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Smith JE, Jaeggi AV, Holmes RK, Silk JB. Sex differences in cooperative coalitions: a mammalian perspective. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20210426. [PMID: 36440559 PMCID: PMC9703251 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
In group-living species, cooperative tactics can offset asymmetries in resource-holding potential between individuals and alter the outcome of intragroup conflicts. Differences in the kinds of competitive pressures that males and females face might influence the benefits they gain from forming intragroup coalitions. We predicted that there would be a female bias in intragroup coalitions because females (1) are more like to live with kin than males are, and (2) compete over resources that are more readily shared than resources males compete over. We tested this main prediction using information about coalition formation across mammalian species and phylogenetic comparative analyses. We found that for nearly all species in which intragroup coalitions occur, members of both sexes participate, making this the typical mammalian pattern. The presence and frequency of female or male coalitions were not strongly associated with key socio-ecological factors like resource defensibility, sexual dimorphism or philopatry. This suggests that once the ability to form intragroup coalitions emerges in one sex, it is likely to emerge in the other sex as well and that there is no strong phylogenetic legacy of sex differences in this form of cooperation. This article is part of the theme issue 'Cooperation among women: evolutionary and cross-cultural perspectives'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer E. Smith
- Biology Department, University of Wisconsin Eau Claire, 105 Garfield Avenue, Eau Claire, WI 54702, USA
- Biology Department, Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Boulevard, Oakland, CA 94631, USA
| | - Adrian V. Jaeggi
- Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - Rose K. Holmes
- Biology Department, University of Wisconsin Eau Claire, 105 Garfield Avenue, Eau Claire, WI 54702, USA
| | - Joan B. Silk
- School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Institute of Human Origins, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-2402, USA
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2
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Social behaviors elevate predation risk in fiddler crabs: quantitative evidence from field observations. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-022-03268-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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3
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Social Structure. Anim Behav 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-82879-0_14] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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4
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McCullough EL, Chou CC, Backwell PRY. Cost of an elaborate trait: a trade-off between attracting females and maintaining a clean ornament. Behav Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/araa072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Many sexually selected ornaments and weapons are elaborations of an animal’s outer body surface, including long feathers, colorful skin, and rigid outgrowths. The time and energy required to keep these traits clean, attractive, and in good condition for signaling may represent an important but understudied cost of bearing a sexually selected trait. Male fiddler crabs possess an enlarged and brightly colored claw that is used both as a weapon to fight with rival males and also as an ornament to court females. Here, we demonstrate that males benefit from grooming because females prefer males with clean claws over dirty claws but also that the time spent grooming detracts from the amount of time available for courting females. Males, therefore, face a temporal trade-off between attracting the attention of females and maintaining a clean claw. Our study provides rare evidence of the importance of grooming for mediating sexual interactions in an invertebrate, indicating that sexual selection has likely shaped the evolution of self-maintenance behaviors across a broad range of taxa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin L McCullough
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, 46 Sullivans Creek Road, The Australian National University, Acton, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Chun-Chia Chou
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, 46 Sullivans Creek Road, The Australian National University, Acton, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Patricia R Y Backwell
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, 46 Sullivans Creek Road, The Australian National University, Acton, ACT 2601, Australia
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Tina FW, Muramatsu D. Size‐dependent mating preference of the male fiddler crab Austruca perplexa. Ethology 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.12961] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Fahmida Wazed Tina
- Faculty of Science and Technology Nakhon Si Thammarat Rajabhat University Nakhon Si Thammarat Thailand
| | - Daisuke Muramatsu
- Center for Natural Environment Education Nara University of Education Nara Japan
