Dominance loss and tenure maintenance in Kalahari meerkats.

ABSTRACT: In many social species, both the acquisition of dominance and the duration that individuals maintain their status are important determinants of breeding tenure and lifetime reproductive success. However, few studies have yet examined the extent and causes of variation in dominance tenure and the duration of breeding lifespans. Here, we investigate the processes that terminate dominance tenures and examine how they differ between the sexes in wild Kalahari meerkats (Suricata suricatta), a cooperative breeder where a dominant breeding pair produces most of the young recruited into each group. Mortality and displacement by resident subordinate competitors were important forms of dominance loss for both sexes. However, dominant males (but rarely females) were also at risk of takeovers b

SUBMITTER: Duncan C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10636735 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov-Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature