Modeling the origins of mammalian sociality: moderate evidence for matrilineal signatures in mouse lemur vocalizations.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Maternal kin selection is a driving force in the evolution of mammalian social complexity and it requires that kin are distinctive from nonkin. The transition from the ancestral state of asociality to the derived state of complex social groups is thought to have occurred via solitary foraging, in which individuals forage alone, but, unlike the asocial ancestors, maintain dispersed social networks via scent-marks and vocalizations. We hypothesize that matrilineal signatures in vocalizations were an important part of these networks. We used the solitary foraging gray mouse lemur (Microcebus murinus) as a model for ancestral solitary foragers and tested for matrilineal signatures in their calls, thus investigating whether such signatures are already present in solitary fo

SUBMITTER: Kessler SE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3936920 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature