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Ben Mocha Y, Scemama de Gialluly S, Griesser M, Markman S. What is cooperative breeding in mammals and birds? Removing definitional barriers for comparative research. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2023; 98:1845-1861. [PMID: 37332253 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2022] [Revised: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/20/2023]
Abstract
Cooperative breeding (i.e. when alloparents care for the offspring of other group members) has been studied for nearly a century. Yet, inconsistent definitions of this breeding system still hamper comparative research. Here, we identify two major inconsistencies, discuss their consequences and propose a way forward. First, some researchers restrict the term 'cooperative breeding' to species with non-breeding alloparents. We show that such restrictive definitions lack distinct quantitative criteria to define non-breeding alloparents. This ambiguity, we argue, reflects the reproductive-sharing continuum among cooperatively breeding species. We therefore suggest that cooperative breeding should not be restricted to the few species with extreme reproductive skew and should be defined independent of the reproductive status of alloparents. Second, definitions rarely specify the type, extent and prevalence of alloparental care required to classify species as cooperative breeders. We thus analysed published data to propose qualitative and quantitative criteria for alloparental care. We conclude by proposing the following operational definition: cooperative breeding is a reproductive system where >5% of broods/litters in at least one population receive species-typical parental care and conspecifics provide proactive alloparental care that fulfils >5% of at least one type of the offspring's needs. This operational definition is designed to increase comparability across species and disciplines while allowing to study the intriguing phenomenon of cooperative breeding as a behaviour with multiple dimensions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yitzchak Ben Mocha
- Department of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology, University of Haifa, Haifa, 3498838, Israel
- Department of Biology and Environment, University of Haifa at Oranim, Tivon, 36006, Israel
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany
- Center for the Advanced Study of Collective Behavior, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany
| | | | - Michael Griesser
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany
- Center for the Advanced Study of Collective Behavior, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany
- Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, Universitätsstrasse 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany
| | - Shai Markman
- Department of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology, University of Haifa, Haifa, 3498838, Israel
- Department of Biology and Environment, University of Haifa at Oranim, Tivon, 36006, Israel
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Ben Mocha Y, Dahan T, Zou Y, Griesser M, Markman S. Evidence for a reproductive sharing continuum in cooperatively breeding mammals and birds: consequences for comparative research. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230607. [PMID: 37700641 PMCID: PMC10498043 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Extreme reproductive skew occurs when a dominant female/male almost monopolizes reproduction within a group of multiple sexually mature females/males, respectively. It is sometimes considered an additional, restrictive criterion to define cooperative breeding. However, datasets that use this restrictive definition to classify species as cooperative breeders systematically overestimate reproductive skew by including groups in which reproduction cannot be shared by definition (e.g. groups with a single female/male). Here, we review the extent of reproductive sharing in 41 mammal and 37 bird species previously classified as exhibiting alloparental care and extreme reproductive skew, while only considering multi-female or multi-male groups. We demonstrate that in groups where unequal reproduction sharing is possible, extreme reproductive skew occurs in a few species only (11/41 mammal species and 12/37 bird species). These results call for significant changes in datasets that classify species' caring and mating system. To facilitate these changes, we provide an updated dataset on reproductive sharing in 63 cooperatively breeding species. At the conceptual level, our findings suggest that reproductive skew should not be a defining criterion of cooperative breeding and support the definition of cooperative breeding as a care system in which alloparents provide systematic care to other group members' offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yitzchak Ben Mocha
- Department of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology, University of Haifa, 3498838 Haifa, Israel
- Department of Biology and Environment, University of Haifa at Oranim, 36006 Tivon, Israel
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Center for the Advanced Study of Collective Behavior, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Tal Dahan
- Department of Biology and Environment, University of Haifa at Oranim, 36006 Tivon, Israel
| | - Yuqi Zou
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Michael Griesser
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Center for the Advanced Study of Collective Behavior, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
- Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Shai Markman
- Department of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology, University of Haifa, 3498838 Haifa, Israel
- Department of Biology and Environment, University of Haifa at Oranim, 36006 Tivon, Israel
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Kings M, Arbon JJ, McIvor GE, Whitaker M, Radford AN, Lerner J, Thornton A. Wild jackdaws can selectively adjust their social associations while preserving valuable long-term relationships. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5103. [PMID: 37696804 PMCID: PMC10495349 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40808-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 09/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Influential theories of the evolution of cognition and cooperation posit that tracking information about others allows individuals to adjust their social associations strategically, re-shaping social networks to favour connections between compatible partners. Crucially, to our knowledge, this has yet to be tested experimentally in natural populations, where the need to maintain long-term, fitness-enhancing relationships may limit social plasticity. Using a social-network-manipulation experiment, we show that wild jackdaws (Corvus monedula) learned to favour social associations with compatible group members (individuals that provided greater returns from social foraging interactions), but resultant change in network structure was constrained by the preservation of valuable pre-existing relationships. Our findings provide insights into the cognitive basis of social plasticity and the interplay between individual decision-making and social-network structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Kings
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK.
| | - Josh J Arbon
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK.
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK.
| | - Guillam E McIvor
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Martin Whitaker
- technologywithin, Chevron Business Park, Limekiln Lane, Holbury, Southampton, SO45 2QL, UK
| | - Andrew N Radford
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, 24 Tyndall Avenue, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Jürgen Lerner
- Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Konstanz, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
- HumTec Institute, RWTH Aachen University, 52062, Aachen, Germany
| | - Alex Thornton
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK.
