这种蜥蜴会玩石头剪刀布？花了30年，科学家终于解开另类游戏背后的基因奥秘

Core Concept - The article discusses the concept of "rock-paper-scissors" as a decision-making tool, illustrating how different choices can have cyclical power dynamics, leading to an equilibrium where each option has an equal chance of winning over time [1]. Group 1: Cultural Variants of the Game - Variants of the rock-paper-scissors concept exist in various cultures, such as the Japanese game "婆、庄屋与虎" (Mother, Village Head, and Tiger) and the Indonesian game "大象、人和蚂蚁" (Elephant, Man, and Ant), showcasing similar cyclical relationships among the elements involved [3]. Group 2: Animal Behavior and Strategy - The article highlights the behavior of the side-blotched lizard in the western United States and northern Mexico, where male lizards exhibit different courtship strategies based on their neck colors: orange, blue, and yellow [5][7]. - Orange lizards are the most aggressive and have the largest territories, while blue lizards are less aggressive but excel in group defense, and yellow lizards have no territory but can sneak into others' territories to mate [7][10]. Group 3: Evolutionary Dynamics - The cyclical dominance among the three lizard types takes approximately 5 to 6 years to complete, with each color's population fluctuating based on their strategies and interactions [13]. - Research conducted by biologists Barry Sinervo and Curtis Lively in 1996 and later by Amon Cole in 2012 explored the genetic basis of these color variations and their implications for evolutionary stability [13][19]. Group 4: Genetic Insights - The study revealed that the blue and yellow neck colors are likely environmentally triggered, while the orange color results from a genetic mutation affecting melanin production and brain neurotransmitter generation [19][21]. - The findings suggest that the stability of the lizard's rock-paper-scissors dynamic may be due to a single gene mutation interacting with environmental factors, rather than multiple mutations [19][21].