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Shelafoe C, Thompson FJ, Mwanguhya F, Kyabulima S, Businge R, Mwesige K, Sanderson JL, Cant MA, Marshall HH, Vitikainen EIK. Caregiver's cognitive traits are associated with pup fitness in a cooperatively breeding mammal. Sci Rep 2023; 13:17713. [PMID: 37853079 PMCID: PMC10584902 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-44950-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Studies across diverse taxa have revealed the importance of early life environment and parenting on characteristics later in life. While some have shown how early life experiences can impact cognitive abilities, very few have turned this around and looked at how the cognitive skills of parents or other carers during early life affect the fitness of young. In this study, we investigate how the characteristics of carers may affect proxies of fitness of pups in the cooperatively breeding banded mongoose (Mungos mungo). We gave adult mongooses a spatial memory test and compared the results to the success of the pups those individuals cared for. Our results show a tradeoff between speed and accuracy in the spatial memory task, with those individuals which were faster to move between cups in the test arena making more erroneous re-visits to cups that they had already checked for food. Furthermore, the accuracy of their carer predicted future survival, but not weight gain of the pups and the effect was contrary to expected, with pups that were cared for by less accurate individuals being more likely to survive to adulthood. Our research also provides evidence that while younger carers were less accurate during the test, the age of the carer did not have an impact on the chance of raising young that live to sexual maturity. Our findings suggest that banded mongoose carers' cognitive traits have fitness consequences for the young they care for, affecting the chance that these young live to maturity.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Shelafoe
- Centre for Research in Ecology, Evolution, and Behaviour, University of Roehampton, London, SW15 5PJ, UK.
| | - F J Thompson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - F Mwanguhya
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO box 66, Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - S Kyabulima
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO box 66, Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - R Businge
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO box 66, Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - K Mwesige
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO box 66, Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - J L Sanderson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - M A Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - H H Marshall
- Centre for Research in Ecology, Evolution, and Behaviour, University of Roehampton, London, SW15 5PJ, UK
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
- Centre for Conservation Science, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Cambridge, UK
| | - E I K Vitikainen
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK.
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology, University of Helsinki, PO Box 65, 00014, Helsinki, Finland.
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2
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Vitikainen EIK, Meniri M, Marshall HH, Thompson FJ, Businge R, Mwanguhya F, Kyabulima S, Mwesige K, Ahabonya S, Sanderson JL, Kalema-Zikusoka G, Hoffman JI, Wells D, Lewis G, Walker SL, Nichols HJ, Blount JD, Cant MA. The social formation of fitness: lifetime consequences of prenatal nutrition and postnatal care in a wild mammal population. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20220309. [PMID: 37381858 PMCID: PMC10291432 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2022.0309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Research in medicine and evolutionary biology suggests that the sequencing of parental investment has a crucial impact on offspring life history and health. Here, we take advantage of the synchronous birth system of wild banded mongooses to test experimentally the lifetime consequences to offspring of receiving extra investment prenatally versus postnatally. We provided extra food to half of the breeding females in each group during pregnancy, leaving the other half as matched controls. This manipulation resulted in two categories of experimental offspring in synchronously born litters: (i) 'prenatal boost' offspring whose mothers had been fed during pregnancy, and (ii) 'postnatal boost' offspring whose mothers were not fed during pregnancy but who received extra alloparental care in the postnatal period. Prenatal boost offspring lived substantially longer as adults, but postnatal boost offspring had higher lifetime reproductive success (LRS) and higher glucocorticoid levels across the lifespan. Both types of experimental offspring had higher LRS than offspring from unmanipulated litters. We found no difference between the two experimental categories of offspring in adult weight, age at first reproduction, oxidative stress or telomere lengths. These findings are rare experimental evidence that prenatal and postnatal investments have distinct effects in moulding individual life history and fitness in wild mammals. This article is part of the theme issue 'Evolutionary ecology of inequality'.
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Affiliation(s)
- E. I. K. Vitikainen
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, PO Box 65, 00014 Finland
| | - M. Meniri
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - H. H. Marshall
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
- Centre for Research in Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour, University of Roehampton, Roehampton Lane, London SW15 5PJ, UK
| | - F. J. Thompson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - R. Businge
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO Box 66 Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - F. Mwanguhya
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO Box 66 Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - S. Kyabulima
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO Box 66 Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - K. Mwesige
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO Box 66 Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - S. Ahabonya
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO Box 66 Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
| | - J. L. Sanderson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - G. Kalema-Zikusoka
- Conservation Through Public Health, PO Box 75298, Uringi Crescent Rd, Entebbe, Uganda
| | - J. I. Hoffman
- Department of Behavioural Ecology, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Konsequenz 45, 33619, Germany
| | - D. Wells
- Department of Behavioural Ecology, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Konsequenz 45, 33619, Germany
| | - G. Lewis
- Department of Biosciences, Wallace Building, Swansea University, Singleton Park, Swansea SA2 8PP, UK
| | - S. L. Walker
- Chester Zoo Endocrine Laboratory, Endocrinology, Science Centre, Caughall Road, Upton-by-Chester, Chester, CH2 1LH, UK
| | - H. J. Nichols
- Department of Biosciences, Wallace Building, Swansea University, Singleton Park, Swansea SA2 8PP, UK
| | - J. D. Blount
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - M. A. Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9FE, UK
- Banded Mongoose Research Project, Queen Elizabeth National Park, PO Box 66 Lake Katwe, Kasese District, Uganda
- German Primate Center, University of Goettingen, Kellnerweg 4, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
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3
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Begging is an honest signal of hunger in a communally nesting bird with low genetic relatedness. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-022-03252-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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A veil of ignorance can promote fairness in a mammal society. Nat Commun 2021; 12:3717. [PMID: 34162841 PMCID: PMC8222408 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23910-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Rawls argued that fairness in human societies can be achieved if decisions about the distribution of societal rewards are made from behind a veil of ignorance, which obscures the personal gains that result. Whether ignorance promotes fairness in animal societies, that is, the distribution of resources to reduce inequality, is unknown. Here we show experimentally that cooperatively breeding banded mongooses, acting from behind a veil of ignorance over kinship, allocate postnatal care in a way that reduces inequality among offspring, in the manner predicted by a Rawlsian model of cooperation. In this society synchronized reproduction leaves adults in a group ignorant of the individual parentage of their communal young. We provisioned half of the mothers in each mongoose group during pregnancy, leaving the other half as matched controls, thus increasing inequality among mothers and increasing the amount of variation in offspring birth weight in communal litters. After birth, fed mothers provided extra care to the offspring of unfed mothers, not their own young, which levelled up initial size inequalities among the offspring and equalized their survival to adulthood. Our findings suggest that a classic idea of moral philosophy also applies to the evolution of cooperation in biological systems. Obscuring knowledge of personal gains from individuals can theoretically maintain fairness in a cooperative group. Experiments show that wild, cooperatively breeding banded mongooses uncertain of kinship allocate postnatal care in a way that reduces inequality among offspring, suggesting a classic idea of moral philosophy can apply in biological systems.