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Covas R, Lardy S, Silva LR, Rey B, Ferreira AC, Theron F, Tognetti A, Faivre B, Doutrelant C. The oxidative cost of helping and its minimization in a cooperative breeder. Behav Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arab152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Cooperative actions are beneficial to the group, but presumably costly to the individual co-operators. In cooperatively breeding species, helping to raise young is thought to involve important energetic costs, which could lead to elevated exposure to reactive oxygen species, resulting in oxidative stress. However, identifying such costs can be difficult if individuals adjust their investment in helping in relation to environmental conditions or their own physiological condition. Experimental approaches are therefore required to quantify the costs of helping but, to date, these have been infrequent. Here, we combined correlational and experimental data to investigate the oxidative cost of helping-at-the-nest and how this affects helping decisions in wild sociable weavers Philetairus socius, a colonial cooperatively breeding bird. At the correlational level, we found that the probability of helping was influenced by the interaction of an individual’s oxidative state and age: compared to younger birds, older individuals were more likely to help when they had higher oxidative damage, and the opposite trend was found for younger individuals. After experimentally increasing the energetic cost of flight, manipulated helpers in breeding colonies decreased nestling feeding rates and incurred an increase in oxidative damage, which was not present in manipulated helpers in non-breeding colonies. This indicates that individuals decreased their helping behavior to minimize the associated costs. These results suggest that oxidative stress can influence helping decisions and underlie a trade-off between cooperation and self-maintenance, which is central to understanding when helping might take place in this and other species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Covas
- CIBIO-InBio, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Laboratório Associado, University of Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
| | - Sophie Lardy
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
- Biogéosciences, CNRS UMR 6282, Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté, 6 Bd Gabriel, 21000 Dijon, France
| | - Liliana R Silva
- CIBIO-InBio, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Laboratório Associado, University of Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
| | - Benjamin Rey
- Université de Lyon, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, UMR5558, F-69000 Villeurbanne, France
| | - André C Ferreira
- CIBIO-InBio, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Laboratório Associado, University of Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Univ Paul-Valery Montpellier 3, Montpellier, France
| | - Franck Theron
- CIBIO-InBio, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Laboratório Associado, University of Porto, Campus Agrário de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Univ Paul-Valery Montpellier 3, Montpellier, France
| | - Arnaud Tognetti
- Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, 1, esplanade de l’Université, 31080 Toulouse Cedex 06, France
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Bruno Faivre
- Biogéosciences, CNRS UMR 6282, Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté, 6 Bd Gabriel, 21000 Dijon, France
| | - Claire Doutrelant
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
- Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Univ Paul-Valery Montpellier 3, Montpellier, France
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Group size, partner choice and collaborative actions in male Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus). Anim Cogn 2021; 25:179-193. [PMID: 34363532 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-021-01541-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 07/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Due to the diversity of the phenomenon, dolphin cooperation has attracted considerable research interest in both wild populations and those under human care. Dolphins cooperate in various contexts, including group hunting, alloparental care, social learning, social play and alliance formation for securing mates. This investigation focused on the effect of group size and partner choice in a cooperative task using systematic group testing. A cooperative enrichment device was made of a PVC tube containing fish and ice that was temporarily sealed with two PVC caps with rope handles attached. The device was designed to be operated by pairs of dolphins, opened by simultaneous pull of its two handles. The analysis focused on two behaviours, cooperative opening and cooperative play with the device. Testing focused on an adult male dolphin group including four to six individuals and using a single or two devices. Altogether five group testing arrangements and a pairwise testing phase were conducted. Out of the six dolphins, five showed active involvement. All ten possible pairs of the five active dolphins were successful in opening and playing with the device cooperatively. Cooperation increased with group size, but the social networks showed no significant differences among group arrangements. However, the cooperative pairs showed a significant difference in success rate during pairwise vs group testing, while demonstrating a strong partner preference. This study provides the first evidence for partner choice with regards to cooperation in male dolphins.
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Are free-ranging Kune Kune pigs (Sus scrofa domesticus) able to solve a cooperative task? Appl Anim Behav Sci 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2021.105340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Gokcekus S, Cole EF, Sheldon BC, Firth JA. Exploring the causes and consequences of cooperative behaviour in wild animal populations using a social network approach. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2021; 96:2355-2372. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2020] [Revised: 05/25/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Samin Gokcekus
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute University of Oxford 11a Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3SZ U.K
| | - Ella F. Cole
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute University of Oxford 11a Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3SZ U.K
| | - Ben C. Sheldon
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute University of Oxford 11a Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3SZ U.K
| | - Josh A. Firth
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute University of Oxford 11a Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3SZ U.K
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Schwing R, Reuillon L, Conrad M, Noë R, Huber L. Paying attention pays off: Kea improve in loose‐string cooperation by attending to partner. Ethology 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Raoul Schwing
- Comparative Cognition Unit Messerli Research Institute University of Veterinary Medicine Medical University Vienna University of Vienna Vienna Austria
- Haidlhof Research Station University of Veterinary Medicine University of Vienna Bad Vöslau Austria
- University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Austria
| | - Laurine Reuillon
- Haidlhof Research Station University of Veterinary Medicine University of Vienna Bad Vöslau Austria
- Psychologie University of Strasbourg Strasbourg France
| | - Mareike Conrad
- Haidlhof Research Station University of Veterinary Medicine University of Vienna Bad Vöslau Austria
- University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Austria
| | - Ronald Noë
- Psychologie University of Strasbourg Strasbourg France
| | - Ludwig Huber
- Comparative Cognition Unit Messerli Research Institute University of Veterinary Medicine Medical University Vienna University of Vienna Vienna Austria
- Haidlhof Research Station University of Veterinary Medicine University of Vienna Bad Vöslau Austria
- University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna Austria
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