author(s)
Somnath Bhakat

abstract
Thanatosis or death feigning is an antipredator behaviour that benefits the prey by increasing its survival value. Besides this primary function, thanatosis have been reported to play an active role in sexual behaviour. In five species of arthropods, either male or female playing possum select its preferred partner or avoid harassment by unwanted partner. Till today in vertebrates including anurans, there is no report in which death feigning plays a crucial role in mate selection. Here I showed that in Asian common toad, Duttaphrynus melanostictus, female avoid mating and male harassment playing thanatosis. Though there is no report of thanatosis controlling sex selection in vertebrates, yet females of robberfly and dragonfly exhibit thanatosis to avoid harassment by males and non-receptive female butterflies of Saturniae escape male attraction by playing possum. Functional significance of thanatosis in mate selection is very important. Female choice among alternate males and selection of more eligible males results more healthier progeny which have adaptive advantage from evolutionary point of view.