Assessing Variance in Male Reproductive Skew Based on Long-Term Data in Free-Ranging Rhesus Macaques.

ABSTRACT: The unequal share in male reproduction (male reproductive skew) has been reported across primate species. To explain the distribution of male reproduction within groups various skew models have been applied to primates, however the "dynamic tug-of-war" model first accounted for the specifics of primate sociality. This model assumes that an increase in the number of competing males, a high degree of female cycle synchrony and their interaction will result in a lower degree of male reproductive skew. Here, we first tested the predictors of this model in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) using long-term demographic and genetic data (up to 9 groups over 22 seasons) of the Cayo Santiago population (Puerto Rico). We also tested an extended version including group size and sex ratio and their inte

SUBMITTER: Widdig A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11792436 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature