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From: frazier@oahu.cs.ucla.edu (Greg Frazier)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Re: FISH:  sex ratio of 1 male : 100 females, why?
Message-ID: <39456@shemp.CS.UCLA.EDU>
Date: 28 Sep 90 14:32:26 GMT
References: <1990Sep27.142437.21755@newcastle.ac.uk>
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Organization: UCLA Computer Science Department
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In article <1990Sep27.142437.21755@newcastle.ac.uk> J.M.Spencer@newcastle.ac.uk (J.M. Spencer) writes:
>Questions:
>
>1.	How do the fish know when they have the correct ratio?
>	i.e. how do they discriminate between 1:90 and 1:100?
>
>2.	What survival advantage does the species gain from this?

Loren gave a great answer to this, to which I will just at
that an obvious survival advantage is that one male (fish) can cover
90 to 100 females, so there is no point in having more males.
--
"They thought to use and shame me but I win out by nature, because a true
freak cannot be made.  A true freak must be born."  K. Dunn, _Geek_Love_

Greg Frazier	frazier@CS.UCLA.EDU	!{ucbvax,rutgers}!ucla-cs!frazier