- Wildlife Research Center of Kyoto University Kyoto Japan
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6
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Lehtonen TK. Aggression towards shared enemies by heterospecific and conspecific cichlid fish neighbours. Oecologia 2019; 191:359-368. [PMID: 31473811 PMCID: PMC6763407 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-019-04483-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2018] [Accepted: 08/05/2019] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Successful territory defence is a prerequisite for reproduction across many taxa, and often highly sensitive to the actions of territorial neighbours. Nevertheless, to date, assessments of the significance of the behaviour of heterospecific neighbours have been infrequent and taxonomically restricted. In this field study, I examined the importance of both heterospecific and conspecific neighbours in a biparental fish, the convict cichlid, Amatitlania siquia. This was done by assessing the colonisation rates of vacant territories, the rates of aggression by the territory holders, and the overall rates of aggression towards intruders, in treatments that controlled the proximity of both neighbour types. Convict cichlid pairs colonised vacant nesting resources (territory locations) at similar rates independent of the proximity of heterospecific (moga, Hypsophrys nicaraguensis) or conspecific neighbours. However, a model of sympatric cichlid intruder was subjected to considerably higher overall levels of aggression when mogas were nearby. In contrast, the proximity of conspecifics did not have a significant effect on the overall aggression towards the intruder. These results suggest that previously demonstrated higher survival of convict cichlid broods in close proximity of mogas may be driven by aggression towards shared enemies. No conclusive evidence was found regarding whether mogas also influence convict cichlids' investment into anti-intruder aggression: the results show a marginally non-significant trend, and a moderately large effect size, to the direction of a lower investment in mogas', but not conspecifics', proximity. More generally, heterospecific neighbours may provide protective benefits in a wider range of ecological settings than commonly considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Topi K Lehtonen
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, Faculty of Science, University of Oulu, Post Box 8000, 90014, Oulu, Finland.
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Monash, VIC, 3800, Australia.
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Schweinfurth MK, Aeschbacher J, Santi M, Taborsky M. Male Norway rats cooperate according to direct but not generalized reciprocity rules. Anim Behav 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.03.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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8
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The importance of strength and stamina varies with ownership status in sand fiddler crab contests for breeding burrows. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-019-2635-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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De Grande FR, Cannicci S, Costa TM. Can fiddler crabs detect underwater predators? A laboratory test with Leptuca thayeri. ETHOL ECOL EVOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/03949370.2018.1503196] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Fernando Rafael De Grande
- Postgraduate Program in Biological Sciences (Zoology), Botucatu Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University – UNESP, 18618-000 Botucatu, SP, Brazil
| | - Stefano Cannicci
- The Swire Institute of Marine Science and School of Biological Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR
- Department of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (Florence), Italy
| | - Tânia Marcia Costa
- Postgraduate Program in Biological Sciences (Zoology), Botucatu Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University – UNESP, 18618-000 Botucatu, SP, Brazil
- Laboratory of Ecology and Animal Behavior, Coastal Campus, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University – UNESP, 11330-900 São Vicente, SP, Brazil
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Backwell PRY. Synchronous waving in fiddler crabs: a review. Curr Zool 2018; 65:83-88. [PMID: 30697243 PMCID: PMC6347057 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoy053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2018] [Accepted: 06/28/2018] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Many animals that use acoustic communication synchronize their mate attraction signals: individuals precisely time their calls to overlap those of their neighbors. In contrast, synchrony in the mate attraction displays of species with visual/motion-based signals is rare. It has only been documented in five species of fiddler crabs. In all of them, small groups of males wave their single large claw in close synchrony. Here, I review what we know about synchrony in fiddler crabs, comparing the five species with each other to determine whether similar mechanisms and functions are common to all. I also propose future research questions that, if answered, would shed light on synchronous behavior in both visual and acoustic signallers.