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Pillay S, Bhagwandin A, Bertelsen MF, Patzke N, Engler G, Engel AK, Manger PR. The amygdaloid body of two carnivore species: The feliform banded mongoose and the caniform domestic ferret. J Comp Neurol 2020; 529:28-51. [PMID: 33009661 DOI: 10.1002/cne.25046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2020] [Revised: 09/29/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
The current study provides an analysis of the cytoarchitecture, myeloarchitecture, and chemoarchitecture of the amygdaloid body of the banded mongoose (Mungos mungo) and domestic ferret (Mustela putorius furo). Using architectural and immunohistochemical stains, we observe that the organization of the nuclear and cortical portions of the amygdaloid complex is very similar in both species. The one major difference is the presence of a cortex-amygdala transition zone observed in the domestic ferret that is absent in the banded mongoose. In addition, the chemoarchitecture is, for the most part, quite similar in the two species, but several variances, such as differing densities of neurons expressing the calcium-binding proteins in specific nuclei are noted. Despite this, certain aspects of the chemoarchitecture, such as the cholinergic innervation of the magnocellular division of the basal nuclear cluster and the presence of doublecortin expressing neurons in the shell division of the accessory basal nuclear cluster, appear to be consistent features of the Eutherian mammal amygdala. The domestic ferret presented with an overall lower myelin density throughout the amygdaloid body than the banded mongoose, a feature that may reflect artificial selection in the process of domestication for increased juvenile-like behavior in the adult domestic ferret, such as a muted fear response. The shared, but temporally distant, ancestry of the banded mongoose and domestic ferret allows us to generate observations relevant to understanding the relative influence that phylogenetic constraints, adaptive evolutionary plasticity, and the domestication process may play in the organization and chemoarchitecture of the amygdaloid body.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sashrika Pillay
- School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.,Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Adhil Bhagwandin
- School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Mads F Bertelsen
- Centre for Zoo and Wild Animal Health, Copenhagen Zoo, Frederiksberg, Denmark
| | - Nina Patzke
- School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Gerhard Engler
- Department of Neurophysiology and Pathophysiology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Andreas K Engel
- Department of Neurophysiology and Pathophysiology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Paul R Manger
- School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
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6
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Wells DA, Cant MA, Hoffman JI, Nichols HJ. Inbreeding depresses altruism in a cooperative society. Ecol Lett 2020; 23:1460-1467. [DOI: 10.1111/ele.13578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2020] [Revised: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 06/17/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- David A. Wells
- Department of Animal Behaviour University of Bielefeld Postfach 100131 Bielefeld33501Germany
- School of Natural Science and Psychology Liverpool John Moores University LiverpoolL3 3AFUK
| | - Michael A. Cant
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences University of Exeter PenrynTR10 9FEUK
| | - Joseph I. Hoffman
- Department of Animal Behaviour University of Bielefeld Postfach 100131 Bielefeld33501Germany
- British Antarctic Survey High Cross, Madingley Road CambridgeCB3 OETUnited Kingdom
| | - Hazel J. Nichols
- Department of Animal Behaviour University of Bielefeld Postfach 100131 Bielefeld33501Germany
- Department of Biosciences Swansea University SwanseaSA2 8PPUK
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7
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Laver PN, Ganswindt A, Ganswindt SB, Alexander KA. Effect of food limitation and reproductive activity on fecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels in banded mongooses. BMC Ecol 2020; 20:12. [PMID: 32070331 PMCID: PMC7027037 DOI: 10.1186/s12898-020-00280-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2019] [Accepted: 02/05/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Glucocorticoids mediate responses to perceived stressors, thereby restoring homeostasis. However, prolonged glucocorticoid elevation may cause homeostatic overload. Using extensive field investigations of banded mongoose (Mungos mungo) groups in northern Botswana, we assessed the influence of reproduction, predation risk, and food limitation on apparent homeostatic overload (n=13 groups, 1542 samples from 268 animals). We experimentally manipulated reproduction and regulated food supply in captive mongooses, and compared their glucocorticoid responses to those obtained from free-living groups. Results At the population level, variation in glucocorticoid levels in free-living mongooses was explained by food limitation: fecal organic matter, recent rainfall, and access to concentrated anthropogenic food resources. Soil macrofauna density and reproductive events explained less and predation risk very little variation in glucocorticoid levels. Reproduction and its associated challenges alone (under regulated feeding conditions) increased glucocorticoid levels 19-fold in a captive group. Among free-living groups, glucocorticoid elevation was seasonal (occurring in late dry season or early wet season when natural food resources were less available), but the timing of peak glucocorticoid production was moderated by access to anthropogenic resources (groups with fewer anthropogenic food sources had peaks earlier in dry seasons). Peak months represented 12- and 16-fold increases in glucocorticoids relative to nadir months with some animals exhibiting 100-fold increases. Relative to the captive group nadir, some free-living groups exhibited 60-fold increases in peak glucocorticoid levels with some animals exhibiting up to 800-fold increases. Most of these animals exhibited 1- to 10-fold increases relative to the captive animal peak. Conclusions Banded mongooses exhibit seasonal chronic glucocorticoid elevation, associated primarily with food limitation and secondarily with reproduction. Magnitude and duration of this elevation suggests that this may be maladaptive for some animals, with possible fitness consequences. In late dry season, this population may face a convergence of stressors (food limitation, agonistic encounters at concentrated food resources, evictions, estrus, mate competition, parturition, and predation pressure on pups), which may induce homeostatic overload.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pete N Laver
- Biodiversity and Development Institute, 4 Gunner's Park, Grenville Avenue, Epping 1, Cape Town, 7460, South Africa.
