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Helen Rodd is a Professor and Graduate Coordinator in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Toronto. She specializes in reproductive strategies and sexual behavior, focusing on life history traits and population demography. Her research investigates how individuals adjust their reproductive strategies in response to varying social and environmental conditions, such as sex ratio and density. Notably, Rodd has studied frequency-dependent selection, particularly the rare male advantage and predator search images, which contribute to the maintenance of genetically-based variation in male guppy color patterns in natural populations. Through collaborations with colleagues and students, she has explored the role of sensory bias in mate choice decisions among female guppies and related species such as poeciliids, goodeids, and medaka. She actively engages in research that combines theoretical and empirical approaches, aiming to enhance our understanding of evolutionary processes governing sexual selection and reproductive behavior.
Department of Sociology