Several male strategies have evolved seeking to maximise opportunities for mating success, including the following:
- Courtship Rituals – allow males to display genetic potential, through characteristics and resource abilities.
- Size – males evolved to be bigger, demonstrating strength for success in competition against other males. Weaponry evolved in some species, for example antlers in deer.
- Sperm Competition – natural selection acted on males, making them more competitive by producing larger testicles, bigger ejaculations and faster swimming sperm.
- Mate Guarding – males fear being cuckolded (where another male gets their partner pregnant) and spending resources raising another male’s child. Males therefore indulge in mate guarding, where they keep an eye on and remain in close contact with female partners to prevent them mating with other males. Buss (1993) believes while men are fearful of partners being sexually unfaithful, females worry about emotional unfaithfulness, due to a fear of their partner spending resources on other females.
- Sneak Copulation – males mate with females other than their partners if given the opportunity, as it increases their chances of reproductive success. Women gain from this, too, as having different fathers brings a wider genetic diversity to their children, increasing survival chances. Females can also gain an adaptive advantage by being in a relationship with a resource rich male, while getting pregnant through a sneaky copulation with a genetically fit ‘stud’ though if found out she risks abandonment and being left to raise the child without male resources. Research is somewhat contradictory, with indications of varying levels of children born through sneak copulations.
