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Spence-Jones, Helen C., Brehm, Allison M., Cram, Dominic 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8790-8294, Gaynor, David, Thorley, Jack, Manser, Marta B. and Clutton-Brock, Tim H.
(2021)
Deferred benefits of dominance for natal males in a cooperative breeder, the Kalahari meerkat.
Journal of Zoology, 315 (3).
pp. 236-245.
ISSN 0952-8369
Abstract
In many cooperatively breeding mammals, an unrelated dominant pair monopolizes reproduction in the social group while subordinates help to raise their offspring. In Kalahari meerkats (Suricata suricatta), dominant males are usually immigrants while dominant females are natal animals that have not left the group where they were born. However, in around 20% of cases, a natal male acquires and holds the dominant position – despite being closely related to the dominant female. Natal dominant males seldom mate within their group (either with the dominant female or with subordinate females) and the benefits they accrue from acquiring and maintaining the dominant position are not obvious. Here, we describe the circumstances in which natal males acquire dominance and explore the possible benefits they gain by comparing the life history, growth and behavioural differences between natal dominants, natal subordinates and immigrant dominants in wild groups. We show that natal dominant males do not appear to obtain any survival, nutritional or reproductive benefits from their status while they remain in the natal group. However, after dispersing from their natal group, they have a higher chance of acquiring dominant status in another breeding group, suggesting that acquiring dominance in their natal group has deferred direct fitness benefits for male meerkats.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Additional Information: | Funding information: This research is part of a project that has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programmes (grant agreement Nos. 294494 and 742808), the Human Frontier Science Program (funding reference RGP0051/2017), the University of Zurich, the Swiss National Science Foundation and the Mammal Research Institute at the University of Pretoria, South Africa. |
| Faculty \ School: | Faculty of Science > School of Biological Sciences |
| UEA Research Groups: | Faculty of Science > Research Centres > Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation |
| Related URLs: | |
| Depositing User: | LivePure Connector |
| Date Deposited: | 12 Nov 2024 16:30 |
| Last Modified: | 14 Nov 2024 09:30 |
| URI: | https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/97667 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/jzo.12918 |
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