Female Control: Sexual Selection by Cryptic Female Choice (Monographs in Behavior and Ecology) [Paperback]

William G. Eberhard (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0691010854 | ISBN-13: 978-0691010854 | Publication Date: July 1996

A growing body of evidence has begun to reveal flaws in the traditional assumption of female passivity and lack of discrimination after copulation has begun. William Eberhard has compiled an impressive array of research on the ability of females to shape the outcome of mating. He describes studies of many different cryptic mechanisms by which a female can accept a male for copulation but nevertheless reject him as a father. Evidence from various fields indicates that such selectivity by females may be the norm rather than the exception. Because most post-copulatory competition between males for paternity is played out within the bodies of females, female behaviour, morphology, and physiology probably often influence male success in these contests. Eberhard draws examples from a diversity of organisms, ranging from ctenophores to scorpions, nematodes to frogs, and crickets to humans. Cryptic female choice establishes a new bridge between sexual selection theory and reproductive physiology, in particular the physiological effects of male seminal products on female reproductive processes, such as sperm transport, oviposition, and remating. Eberhard interweaves his review of previous s

Editorial Reviews

Review

This book could change the way you think about females . . . [It] is an easy, well-organized read. . . . Female Control makes it clear that females surely must have partial or complete control over some aspects of reproduction. . . . [It] is destined to be an influential book, and deserves to be a citation classic. -- Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 520 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (July 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691010854
• ISBN-13: 978-0691010854
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,883,315 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating view of a little known topic., August 14, 2011

By 

Ava Neyer "Ava Neyer" (Cincinnati, Ohio) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Female Control: Sexual Selection by Cryptic Female Choice (Paperback)

This book is an amazing testament to the diversity of female sexual behavior and the lengths by which females can control who impregnates them. In American culture, we have this idea that females are sexually passive in contrast to the sexually active aggressive male. This book helps to blow that concept out of the water.