Helen Rodd is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

zoologist Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...

who is a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

. Rodd's work focuses on reproductive strategies among live-bearing fish as a system to understand mate selection among animals. Her work on mate preference in

guppy The Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program (GUPPY) was initiated by the United States Navy after World War II to improve the submerged speed, maneuverability, and endurance of its submarines. (The "Y" in the acronym was added for pronouncea ...

fish (''Poecilia reticulata'') attracted media attention in numerous nature

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s and the

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public broadcasting service, as well as academic notice, based upon her research finding that female guppies in

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

may choose males for

orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower ** Orange juice *Orange (colour), the color of an orange fruit, occurs between red and yellow in the vi ...

coloration similar to a favored food, the fruit of a local tree. In 2001, Rodd was awarded a ''Premier's Research Excellence Award'' by the

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

government for her work in guppy mate selection. Rodd received her Ph.D. in Biology from

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

in Toronto with a thesis titled: ''Phenotypic plasticity in the life history traits and sexual behaviour of Trinidadian guppies (Poecilia reticulata) in response to their social environment.''

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people University of Toronto alumni Academic staff of the University of Toronto York University alumni Canadian zoologists {{canada-academic-bio-stub