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Dynamics and fitness benefits of male-male sociality in wild Guinea baboons (Papio papio)

dc.contributor.advisorFischer, Julia Prof. Dr.
dc.contributor.authorDal Pesco, Federica
dc.date.accessioned2020-03-06T10:41:05Z
dc.date.available2020-03-06T10:41:05Z
dc.date.issued2020-03-06
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/21.11130/00-1735-0000-0005-134F-E
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.53846/goediss-7900
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.53846/goediss-7900
dc.language.isoengde
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
dc.subject.ddc570de
dc.titleDynamics and fitness benefits of male-male sociality in wild Guinea baboons (Papio papio)de
dc.typedoctoralThesisde
dc.contributor.refereeFischer, Julia Prof. Dr.
dc.date.examination2019-04-25
dc.description.abstractengMales living in multi-male groups display a wide range of relationships with co-resident males, varying from high levels of competition, intolerance and avoidance to cooperation, affiliation and social bonds. Despite the wide diversity of male–male relationship dynamics, the existence of multi-male associations and male–male bonds is puzzling, as males compete over un-sharable fertilization. Multi-male associations can emerge as a result of increased between-group competition, which would necessitate communal defense of females. In groups characterized by stable male co-residence, social bonds are thought to develop in scenarios of medium to low within-group contest potential, which would make it feasible for males to invest in coalitionary support aimed at rank ascension. Accordingly, multi-male alliances and coalitions between strongly bonded males are linked to lower takeover likelihoods and/or enhanced male reproductive success in several mammalian species. Female choice can also play a role, with increased reproductive success for males that invest in heterosexual bonds and provide services like protection from harassment and infanticide, assistance in rearing young, and support in conflicts. In this context, male–male ritualized behaviors are crucial behavioral mechanisms that balance the trade-offs imposed by male co-residence and help regulate male–male relationships. These ritualized exchanges are hypothesized to function as a tension buffering mechanism during competitive contexts and/or as honest signals used to test relationship quality, maintain social bonds, and promote cooperation. Several findings suggest that greeting function varies from species to species and that, in some cases, this can be influenced by the level of male tolerance and cooperation.  In this thesis I investigate the dynamics and fitness benefits of male–male sociality in wild Guinea baboons by exploring the presence of strong male–male bonds along with their effect on male reproductive success and the function of ritualized greeting behavior between males. Guinea baboons live in nested multilevel societies, with several “units” forming a “party”, which regularly aggregate into “gangs”. Males engage in highly ritualized greetings with an intense repertoire involving potentially harmful behaviors like genital fondling, which may be crucial to regulating social dynamics in such large and fluid communities. The presence of male–male affiliation and cooperation, combined with the relatively high level of female leverage in intersexual relationships, make this species an intriguing model to assess how the advantages conferred by male–male sociality play out in a highly tolerant multilevel system. I examine whether number and strength of social bonds and number of associated secondary males are associated with higher average relatedness or enhanced reproductive success, using social behavior, genetic relatedness, and paternity of 24 adolescent and adult males. I also investigated the function of ritualized greetings and whether they are used to buffer tension and/ or assess relationship quality. In chapter 3, I show Guinea baboon greetings are crucial in the regulation of male social dynamics by signaling social levels and party membership. I present evidence that within-party greetings are honest affiliative signals that test relationship quality with spatially tolerant partners, while accentuating relationship strength with strongly bonded partners. All my analyses show greetings are not used to buffer tension in this tolerant social system, and describe how they are characterized by high levels of reciprocity, physical contact, and intensity. Lastly, I discuss how these findings are in sharp contrast to reports from other members of the genus Papio, which present lower levels of male tolerance and cooperation, while parallel findings are reported for other more tolerant and cooperative species. In chapter 4, I show that within-party male–male affiliative relationships are differentiated and stable over time, indicating male Guinea baboons form strong bonds. I demonstrate that strongly bonded males are more likely to support each other in coalitions and have higher average relatedness. This suggests kinship may have facilitated the development of bonds and cooperation. Interestingly though, bonds are neither restricted to kin nor does kinship guarantee stronger bonds, indicating that other mechanisms like familiarity may play a more central role in male–male sociality. I show that the distribution of reproduction at the party level is not different from chance, while primary males sire 89.5% of offspring at the unit level. Contrary to other species, all three measures of sociality are not positively linked with short-term reproductive success either through number of associated females or sired offspring. Instead, males with stronger bonds actually have significantly fewer associated females. A post-hoc analysis shows that preferred partners are stable over time, but that the proportion of time males invest in socializing with other males is negatively affected by the number of associated females. Thus, male Guinea baboons appear to face a trade-off between investing in same-sex bonds and heterosexual ones. My thesis is the first systematic analysis to demonstrate how co-resident males regulate relationships through ritualized greetings and contribute to our understanding of the dynamics and fitness benefits of male–male sociality in this multilevel and tolerant system. I contribute to the theory that ritualized behaviors and rituals developed in parallel with a transition from more aggressive social styles to more tolerant and cooperative ones. Future systematic comparative studies will be key to understanding if these patterns hold across the order Primates. While strong bonds between male Guinea baboons share characteristics with those of other primates, contrary to evidence from several species my findings show sociality need not be directly linked to increased short-term reproductive success. Investigating if and how male–male sociality confers benefits to reproduction over the long-term and advantages beyond reproductive success represent crucial steps for future research.  de
dc.contributor.coRefereeSchülke, Oliver Dr.
dc.contributor.thirdRefereeBehne, Tanya Dr.
dc.contributor.thirdRefereeOstner, Julia Prof. Dr.
dc.contributor.thirdRefereeRoos, Christian PD Dr.
dc.contributor.thirdRefereeSchacht, Annekathrin Prof. Dr.
dc.subject.engMale-male bondsde
dc.subject.engMale-male relatednessde
dc.subject.engMale-male coalitionary supportde
dc.subject.engGreeting behaviorde
dc.subject.engRitualized behaviorde
dc.subject.engPapio papiode
dc.subject.engGuinea baboonsde
dc.subject.engMultilevel societiesde
dc.subject.engMale-male affiliationde
dc.subject.engMale-male cooperationde
dc.subject.engReproductive skewde
dc.subject.engMale reproductive successde
dc.identifier.urnurn:nbn:de:gbv:7-21.11130/00-1735-0000-0005-134F-E-7
dc.affiliation.instituteBiologische Fakultät für Biologie und Psychologiede
dc.subject.gokfullBiologie (PPN619462639)de
dc.identifier.ppn1691860158


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