| | - André Ganswindt
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, 0028, South Africa.,Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X04, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa.,Centre for Veterinary Wildlife Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X04, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
| | - Stefanie B Ganswindt
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, 0028, South Africa.,Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X04, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
| | - Kathleen A Alexander
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, 100 Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, VA, 24061-0321, USA
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8
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Nichols CA, Alexander KA. Characteristics of banded mongoose (Mungos mungo) den sites across the human-wildlife interface in Northern Botswana. Mamm Biol 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mambio.2019.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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9
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Vitikainen EIK, Thompson FJ, Marshall HH, Cant MA. Live long and prosper: durable benefits of early-life care in banded mongooses. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2019; 374:20180114. [PMID: 30966878 PMCID: PMC6460079 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2018.0114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Kin selection theory defines the conditions for which altruism or 'helping' can be favoured by natural selection. Tests of this theory in cooperatively breeding animals have focused on the short-term benefits to the recipients of help, such as improved growth or survival to adulthood. However, research on early-life effects suggests that there may be more durable, lifelong fitness impacts to the recipients of help, which in theory should strengthen selection for helping. Here, we show in cooperatively breeding banded mongooses ( Mungos mungo) that care received in the first 3 months of life has lifelong fitness benefits for both male and female recipients. In this species, adult helpers called 'escorts' form exclusive one-to-one caring relationships with specific pups (not their own offspring), allowing us to isolate the effects of being escorted on later reproduction and survival. Pups that were more closely escorted were heavier at sexual maturity, which was associated with higher lifetime reproductive success for both sexes. Moreover, for female offspring, lifetime reproductive success increased with the level of escorting received per se, over and above any effect on body mass. Our results suggest that early-life social care has durable benefits to offspring of both sexes in this species. Given the well-established developmental effects of early-life care in laboratory animals and humans, we suggest that similar effects are likely to be widespread in social animals more generally. We discuss some of the implications of durable fitness benefits for the evolution of intergenerational helping in cooperative animal societies, including humans. This article is part of the theme issue 'Developing differences: early-life effects and evolutionary medicine'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma I. K. Vitikainen
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, UK
- Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Faye J. Thompson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Harry H. Marshall
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, UK
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Roehampton, London, UK
| | - Michael A. Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, UK
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10
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Wells DA, Cant MA, Nichols HJ, Hoffman JI. A high-quality pedigree and genetic markers both reveal inbreeding depression for quality but not survival in a cooperative mammal. Mol Ecol 2018; 27:2271-2288. [PMID: 29603504 DOI: 10.1111/mec.14570] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2017] [Revised: 03/05/2018] [Accepted: 03/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Inbreeding depression, the reduced fitness of offspring of closely related parents, is commonplace in both captive and wild populations and has important consequences for conservation and mating system evolution. However, because of the difficulty of collecting pedigree and life-history data from wild populations, relatively few studies have been able to compare inbreeding depression for traits at different points in the life cycle. Moreover, pedigrees give the expected proportion of the genome that is identical by descent (IBDg ) whereas in theory with enough molecular markers realized IBDg can be quantified directly. We therefore investigated inbreeding depression for multiple life-history traits in a wild population of banded mongooses using pedigree-based inbreeding coefficients (fped ) and standardized multilocus heterozygosity (sMLH) measured at 35-43 microsatellites. Within an information theoretic framework, we evaluated support for either fped or sMLH as inbreeding terms and used sequential regression to determine whether the residuals of sMLH on fped explain fitness variation above and beyond fped . We found no evidence of inbreeding depression for survival, either before or after nutritional independence. By contrast, inbreeding was negatively associated with two quality-related traits, yearling body mass and annual male reproductive success. Yearling body mass was associated with fped but not sMLH, while male annual reproductive success was best explained by both fped and residual sMLH. Thus, our study not only uncovers variation in the extent to which different traits show inbreeding depression, but also reveals trait-specific differences in the ability of pedigrees and molecular markers to explain fitness variation and suggests that for certain traits, genetic markers may capture variation in realized IBDg above and beyond the pedigree expectation.
