Sunday 28 September 2014

Rhesus macaques find darker red skin more attractive

A new study reveals that rhesus macaques with darker red skin are more successful breeders

A new study on rhesus macaques has shown that variation in skin colour directly correlates to sexual success, which is the first time this has been seen in a large mammal.

Rhesus macaques with darker red faces and hind-quarters were found to be more successful in breeding, and their offspring were more likely to possess the same trait.

The research reveals that skin colouration in male and female rhesus macaques is an inherited quality, and is thought to be the first demonstration in a mammal of heritability of a physical trait (or ornament) selected through mate choice, rather than through fighting.

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