Males that assess rivals before fighting survive and reproduce better.

Evidence

Whenever there is an adequate cue that conveys information about a male’s fighting ability, it will always benefit other males to pay attention. There really is such a thing as choosing battles wisely. Males who fight every battle to the fullest, attacking indiscriminately and never holding back, end up mangled and exhausted, or dead. By assessing the abilities of rivals before fights get costly, and attacking only when the likely payoffs exceed the risk of injury or failure, males allocate resources more efficiently. — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 380

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Weapon costliness keeps signals honest by excluding weaker males; Weapons evolved as signals so males could predict fight outcomes before risking battle — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 370; Fighting is dangerous enough to favor assessment before battle

Related

• Weapons evolved as signals so males could predict fight outcomes before risking battle (similarity 0.89)
• Weapons work primarily as deterrents that prevent fights rather than win them (similarity 0.83)
• Fighting is dangerous enough to favor assessment before battle (similarity 0.82)
• Weapon growth widens the gap between the best- and worst-armed males. (similarity 0.82)
• Mating competition kills off most males before they ever reproduce. (similarity 0.82)
• Deterrence works only when fighters can reliably predict battle outcomes (similarity 0.81)
• Male combat for mating access frequently causes serious wounds and sometimes death (similarity 0.81)
• Weapons primarily deter rivals rather than inflict harm in actual fights (similarity 0.80)
• Monopolized reproduction drives males of many species to cheat (similarity 0.80)
• Excess rival males over scarce fertile females drove knightly combat in medieval Europe (similarity 0.79)
• Weapon expense is what keeps signals of fighting ability honest (similarity 0.79)
• Weapons evolve only when reproductive benefits exceed costs (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Fighting is dangerous enough to favor assessment before battle #corroborates (0.85)