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Affiliation(s)
- David A Wells
- Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany.,School of Natural Science and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
| | - Michael A Cant
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, UK
| | - Hazel J Nichols
- School of Natural Science and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
| | - Joseph I Hoffman
- Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany
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11
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Laver PN, Alexander KA. Association with humans and seasonality interact to reverse predictions for animal space use. MOVEMENT ECOLOGY 2018; 6:5. [PMID: 29736242 PMCID: PMC5924504 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-018-0123-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2017] [Accepted: 04/02/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Variation in animal space use reflects fitness trade-offs associated with ecological constraints. Associated theories such as the metabolic theory of ecology and the resource dispersion hypothesis generate predictions about what drives variation in animal space use. But, metabolic theory is usually tested in macro-ecological studies and is seldom invoked explicitly in within-species studies. Full evaluation of the resource dispersion hypothesis requires testing in more species. Neither have been evaluated in the context of anthropogenic landscape change. METHODS In this study, we used data for banded mongooses (Mungos mungo) in northeastern Botswana, along a gradient of association with humans, to test for effects of space use drivers predicted by these theories. We used Bayesian parameter estimation and inference from linear models to test for seasonal differences in space use metrics and to model seasonal effects of space use drivers. RESULTS Results suggest that space use is strongly associated with variation in the level of overlap that mongoose groups have with humans. Seasonality influences this association, reversing seasonal space use predictions historically-accepted by ecologists. We found support for predictions of the metabolic theory when moderated by seasonality, by association with humans and by their interaction. Space use of mongooses living in association with humans was more concentrated in the dry season than the wet season, when historically-accepted ecological theory predicted more dispersed space use. Resource richness factors such as building density were associated with space use only during the dry season. We found negligible support for predictions of the resource dispersion hypothesis in general or for metabolic theory where seasonality and association with humans were not included. For mongooses living in association with humans, space use was not associated with patch dispersion or group size over both seasons. CONCLUSIONS In our study, living in association with humans influenced space use patterns that diverged from historically-accepted predictions. There is growing need to explicitly incorporate human-animal interactions into ecological theory and research. Our results and methodology may contribute to understanding effects of anthropogenic landscape change on wildlife populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter N. Laver
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch, 7701 South Africa
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061 USA
| | - Kathleen A. Alexander
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, 310 West Campus Drive, Blacksburg, VA, 24061 USA
- Centre for African Resources: Animals Communities and Land Use (CARACAL), Lot 3102 Airport Road, Kasane, Botswana
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12
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Forssman KR, Marneweck C, O'Riain MJ, Davies-Mostert HT, Mills MG. Pup Provisioning in the Cooperatively Breeding African Wild Dog, Lycaon pictus, is Driven by Pack Size, Social Status and Age. AFRICAN JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE RESEARCH 2018. [DOI: 10.3957/056.048.013005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Katherine R. Forssman
- Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Private Bag X04, Onderstepoort, 0110 South Africa
| | - Courtney Marneweck
- School of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Mpumalanga, Private Bag X11283, Nelspruit, 1200 South Africa
| | - M. Justin O'Riain
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch, 7701 South Africa
| | | | - Michael G.L. Mills
- School of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Mpumalanga, Private Bag X11283, Nelspruit, 1200 South Africa
- South African National Parks, P.O.Box 7814, Sonpark, 2016 South Africa
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13
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Vitikainen EIK, Marshall HH, Thompson FJ, Sanderson JL, Bell MBV, Gilchrist JS, Hodge SJ, Nichols HJ, Cant MA. Biased escorts: offspring sex, not relatedness explains alloparental care patterns in a cooperative breeder. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2016.2384. [PMID: 28469015 PMCID: PMC5443930 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.2384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2016] [Accepted: 04/11/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Kin selection theory predicts that animals should direct costly care where inclusive fitness gains are highest. Individuals may achieve this by directing care at closer relatives, yet evidence for such discrimination in vertebrates is equivocal. We investigated patterns of cooperative care in banded mongooses, where communal litters are raised by adult 'escorts' who form exclusive caring relationships with individual pups. We found no evidence that escorts and pups assort by parentage or relatedness. However, the time males spent escorting increased with increasing relatedness to the other group members, and to the pup they had paired with. Thus, we found no effect of relatedness in partner choice, but (in males) increasing helping effort with relatedness once partner choices had been made. Unexpectedly, the results showed clear assortment by sex, with female carers being more likely to tend to female pups, and male carers to male pups. This sex-specific assortment in helping behaviour has potential lifelong impacts on individual development and may impact the future size and composition of natal groups and dispersing cohorts. Where relatedness between helpers and recipients is already high, individuals may be better off choosing partners using other predictors of the costs and benefits of cooperation, without the need for possibly costly within-group kin discrimination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma I K Vitikainen
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Harry H Marshall
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Faye J Thompson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Jenni L Sanderson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Matthew B V Bell
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Jason S Gilchrist
- School of Applied Sciences, Edinburgh Napier University, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Sarah J Hodge
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Hazel J Nichols
- School of Natural Sciences and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK
| | - Michael A Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
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Behavioural correlates of group size and group persistence in the African ice rat Otomys sloggetti robertsi. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-017-2293-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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15
