Group traits moderate the relationship between individual social traits and fitness in gorillas.

ABSTRACT: Evidence across a broad range of disciplines has demonstrated how individuals' social environments can impact their health, lifespan, reproduction, and ultimately their evolutionary fitness. Past research has primarily focused on either traits specific to individuals or wider traits of social groups, linking these with a component of fitness. In this study, we examined how both individual- and group-level social traits in 164 wild mountain gorillas combine to influence multiple pathways impacting fitness over 21 y. First, we highlight key sex differences in the costs and benefits of social bonds, with strong and stable social bonds linked with lower risk of illness in females, but higher risk of illness in males. Second, we demonstrate important trade-offs in the fitness consequences of so

SUBMITTER: Morrison RE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12107160 | biostudies-literature | 2025 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature