Primate model offers insights into male bonding in complex societies

Grueter, Cyril C.

doi:10.1073/pnas.1416140111

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…These species include yellow baboons ( Papio cynocephalus ), chacma baboons ( Papio ursinus ), and olive baboons ( Papio anubis ). Savannah baboons live in large, cohesive, multimale, multifemale, and female-bonded groups where the males tend to disperse out of their natal group and the females are philopatric [ 19 ]. Savannah baboons inhabit mosaic savannah and woodland environments like the Pleistocene environments where our genus emerged [ 2 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Yet Another Non-Unique Human Behaviour: Leave-Taking in Wild Chacma Baboons (Papio ursinus)

Baehren

Carvalho

2022

Animals

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Leave taking is a common, possibly universal, feature of human social behaviour that has undergone very little empirical research. Although the importance remains unknown, it has been suggested to play an important role in managing separations, mitigating the risk, and increasing social bonding beyond the interaction itself. In nonhuman species, the literature is virtually absent, but identifying leave taking beyond humans may provide unique insights into the evolutionary history of this behaviour and shed light onto its proximate and ultimate function(s). Methods to study leave taking are not well-established, and the variation in definitions, measures, and control variables presented in past studies poses additional challenges. Baboons are a valuable model for investigating human behavioural evolution: as a flexible, highly adaptable, and social primate whose radiation is, similarly to humans, associated with the emergence of the African savannah biome. Using the framework and definition proposed by Baehren, we investigated the presence of leave taking in a wild, generalist primate and tested a range of candidate behaviours on prerecorded video footage: (1) self-scratching, (2) eye gaze, and (3) orientation in the direction of parting. Using multivariate analysis, controlling for interaction duration and individual variation, our results show that orientation in the direction of parting occurs predominantly before social separation events. These results indicate evidence of leave taking in a wild nonhuman population and contrast with previous ideas that this is a uniquely human behaviour. The presence of leave taking in baboons suggests a deep evolutionary history of this behaviour, warranting further investigation into its function and presence across other nonhuman primate species.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Yet Another Non-Unique Human Behaviour: Leave-Taking in Wild Chacma Baboons (Papio ursinus)

Baehren

Carvalho

2022

Animals

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“…Our work has identified the dynamics of AMU cohesion and affiliation during mating and non‐mating periods. Given the strength and ubiquity of male–male bonds in several primate species, including human societies past and present (Bailey & Aunger, ; Foley, ; Grueter, ; Rodseth & Novak, ) studying the dynamics of social interactions of bachelor males in non‐human primates provides a comparative framework for assessing the costs and benefits of male intrasexual social alliances and cooperation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Male–male relationships in primates and other group‐living mammals span the spectrum from antagonism (Clutton‐Brock, Guinness, & Albon, ; Drews, ) to tolerance and bonding (Grueter, ; Ostner & Schülke, ). This variability is partly contextual and likely related to factors such as kinship, familiarity, and species‐specific differences in the ability of males to form long‐term same‐sex social bonds (van Hooff, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal changes in social cohesion among males in a same‐sex primate group

Zhu

Grueter

Garber

et al. 2018

American J Primatol

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Male-male interactions in mixed-sex groups of social mammals are typically characterized by a mix of hostility and affiliation, as a result of inherent conflicts over mating opportunities, and the costs and benefits of social alliances, co-operative behaviors, and coalitionary defense. In species of nonhuman primates that form all-male groups, it is still unclear how the tradeoffs between the benefits of forming an all-male group and the cost of male-male competition in seeking mating opportunities with females in bisexual groups influence social cohesion in different seasons. Here, we used social network analysis to quantify the impact of reproductive seasonality on social cohesion and clique size of bachelor males residing in an all-male unit (AMU) in wild black-and-white snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus bieti). These primates are strict seasonal breeders and live in a modular social system composed of a number of one-male units (OMUs) and an associated peripheral AMU. We found that the AMU social network had a significantly lower density, centralization, clustering coefficient, and smaller clique size during the mating season compared to the non-mating period. However, aggression among AMU males during both mating and non-mating periods was low. Our results suggest that network structure topology in male same-sex social units is modulated by seasonal changes. Bachelor males engage in two types of competition to gain reproductive success: first, which is analogous to contest competition, in which bachelor males act aggressively and challenge OMU leader males in an attempt to take over an OMU; and second, which is more analogous to scramble competition, in which bachelor males avoid aggressive interactions and instead engage in sneaky copulations with fertile females. Our work adds to an understanding of the maintenance of all-male groups in species that form a multilevel society.

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“…Savannah baboons are so-called because of similar ecology and social organization patterns (Smuts et al, 2008), including yellow baboons (Papio cynocephalus), chacma baboons (Papio ursinus), and olive baboons (Papio anubis). These species exist in large, femalebonded groups where the males disperse out of their natal group, whereas females are philopatric (Grueter, 2014). With similar environments to our Pleistocene environments, the savannah and woodland backdrop of savannah baboons are important for understanding the emergence of our genus.…”

Section: Baboon Models For Leave-takingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conceptual Archaeology of a Temporal Place: Albert and Kessler (1976) Applied to Chacma Baboons (Papio ursinus)

Baehren,

Carvalho,

Carvalho

et al. 2024

Journal of Social Sciences

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Although leave-taking in non-human species has been preliminarily investigated in a few species, the mechanisms driving encounter ends remain unstudied. In 1976 Albert and Kessler published a landmark paper, outlining theories about what drives social encounter ends and providing a framework of internal and external motivations leading to separation. This framework has been underused in aiding our understanding of how proximate mechanisms for separation drive leave-taking and offers a valuable opportunity to better understand how separation and behavior relate to one another. Having previously identified leave-taking in wild chacma baboons (Papio ursinus), in the current paper, we apply this framework to their leave-taking to better understand how the motivations to leave impact leave-taking. Using GLMMs with binomial error structure, our results suggest that internal motivations to end interactions are better predictors of orientation-shifting behavior when compared to external motivations. We argue that these results validate the use of Albert and Kessler's framework across species and suggest that leave-taking may have evolved to signal internal drivers of interaction ends, a behavior that has become elaborated in human behavior.

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Primate model offers insights into male bonding in complex societies

Cited by 4 publications

References 16 publications

Yet Another Non-Unique Human Behaviour: Leave-Taking in Wild Chacma Baboons (Papio ursinus)

Yet Another Non-Unique Human Behaviour: Leave-Taking in Wild Chacma Baboons (Papio ursinus)

Seasonal changes in social cohesion among males in a same‐sex primate group

Conceptual Archaeology of a Temporal Place: Albert and Kessler (1976) Applied to Chacma Baboons (Papio ursinus)

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