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Marshall HH, Vitikainen EIK, Mwanguhya F, Businge R, Kyabulima S, Hares MC, Inzani E, Kalema-Zikusoka G, Mwesige K, Nichols HJ, Sanderson JL, Thompson FJ, Cant MA. Lifetime fitness consequences of early-life ecological hardship in a wild mammal population. Ecol Evol 2017; 7:1712-1724. [PMID: 28331582 PMCID: PMC5355200 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.2747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2016] [Revised: 12/01/2016] [Accepted: 12/22/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Early-life ecological conditions have major effects on survival and reproduction. Numerous studies in wild systems show fitness benefits of good quality early-life ecological conditions ("silver-spoon" effects). Recently, however, some studies have reported that poor-quality early-life ecological conditions are associated with later-life fitness advantages and that the effect of early-life conditions can be sex-specific. Furthermore, few studies have investigated the effect of the variability of early-life ecological conditions on later-life fitness. Here, we test how the mean and variability of early-life ecological conditions affect the longevity and reproduction of males and females using 14 years of data on wild banded mongooses (Mungos mungo). Males that experienced highly variable ecological conditions during development lived longer and had greater lifetime fitness, while those that experienced poor early-life conditions lived longer but at a cost of reduced fertility. In females, there were no such effects. Our study suggests that exposure to more variable environments in early life can result in lifetime fitness benefits, whereas differences in the mean early-life conditions experienced mediate a life-history trade-off between survival and reproduction. It also demonstrates how early-life ecological conditions can produce different selection pressures on males and females.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harry H Marshall
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | | | - Francis Mwanguhya
- Banded Mongoose Research Project Queen Elizabeth National Park Kasese District Uganda
| | - Robert Businge
- Banded Mongoose Research Project Queen Elizabeth National Park Kasese District Uganda
| | - Solomon Kyabulima
- Banded Mongoose Research Project Queen Elizabeth National Park Kasese District Uganda
| | - Michelle C Hares
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | - Emma Inzani
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | | | - Kenneth Mwesige
- Banded Mongoose Research Project Queen Elizabeth National Park Kasese District Uganda
| | - Hazel J Nichols
- School of Natural Science and Psychology Liverpool John Moores University Liverpool UK
| | | | - Faye J Thompson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter Cornwall UK
| | - Michael A Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter Cornwall UK
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Thompson FJ, Marshall HH, Sanderson JL, Vitikainen EIK, Nichols HJ, Gilchrist JS, Young AJ, Hodge SJ, Cant MA. Reproductive competition triggers mass eviction in cooperative banded mongooses. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 283:20152607. [PMID: 26936245 PMCID: PMC4810850 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.2607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
In many vertebrate societies, forced eviction of group members is an important determinant of population structure, but little is known about what triggers eviction. Three main explanations are: (i) the reproductive competition hypothesis, (ii) the coercion of cooperation hypothesis, and (iii) the adaptive forced dispersal hypothesis. The last hypothesis proposes that dominant individuals use eviction as an adaptive strategy to propagate copies of their alleles through a highly structured population. We tested these hypotheses as explanations for eviction in cooperatively breeding banded mongooses (Mungos mungo), using a 16-year dataset on life history, behaviour and relatedness. In this species, groups of females, or mixed-sex groups, are periodically evicted en masse. Our evidence suggests that reproductive competition is the main ultimate trigger for eviction for both sexes. We find little evidence that mass eviction is used to coerce helping, or as a mechanism to force dispersal of relatives into the population. Eviction of females changes the landscape of reproductive competition for remaining males, which may explain why males are evicted alongside females. Our results show that the consequences of resolving within-group conflict resonate through groups and populations to affect population structure, with important implications for social evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Faye J Thompson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Harry H Marshall
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Jennifer L Sanderson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Emma I K Vitikainen
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Hazel J Nichols
- School of Natural Sciences and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK
| | | | - Andrew J Young
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Sarah J Hodge
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Michael A Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9FE, UK
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Graw B, Lindholm A, Manser M. Female-biased dispersal in the solitarily foraging slender mongoose, Galerella sanguinea, in the Kalahari. Anim Behav 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.09.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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18
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Sanderson JL, Stott I, Young AJ, Vitikainen EI, Hodge SJ, Cant MA. The origins of consistent individual differences in cooperation in wild banded mongooses, Mungos mungo. Anim Behav 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2015.06.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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19
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Sanderson JL, Young AJ, Hodge SJ, Kyabulima S, Walker SL, Cant MA. Hormonal mediation of a carry‐over effect in a wild cooperative mammal. Funct Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.12307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L. Sanderson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter (Penryn Campus) Penryn CornwallTR10 9FE UK
| | - Andrew J. Young
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter (Penryn Campus) Penryn CornwallTR10 9FE UK
| | - Sarah J. Hodge
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter (Penryn Campus) Penryn CornwallTR10 9FE UK
| | - Solomon Kyabulima
- Banded Mongoose Research Project Queen Elizabeth National Park Kasese District Uganda
| | - Susan L. Walker
- Chester Zoo Wildlife Endocrinology Laboratory Ceder House Caughall Road Upton‐by‐Chester Chester CH2 1LH UK
| | - Michael A. Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation University of Exeter (Penryn Campus) Penryn CornwallTR10 9FE UK
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20
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Abstract
The evolution of cooperation in animal and human societies is associated with mechanisms to suppress individual selfishness. In insect societies, queens and workers enforce cooperation by "policing" selfish reproduction by workers. Insect policing typically takes the form of damage limitation after individuals have carried out selfish acts (such as laying eggs). In contrast, human policing is based on the use of threats that deter individuals from acting selfishly in the first place, minimizing the need for damage limitation. Policing by threat could in principle be used to enforce reproductive suppression in animal societies, but testing this idea requires an experimental approach to simulate reproductive transgression and provoke out-of-equilibrium behavior. We carried out an experiment of this kind on a wild population of cooperatively breeding banded mongooses (Mungos mungo) in Uganda. In this species, each group contains multiple female breeders that give birth to a communal litter, usually on the same day. In a 7-y experiment we used contraceptive injections to manipulate the distribution of maternity within groups, triggering hidden threats of infanticide. Our data suggest that older, socially dominant females use the threat of infanticide to deter selfish reproduction by younger females, but that females can escape the threat of infanticide by synchronizing birth to the same day as older females. Our study shows that reproduction in animal societies can be profoundly influenced by threats that remain hidden until they are triggered experimentally. Coercion may thus extend well beyond the systems in which acts of infanticide are common.
