Quantifying uncertainty due to fission-fusion dynamics as a component of social complexity.

ABSTRACT: Groups of animals (including humans) may show flexible grouping patterns, in which temporary aggregations or subgroups come together and split, changing composition over short temporal scales, (i.e. fission and fusion). A high degree of fission-fusion dynamics may constrain the regulation of social relationships, introducing uncertainty in interactions between group members. Here we use Shannon's entropy to quantify the predictability of subgroup composition for three species known to differ in the way their subgroups come together and split over time: spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi), chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and geladas (Theropithecus gelada). We formulate a random expectation of entropy that considers subgroup size variation and sample size, against which the

SUBMITTER: Ramos-Fernandez G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5998110 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature