Evolution: Good genes gender specific?
‘Good genes’ for males are not necessarily ‘good genes’ for females.
In a long-term study of red deer (Cervus elaphus), Katharina Foerster and colleagues show that males with relatively high fitness tend to father daughters with relatively low fitness. In addition, males that carry genes for high female fitness tend to be selected against.
The study, which suggests that the selective advantage of good genes can be gender-specific, backs up theoretical predictions and results from fruitfly experiments. It is thought that this may have profound effects on the selection and maintenance of genetic variation in natural populations.

CONTACT
Katharina Foerster (University of Edinburgh, UK)
The author is currently in Germany and can be contacted on:
Tel: +49 81 57 93 23 20; E-mail: foerster@orn.mpg.de