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Thompson AM, Ridley AR, Hockey PA, Finch FM, Britton A, Raihani NJ. The influence of siblings on begging behaviour. Anim Behav 2013. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.07.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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22
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Schneider TC, Kappeler PM. Social systems and life-history characteristics of mongooses. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2013; 89:173-98. [PMID: 23865895 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2012] [Revised: 06/01/2013] [Accepted: 06/19/2013] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The diversity of extant carnivores provides valuable opportunities for comparative research to illuminate general patterns of mammalian social evolution. Recent field studies on mongooses (Herpestidae), in particular, have generated detailed behavioural and demographic data allowing tests of assumptions and predictions of theories of social evolution. The first studies of the social systems of their closest relatives, the Malagasy Eupleridae, also have been initiated. The literature on mongooses was last reviewed over 25 years ago. In this review, we summarise the current state of knowledge on the social organisation, mating systems and social structure (especially competition and cooperation) of the two mongoose families. Our second aim is to evaluate the contributions of these studies to a better understanding of mammalian social evolution in general. Based on published reports or anecdotal information, we can classify 16 of the 34 species of Herpestidae as solitary and nine as group-living; there are insufficient data available for the remainder. There is a strong phylogenetic signal of sociality with permanent complex groups being limited to the genera Crossarchus, Helogale, Liberiictis, Mungos, and Suricata. Our review also indicates that studies of solitary and social mongooses have been conducted within different theoretical frameworks: whereas solitary species and transitions to gregariousness have been mainly investigated in relation to ecological determinants, the study of social patterns of highly social mongooses has instead been based on reproductive skew theory. In some group-living species, group size and composition were found to determine reproductive competition and cooperative breeding through group augmentation. Infanticide risk and inbreeding avoidance connect social organisation and social structure with reproductive tactics and life histories, but their specific impact on mongoose sociality is still difficult to evaluate. However, the level of reproductive skew in social mongooses is not only determined by the costs and benefits of suppressing each other's breeding attempts, but also influenced by resource abundance. Thus, dispersal, as a consequence of eviction, is also linked to the costs of co-breeding in the context of food competition. By linking these facts, we show that the socio-ecological model and reproductive skew theory share some determinants of social patterns. We also conclude that due to their long bio-geographical isolation and divergent selection pressures, future studies of the social systems of the Eupleridae will be of great value for the elucidation of general patterns in carnivore social evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tilman C Schneider
- Department of Sociobiology/Anthropology, University of Göttingen, Kellnerweg 6, Göttingen, 37077, Germany
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23
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Cant MA, Vitikainen E, Nichols HJ. Demography and Social Evolution of Banded Mongooses. ADVANCES IN THE STUDY OF BEHAVIOR 2013. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-407186-5.00006-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
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24
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Do fledglings choose wisely? An experimental investigation into social foraging behaviour. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2012. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-012-1426-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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25
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Furrer RD, Kunc HP, Manser MB. Variable initiators of group departure in a cooperative breeder: the influence of sex, age, state and foraging success. Anim Behav 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2012.04.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
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26
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Sakai M, Wang D, Wang K, Li S, Akamatsu T. Do porpoises choose their associates? A new method for analyzing social relationships among cetaceans. PLoS One 2011; 6:e28836. [PMID: 22216123 PMCID: PMC3244420 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0028836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2011] [Accepted: 11/16/2011] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Observing and monitoring the underwater social interactions of cetaceans is challenging. Therefore, previous cetacean studies have monitored these interactions by surface observations. However, because cetaceans spend most of their time underwater, it is important that their underwater behavior is also continuously monitored to better understand their social relationships and social structure. The finless porpoise is small and has no dorsal fin. It is difficult to observe this species in the wild, and little is known of its sociality. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS The swim depths of 6 free-ranging finless porpoises were simultaneously recorded using a time-synchronized bio-logging system. Synchronous diving was used as an index of association. Two pairs, #27 (an immature female estimated to be 3.5 years old) and #32 (an adult male), #28 (a juvenile male estimated to be 2 years old) and #29 (an adult male), tended to participate in long periods of synchronized diving more frequently than 13 other possible pairs, indicating that the 4 porpoises chose their social partners. The adult males (#32, #29) tended to follow the immature female (#27) and juvenile male (#28), respectively. However, during synchronized diving, the role of an initiator often changed within the pair, and their body movements appeared to be non-agonistic, e.g., rubbing of bodies against one another instead of that on one-side, as observed with chasing and escaping behaviors. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE The present study employed a time-synchronized bio-logging method to observe the social relationships of free-ranging aquatic animals based on swimming depth. The results suggest that certain individuals form associations even if they are not a mother and calf pair. Long synchronized dives occurred when particular members were reunited, and this suggests that the synchronized dives were not a by-product of opportunistic aggregation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mai Sakai
- Center for International Cooperation, Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
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27
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Garay J, Varga Z. Survivor’s dilemma: Defend the group or flee? Theor Popul Biol 2011; 80:217-25. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tpb.2011.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2011] [Revised: 07/10/2011] [Accepted: 08/10/2011] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Bell MBV, Nichols HJ, Gilchrist JS, Cant MA, Hodge SJ. The cost of dominance: suppressing subordinate reproduction affects the reproductive success of dominant female banded mongooses. Proc Biol Sci 2011; 279:619-24. [PMID: 21752819 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2011.1093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Social species show considerable variation in the extent to which dominant females suppress subordinate reproduction. Much of this variation may be influenced by the cost of active suppression to dominants, who may be selected to balance the need to maximize the resources available for their own offspring against the costs of interfering with subordinate reproduction. To date, the cost of reproductive suppression has received little attention, despite its potential to influence the outcome of conflict over the distribution of reproduction in social species. Here, we investigate possible costs of reproductive suppression in banded mongooses, where dominant females evict subordinates from their groups, thereby inducing subordinate abortion. We show that evicting subordinate females is associated with substantial costs to dominant females: pups born to females who evicted subordinates while pregnant were lighter than those born after undisturbed gestations; pups whose dependent period was disrupted by an eviction attained a lower weight at independence; and the proportion of a litter that survived to independence was reduced if there was an eviction during the dependent period. To our knowledge, this is the first empirical study indicating a possible cost to dominants in attempting to suppress subordinate breeding, and we argue that much of the variation in reproductive skew both within and between social species may be influenced by adaptive variation in the effort invested in suppression by dominants.
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Affiliation(s)
- M B V Bell
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK.
