Group-level signatures in bonobo sociality.

ABSTRACT: Humans show remarkable differences in social behaviour between families, groups, communities and cultures, whereas such group-level within-species variation in socio-behavioural propensities is typically overlooked in other species. Studies on intraspecific variation in animal social structures are needed to inform an evolutionary account of human sociality. Here, we study multiple independent bonobo populations (n = 6) in zoological settings to investigate if and how bonobos (n = 70) show group-specific signatures in sociality. By applying tailored Bayesian statistical methods, we find that beyond individual and dyadic variation, the groups substantially differ from each other in core dimensions of great ape sociality: social proximity, grooming and play. Moreover, the group

SUBMITTER: van Leeuwen EJC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11660378 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature