Disease and social evolution

Gadagkar, Raghavendra (1992) Disease and social evolution. In: Current Science, 63 (6). pp. 285-286.

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Abstract

Parasites that cause diseases of varying intensities are ubiquitous in the natural world. However, the role of disease as a factor in shaping the ecology and evolution of their hosts has only recently begun to be sufficiently appre-ciated. Parasite load has, for example, been shown to be an important parameter that females use to assess the quality of their mates. In response, males are known to evolve elaborate secondary sexual characters to impress upon females their health in general and their ability to resist parasites in particular. An even more profound role that parasites play in modulating social evolution has recently come to light.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publication:	Current Science
Publisher:	Indian Academy of Sciences
Additional Information:	Copyright of this article belongs to Indian Academy of Sciences.
Department/Centre:	Division of Biological Sciences > Centre for Ecological Sciences
Date Deposited:	08 Jan 2007
Last Modified:	19 Sep 2010 04:33
URI:	http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/9223

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