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Chiarati E, Canestrari D, Vila M, Vera R, Baglione V. Nepotistic access to food resources in cooperatively breeding carrion crows. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2011. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-011-1187-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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Jordan NR, Manser MB, Mwanguhya F, Kyabulima S, Rüedi P, Cant MA. Scent marking in wild banded mongooses: 1. Sex-specific scents and overmarking. Anim Behav 2011. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.07.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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32
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Cant MA, Hodge SJ, Bell MBV, Gilchrist JS, Nichols HJ. Reproductive control via eviction (but not the threat of eviction) in banded mongooses. Proc Biol Sci 2010; 277:2219-26. [PMID: 20236979 PMCID: PMC2880142 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2009.2097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Considerable research has focused on understanding variation in reproductive skew in cooperative animal societies, but the pace of theoretical development has far outstripped empirical testing of the models. One major class of model suggests that dominant individuals can use the threat of eviction to deter subordinate reproduction (the ‘restraint’ model), but this idea remains untested. Here, we use long-term behavioural and genetic data to test the assumptions of the restraint model in banded mongooses (Mungos mungo), a species in which subordinates breed regularly and evictions are common. We found that dominant females suffer reproductive costs when subordinates breed, and respond to these costs by evicting breeding subordinates from the group en masse, in agreement with the assumptions of the model. We found no evidence, however, that subordinate females exercise reproductive restraint to avoid being evicted in the first place. This means that the pattern of reproduction is not the result of a reproductive ‘transaction’ to avert the threat of eviction. We present a simple game theoretical analysis that suggests that eviction threats may often be ineffective to induce pre-emptive restraint among multiple subordinates and predicts that threats of eviction (or departure) will be much more effective in dyadic relationships and linear hierarchies. Transactional models may be more applicable to these systems. Greater focus on testing the assumptions rather than predictions of skew models can lead to a better understanding of how animals control each other's reproduction, and the extent to which behaviour is shaped by overt acts versus hidden threats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A Cant
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter in Cornwall, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 9EZ, UK.
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33
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Bell MB. Sex and age influence responses to changes in the cost of cooperative care in a social carnivore. Behav Ecol 2010. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arq124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
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Expectant parents groom adult sons according to previous alloparenting in a biparental cooperatively breeding primate. Anim Behav 2009. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.04.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
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Do meerkat (Suricata suricatta) pups exhibit strategic begging behaviour and so exploit adults that feed at relatively high rates? Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2009. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-009-0777-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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37
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Hodge SJ, Bell MB, Mwanguhya F, Kyabulima S, Waldick RC, Russell AF. Maternal weight, offspring competitive ability, and the evolution of communal breeding. Behav Ecol 2009. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arp053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
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Garay J. Cooperation in defence against a predator. J Theor Biol 2008; 257:45-51. [PMID: 19070624 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2008.11.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2008] [Revised: 11/14/2008] [Accepted: 11/14/2008] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The origin and the evolutionary stability of cooperation between unrelated individuals is one of the key problems of evolutionary biology. In this paper, a cooperative defence game against a predator is introduced which is based on Hamilton's selfish herd theory and Eshel's survival game models. Cooperation is altruistic in the sense that the individual, which is not the target of the predator, helps the members of the group attacked by the predator and during defensive action the helper individual may also die in any attack. In order to decrease the long term predation risk, this individual has to carry out a high risk action. Here I show that this kind of cooperative behaviour can evolve in small groups. The reason for the emergence of cooperation is that if the predator does not kill a mate of a cooperative individual, then the survival probability of the cooperative individual will increase in two cases. If the mate is non-cooperative, then-according to the dilution effect, the predator confusion effect and the higher predator vigilance-the survival probability of the cooperative individual increases. The second case is when the mate is cooperative, because a cooperative individual has a further gain, the active help in defence during further predator attacks. Thus, if an individual can increase the survival rate of its mates (no matter whether the mate is cooperative or not), then its own predation risk will decrease.
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Affiliation(s)
- József Garay
- Research Group of Theoretical Biology and Ecology of Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Department of Plant Taxonomy and Ecology, L. Eötvös University, Pázmány P. sétány 1/C H-1117 Budapest, Hungary.
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40
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Gilchrist JS. Aggressive monopolization of mobile carers by young of a cooperative breeder. Proc Biol Sci 2008; 275:2491-8. [PMID: 18647720 PMCID: PMC2603194 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2008.0597] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Competition between young of the same brood or litter is of particular interest in the fields of behavioural and evolutionary ecology, because the competing individuals are likely to be closely related, where evolutionary theory predicts a greater degree of cooperation. Studies of cooperative breeding species typically concentrate on who contributes care to rearing young, and assume a passive role of the young. Relatively, little attention has been devoted to considering how intralitter competition between young affects the distribution of care in cooperative breeders. In banded mongoose (Mungos mungo) groups, the majority of pups each form a stable exclusive one-to-one association with an adult group member (its 'escort') that is its principal care provider. This paper presents experimental evidence that each pup aggressively defends access to its escort, preventing other pups approaching, and therefore monopolizes the care provided by its escort. Each pup travels with the group and follows its escort, around which its exclusion zone is fixed: a form of mobile territoriality. This represents a novel system of care of young in a mammal species, but has general implications for the study of the distribution of care of young, particularly in cooperative breeding species. Parents and helpers may provide biased care to young, not due to preference but due to the competitive actions of the young within the brood or litter.
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Affiliation(s)
- J S Gilchrist
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK.
