Discuss the several steps involved in the experimental test of Darwin's hypothesis of sexual selection in peacocks. For each step, explain the hypothesis, the experimental test, and the kind of data that would refute or confirm the hypothesis. After Dr. Petrie demonstrated that peahens preferred males with longer, more elaborate tails, she performed an experiment in which the females had no choice; she mated peahens with males that carried tails of various lengths. Discuss how this experiment was a crucial test of a central assumption of sexual selection theory as applied to the peacock's tail. Discuss how sexual selection in peacocks provides an example of a situation in which a prominent characteristic of an organism is under two different, opposing types of selection pressure. Can you think of other species in which a similar situation occurs?
