pattern - ancestral type (identical with type A) and derived type. We also discussed the relationship between wing reduction and occurence of derived mating types. Evaluation of quantitative behavioural elements revealed positive correlation between...

Single activities have long been places where single people can come to meet friends, build community or look for partners. The activities have relevance for studies of heterosexuality, intimacy, personal life and space. This dissertation discusses a conference, a cruise, an online site and an association for heterosexual singles in contemporary Sweden. It shows how these activities, analysed as organising people and spaces, offer participants different versions of intimacy, relationships, personal life and ultimately singledom itself.  The concept non-relationality is coined to describe how people understand and enact what it means to lack a certain kind of relationship. Multi-sited ethnographic observations are combined with interviews and a survey (n=416). The chosen methods allow insight into both the heterogeneous character of the contemporary single activity scene, as well as existing tendencies to form communities. The group whose single activities are examined is deemed fairly typical of the single population at large. Nevertheless, most conclusions centre on the specific set of activities described in the book and relate them to historical examples and theory. The single activities examined can be interpreted to enact different practices entailed in a relationship without necessarily demanding commitment to a whole relationship or a specific person. In that way, the activities accommodate the inflexible personal lives that some singles report having. This challenges strict boundaries between coupledom and singledom. Such transgressive or “hetero-doxical” potential in single activities is nevertheless circumscribed by organisers’ notion that the activities provide therapeutic community in a phase before singles take the step (back) into coupledom.

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