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41
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Bell MB. Receiver identity modifies begging intensity independent of need in banded mongoose (Mungos mungo) pups. Behav Ecol 2008. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arn104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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Abstract
Variation in the intensity of conspicuous displays raises three basic questions: (i) the relationship between internal state and display intensity, (ii) the relationship between display intensity and receiver response, and (iii) the effect of variation in receiver responsiveness on signaller behaviour. Here, I investigate the interaction between pups and helpers in the communally breeding banded mongoose (Mungos mungo), where each pup forms an exclusive relationship with a single adult helper (termed its 'escort'). By experimentally manipulating pup need, I demonstrate that changes in begging rate correspond to changes in short-term need. The data then suggest that escorts in good condition may be more responsive to increased begging and that pups associating with them increase their begging more than do pups paired with escorts in poor condition. Escorts also appear more responsive to increased begging by female pups, and female pups increase their begging more than do male pups. These results suggest that banded mongoose pups may strategically adjust their investment in begging in relation to variation in the expected pay-off. I argue that such adjustment is likely to be a general phenomenon: wherever there is variation in responsiveness to signals, signallers will be selected to identify different categories of receiver and adjust their signals in order to maximize the pay-offs. Therefore, differences in signal intensity may be as much a product of context as an indication of variation in individual phenotypic or genotypic state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew B V Bell
- Large Animal Research Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
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Müller CA, Manser MB. Mutual recognition of pups and providers in the cooperatively breeding banded mongoose. Anim Behav 2008. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2007.10.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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Müller CA, Manser MB. Scent-marking and intrasexual competition in a cooperative carnivore with low reproductive skew. Ethology 2008. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0310.2007.01455.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Doerr ED, Doerr VAJ. Positive effects of helpers on reproductive success in the brown treecreeper and the general importance of future benefits. J Anim Ecol 2007; 76:966-76. [PMID: 17714275 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2656.2007.01280.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
1. Numerous studies of cooperatively breeding species have tested for effects of helpers on reproductive success to evaluate hypotheses for the evolution of cooperation, but relatively few have used experimental or statistical approaches that control for the confounding effects of breeder and territory quality. 2. In the brown treecreeper Climacteris picumnus, most helpers are male offspring of the breeding pair that have delayed dispersal. We analysed 5 years of data (97 territory-years) using hierarchical linear modelling to test for effects of helpers on reproductive success while controlling for confounding factors. 3. The number of helpers was related positively to reproductive success even after controlling for differences between territories and breeders. A threshold effect was observed, with success increasing most with the presence of a second helper (i.e. at group size of four). 4. Feeding at the nest was one mechanism responsible for this effect, as larger groups had higher total feeding rates at all nesting stages. Higher total feeding rates, as well as higher feeding rates by helpers, were correlated in turn with greater reproductive success. 5. An analysis of the effects of helper feeding rate on reproductive success in groups with just one helper produced only weak support for a positive effect of helpers. Controlled comparisons of this kind utilize only a small fraction of the total data available and thus have limited statistical power compared to hierarchical or mixed-modelling. 6. A number of hypotheses to explain the evolution and maintenance of helping behaviour are consistent with our results for brown treecreepers including kin selection and hypotheses based on future direct benefits. 7. A previous synthesis of studies of helper effects that controlled for confounding factors suggested a pattern in which male helpers rarely have positive effects on reproductive success. However, revising that synthesis to include recent hierarchical or mixed-modelling studies suggests that helpers of both sexes usually have positive effects, and that the relative importance of future direct benefits may have been underestimated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik D Doerr
- Program in EEC Biology, University of Nevada-Reno, Reno, NV 89557, USA
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Hodge SJ. Counting the costs: the evolution of male-biased care in the cooperatively breeding banded mongoose. Anim Behav 2007. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2006.09.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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Gilchrist JS. Cooperative behaviour in cooperative breeders: costs, benefits, and communal breeding. Behav Processes 2007; 76:100-5. [PMID: 17716828 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2006.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2006] [Accepted: 12/12/2006] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jason S Gilchrist
- School of Life Sciences, Napier University, 10 Colinton Road, Edinburgh EH10 5DT, UK.
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Abstract
According to behavioural ecology theory, sociality evolves when the net benefits of close association with conspecifics exceed the costs. The nature and relative magnitude of the benefits and costs of sociality are expected to vary across species and habitats. When sociality is favoured, animals may form groups that range from small pair-bonded units to huge aggregations. The size and composition of social groups have diverse effects on morphology and behaviour, ranging from the extent of sexual dimorphism to brain size, and the structure of social relationships. This general argument implies that sociality has fitness consequences for individuals. However, for most mammalian species, especially long-lived animals like primates, there are sizable gaps in the chain of evidence that links sociality and social bonds to fitness outcomes. These gaps reflect the difficulty of quantifying the cumulative effects of behavioural interactions on fitness and the lack of information about the nature of social relationships among individuals in most taxa. Here, I review what is known about the reproductive consequences of sociality for mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joan B Silk
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
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Bell MBV. Cooperative Begging in Banded Mongoose Pups. Curr Biol 2007; 17:717-21. [PMID: 17412587 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2007.03.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2006] [Revised: 03/01/2007] [Accepted: 03/01/2007] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Vivid begging displays are common in species with parental care [1, 2]. They are usually seen as the way that rival offspring selfishly compete over parental investment [3], and individuals are expected to respond to the begging of rivals by increasing their own begging intensity [4, 5]. Here I show the opposite - that potential rivals gain direct benefits from begging by littermates, so that begging behavior becomes a collective enterprise, similar to other cooperative activities. I investigate begging in communally breeding banded mongooses (Mungos mungo), where each pup forms an exclusive relationship with a single helper (its "escort"), minimizing competition over food allocation. Escorts were influenced by the total signal emanating from a litter, so that pups who begged at low rates received more food as litter size increased. Focal pups increased their begging when litters were experimentally reduced or littermates were induced to beg at low rates, but they received food at similar rates and showed reduced weight gain - indicating that they were paying a higher cost for a similar reward. These results suggest that offspring can benefit from companions despite conflicts over the allocation of parental investment [6, 7]. Such benefits provide an explanation for observed variation in the expression of parent-offspring conflict.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew B V Bell
- Large Animal Research Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom.
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50
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Who cares? Individual contributions to pup care by breeders vs non-breeders in the cooperatively breeding banded mongoose (Mungos mungo). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2007. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-006-0338-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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