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Cooperation, control, and concession in meerkat groups.

T H Clutton-Brock¹, P N Brotherton, A F Russell

¹Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK. thcb@hermes.cam.ac.uk

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|February 13, 2001

Summary

Reproductive skew in cooperative meerkat societies is driven by power struggles, not by dominant females allowing subordinate breeding to retain help. This supports limited control models over optimal skew theories.

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Area of Science:

Behavioral Ecology
Evolutionary Biology
Animal Social Behavior

Background:

Reproductive skew theories explain how breeding is divided in cooperative groups.
Limited control models propose subordinate reproduction results from power struggles.
Optimal skew models suggest dominants control subordinate reproduction to retain helpers.

Purpose of the Study:

To test predictions of limited control versus optimal skew models in a wild cooperative meerkat (Suricata suricatta) population.
To investigate the role of power dynamics in determining subordinate reproductive opportunities.

Main Methods:

Conducted a 7-year field study on a cooperative meerkat population.
Observed and analyzed breeding frequencies and social interactions.
Assessed the relationship between dominant-subordinate interactions and subordinate reproduction.

Main Results:

Findings support the predictions of limited control models.
Subordinate breeding frequency was linked to power struggles, not concessions from dominants.
No evidence was found for dominant females strategically allowing subordinate reproduction to secure future assistance.

Conclusions:

Reproductive skew in meerkats is better explained by limited control dynamics.
Dominant meerkats do not appear to grant reproductive concessions to retain subordinate help.
The study highlights the importance of intra-group conflict in shaping reproductive strategies in cooperative species.