Editing Behavioral ecology (section)

===Mate choice by resources===
In many sexually reproducing species, such as [[mammal]]s, [[bird]]s, and [[amphibian]]s, females are able to bear offspring for a certain time period, during which the males are free to mate with other available females, and therefore can father many more offspring to pass on their genes. The fundamental difference between male and female reproduction mechanisms determines the different strategies each sex employs to maximize their [[reproductive success]]. For males, their reproductive success is limited by access to females, while females are limited by their access to resources. In this sense, females can be much choosier than males because they have to bet on the resources provided by the males to ensure reproductive success.<ref name=Davies/>

Resources usually include nest sites, food and protection. In some cases, the males provide all of them (e.g. [[sedge warbler]]s).<ref>{{cite journal|last=Buchanan |first=K.L.|author2=Catchpole, C.K. |title=Song as an indicator of male parental effort in the sedge warbler|journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society |year=2000 |volume=267 |pages=321–326 |doi=10.1098/rspb.2000.1003|pmid=10722211|issue=1441|pmc=1690544}}</ref>  The females dwell in their chosen males' territories for access to these resources. The males gain ownership to the territories through [[male–male competition]] that often involves physical aggression. Only the largest and strongest males manage to defend the best quality nest sites. Females choose males by inspecting the quality of different territories or by looking at some male traits that can indicate the quality of resources.<ref name=Davies/> One example of this is with the grayling butterfly (''[[Grayling (butterfly)|Hipparchia semele]]''), where males engage in complex flight patterns to decide who defends a particular territory. The female grayling butterfly chooses a male based on the most optimal location for [[oviparity|oviposition]].<ref>{{cite iucn |author=van Swaay, C. |author2=Wynhoff, I. |author3=Verovnik, R. |author4=Wiemers, M. |author5=López Munguira, M. |author6=Maes, D. |author7=Sasic, M. |author8=Verstrael, T. |author9=Warren, M. |author10=Settele, J. |date=2010 |title=''Hipparchia semele'' |volume=2010 |page=e.T173254A6980554 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-1.RLTS.T173254A6980554.en |access-date=13 November 2021}}</ref> Sometimes, males leave after mating. The only resource that a male provides is a [[nuptial gift (animal behavior)|nuptial gift]], such as protection or food, as seen in ''[[Drosophila subobscura]].''<ref>{{cite journal|last=Dussourd|first=D.E.|author2=Harvis, C.A. |author3=Meinwald, J. |author4= Eisner, T. |title=Pheromonal advertisement of a nuptial gift by a male moth |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |year=1991 |volume=88 |pages=9224–9227 |doi=10.1073/pnas.88.20.9224|issue=20|bibcode = 1991PNAS...88.9224D |pmid=1924385 |pmc=52686|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Steele | first1 = RH | year = 1986 | title = Courtship feeding in ''Drosophila subobscura''. 2. Courtship feeding by males influences female mate choice | journal = Animal Behaviour | volume = 34 | pages = 1099–1108 | doi = 10.1016/s0003-3472(86)80169-5 | s2cid = 53156432 }}</ref>  The female can evaluate the quality of the protection or food provided by the male so as to decide whether to mate or not or how long she is willing to copulate.