Sexual Selection

Darwin’s second great theory, sexual selection, attempts to explain why males are males and females are females. In this lecture Dr. Michael Ryan explores the diversity of differences between male and female animals, asks why such differences have evolved, and touches upon some of the differences between males and females in our own species. In addition, he emphasizes the scientific method, illustrating how observations and descriptions from the natural world are combined with experimental approaches to understanding how selection and evolution is responsible for the diversity of the world around us.