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Life-history and genetic relationships in cooperatively breeding dwarf mongoose groups
Hazel Nichols 
Royal Society Open Science
Swansea University Author:
Hazel Nichols
Abstract
Cooperatively breeding societies show distinct interspecific variation in social andgenetic organisation. Long-term studies provide invaluable data to further ourunderstanding of the evolution and maintenance of cooperative breeding but have alsodemonstrated how variation exists within species. Here...
| Published in: | Royal Society Open Science |
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| Published: |
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa67714 |
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| Abstract: |
Cooperatively breeding societies show distinct interspecific variation in social andgenetic organisation. Long-term studies provide invaluable data to further ourunderstanding of the evolution and maintenance of cooperative breeding but have alsodemonstrated how variation exists within species. Here we integrate life-history,behavioural and genetic data from a long-term study of dwarf mongooses Helogaleparvula in South Africa to document mating, breeding, dispersal and relatedness patternsin this population and compare them to those found in a Tanzanian population at theother extreme of the species’ range. Our genetic data reveal high levels of reproductiveskew, above that expected through observational data. Dispersal was male-biased andwas seen more frequently towards the onset of the breeding season, but females alsoregularly switched between groups. These patterns of breeding and dispersal resulted ina genetically structured population: individuals were more related to groupmates thanoutsiders, apart from the unrelated dominant pair, ultimately resulting in reducedinbreeding risk. Our results also demonstrate that dwarf mongooses are largelyconsistent in their social structure across their sub-Saharan distribution. This workdemonstrates the direct and indirect pathways to reproductive success for dwarfmongooses and helps to explain the maintenance of cooperative breeding in the species. |
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| College: |
Faculty of Science and Engineering |
| Funders: |
The Dwarf Mongoose Research Project was supported by grants from the European Research Council (682253) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NE/W00545X/1) awarded to ANR. |