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Wong BBM, Lehtonen TK, Lindström K. Spatial and temporal patterns of nest distribution influence sexual selection in a marine fish. OIKOS 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.05058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bob B. M. Wong
- School of Biological Sciences Monash Univ. Victoria Australia
- Dept of Biosciences Univ. of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
| | - Topi K. Lehtonen
- School of Biological Sciences Monash Univ. Victoria Australia
- Dept of Biosciences Univ. of Helsinki Helsinki Finland
| | - Kai Lindström
- Environmental and Marine Biology Åbo Akademi Univ. FI–20520 Turku Finland
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Acker P, Besnard A, Monnat JY, Cam E. Breeding habitat selection across spatial scales: is grass always greener on the other side? Ecology 2017; 98:2684-2697. [PMID: 28746975 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.1962] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2016] [Revised: 04/17/2017] [Accepted: 07/10/2017] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Habitat selection theory predicts that natural selection should favor mechanisms allowing individuals to choose habitats associated with the highest fitness prospects. However, identifying sources of information on habitat quality that individuals use to choose their breeding habitat has proved to be difficult. It has also proven difficult to identify dispersal costs that prevent individuals from joining the highest-quality sites. A synthesis that integrates dispersal costs and habitat selection mechanisms across space has remained elusive. Because costs of dispersal are generally distance-dependent, we suggest that a habitat selection strategy of sequential proximity search (SPS) can be favored by natural selection. This strategy requires that animals make decisions at multiple scales: whether to stay or leave the previous breeding site, depending on reproductive success; then, if dispersal is chosen, use information on neighborhood habitat quality to decide whether to stay in the neighborhood or leave, expanding the search area until the nearest suitable site is chosen. SPS minimizes distance-dependent dispersal costs while maximizing benefits of gaining a better habitat. We found evidence of breeding dispersal behavior consistent with this strategy in a kittiwake population stratified into a spatial hierarchy from colonies to nest sites. We used a mixed sequential regression model to study dispersal decisions, indexed by breeding dispersal movement, of 2,558 individuals over 32 yr. Scale-dependent dispersal propensities of kittiwakes varied according to breeding status, breeding experience, sex and individual identity. We suggest that distance-dependent dispersal costs result from strong competition among kittiwakes for nest sites. Individual decisions regarding dispersal (whether to leave or not, and where to go) depend on nesting habitat quality as well as the competitive ability required to keep territory ownership in a previous site, or to acquire a new site; this ability varies according to distance between sites and individual characteristics. Additional studies are needed to establish the generality of SPS in habitat selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Acker
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique (EDB), UMR 5174, Université Paul Sabatier - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) - Ecole Nationale de Formation Agronomique (ENFA), 118 Route de Narbonne, Toulouse, F-31062, France.,EPHE, PSL Research University, CNRS, UM, SupAgro, IRD, INRA, UMR 5175 CEFE, Montpellier, F-34293, France
| | - Aurélien Besnard
- EPHE, PSL Research University, CNRS, UM, SupAgro, IRD, INRA, UMR 5175 CEFE, Montpellier, F-34293, France
| | | | - Emmanuelle Cam
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique (EDB), UMR 5174, Université Paul Sabatier - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) - Ecole Nationale de Formation Agronomique (ENFA), 118 Route de Narbonne, Toulouse, F-31062, France
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Rorato AC, Araujo SB, Perez DM, Pie MR. Social cues affect synchronization of male waving displays in a fiddler crab (Crustacea: Ocypodidae). Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.02.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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14
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Weitekamp CA, Hofmann HA. Neuromolecular correlates of cooperation and conflict during territory defense in a cichlid fish. Horm Behav 2017; 89:145-156. [PMID: 28108326 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2016] [Revised: 01/03/2017] [Accepted: 01/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Cooperative behavior is widespread among animals, yet the neural mechanisms have not been studied in detail. We examined cooperative territory defense behavior and associated neural activity in candidate forebrain regions in the cichlid fish, Astatotilapia burtoni. We find that a territorial male neighbor will engage in territory defense dependent on the perceived threat of the intruder. The resident male, on the other hand, engages in defense based on the size and behavior of his partner, the neighbor. In the neighbor, we find that an index of engagement correlates with neural activity in the putative homolog of the mammalian basolateral amygdala and in the preoptic area, as well as in preoptic dopaminergic neurons. In the resident, neighbor behavior is correlated with neural activity in the homolog of the mammalian hippocampus. Overall, we find distinct neural activity patterns between the neighbor and the resident, suggesting that an individual perceives and processes an intruder challenge differently during cooperative territory defense depending on its own behavioral role.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chelsea A Weitekamp
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78705, USA
| | - Hans A Hofmann
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78705, USA; Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78705, USA; Institute for Neuroscience, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78705, USA.
