Fission-fusion dynamics in the social networks of a North American pitviper.

ABSTRACT: Many animal species exist in fission-fusion societies, where the size and composition of conspecific groups change spatially and temporally. To help investigate such phenomena, social network analysis (SNA) has emerged as a powerful conceptual and analytical framework for assessing patterns of interconnectedness and quantifying group-level interactions. We leveraged behavioral observations via radiotelemetry and genotypic data from a long-term (>10 years) study on the pitviper Crotalus atrox (western diamondback rattlesnake) and used SNA to quantify the first robust demonstration of social network structures for any free-living snake. Group-level interactions among adults in this population resulted in structurally modular networks (i.e., distinct clusters of interacting individuals

SUBMITTER: Tetzlaff SJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10405236 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature