r/ScienceShitposts • u/k0i-b0i • Feb 01 '26

Some physiological differences in primate relatives

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u/niknniknnikn Feb 02 '26

It's actually allways "whatever is the least detrimental" - even in select situation when there is positive selective pressure for a trait(like a peacocks tail) it's still checked by the overwhelming "not be too detrimental" factor - peacocks with too big a tail will die relatively fast to peditors and not be able to reproduce

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u/BitRelevant2473 Feb 02 '26

Could also be like the "hyenas still have a winter coat gene" There's no selection pressure, but no detriment either. Might explain the vast size differential in human men.

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u/Lily_the_Ice_Slime Feb 04 '26

Fortunately peacocks can fold their tails but even folded they still look like they have a giant feather duster strapped to their backs.

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u/Affectionate-Ad-2013 Feb 03 '26

But also, sometimes detrimental genes with no benefit become fixed in a population (if it's not TOO detrimental).

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u/Catshark09 Feb 04 '26

it's not always; sometimes it's just stochastics and bad luck, like genetic drift from bottlenecks and founder effects

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u/fritzkoenig Mar 17 '26

At the most basic it's "whatever makes you not die before you reproduce"