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15
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Tremblay S, Sharika KM, Platt ML. Social Decision-Making and the Brain: A Comparative Perspective. Trends Cogn Sci 2017; 21:265-276. [PMID: 28214131 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2017.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2016] [Revised: 01/06/2017] [Accepted: 01/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The capacity and motivation to be social is a key component of the human adaptive behavioral repertoire. Recent research has identified social behaviors remarkably similar to our own in other animals, including empathy, consolation, cooperation, and strategic deception. Moreover, neurobiological studies in humans, nonhuman primates, and rodents have identified shared brain structures (the so-called 'social brain') apparently specialized to mediate such functions. Neuromodulators may regulate social interactions by 'tuning' the social brain, with important implications for treating social impairments. Here, we survey recent findings in social neuroscience from a comparative perspective, and conclude that the very social behaviors that make us human emerge from mechanisms shared widely with other animals, as well as some that appear to be unique to humans and other primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sébastien Tremblay
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - K M Sharika
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Michael L Platt
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Marketing, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
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Clark HL, Backwell PRY. Territorial battles between fiddler crab species. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2017; 4:160621. [PMID: 28280560 PMCID: PMC5319326 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.160621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2016] [Accepted: 12/12/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Many species worldwide are impacted by habitat loss. This may result in increased competition both within species and between species. Many studies have demonstrated that when two previously non-overlapping species are forced to compete over a resource, one species is likely to become dominant over the other. This study explores the impact a larger species of fiddler crab (Tabuca elegans-previously known as Uca elegans) has when invading an area previously used solely by a smaller species (Austruca mjoebergi-previously known as Uca mjoebergi). Here we show that, while there are some detrimental effects of living next to a heterospecific, they are relatively minor. New heterospecific neighbours fight more regularly with resident crabs, but each fight is no longer or more escalated than those between the resident and a new conspecific male. The residents are not specifically targeted by intruding heterospecifics, thus, given the large advantage of having a heterospecific neighbour in terms of lowered competition for females, the overall impact of species mixing is probably not as negative as might have been predicted.
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Affiliation(s)
- H. L. Clark
- Author for correspondence: H. L. Clark e-mail:
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Lehtonen TK, Gagnon K, Sowersby W, Wong BBM. Allopatry, competitor recognition and heterospecific aggression in crater lake cichlids. BMC Evol Biol 2016; 16:3. [PMID: 26729482 PMCID: PMC4700676 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-015-0569-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2015] [Accepted: 12/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Aggressive behaviour can have significant evolutionary consequences–not only within species, but also in the context of heterospecific interactions. Here, we carried out an experimental field study to investigate the importance of phenotypic similarity on levels of aggression between species whilst controlling for familiarity effects using manipulated allopatric stimuli. Specifically, we investigated aggressive responses of territory holding males and females in two species of Neotropical cichlid fish, Amphilophus sagittae and Hypsophrys nicaraguensis, that differ in their phenotypic similarity to our allopatric stimulus species, Amphilophus astorquii. Results We found that, independent of phenotypic similarity (and correlated phylogenetic proximity) between the territory holders and intruder, territorial aggression was not adjusted in relation to allopatric intruder colour markings that are associated with different levels of threat and known to provoke different responses in a sympatric setting. We also found that males and females did not differ in their overall patterns of aggression adjustment towards intruder cues. Nevertheless, the two focal species, which share the same breeding grounds and external threats, exhibited different sex roles in breeding territory defence. Conclusion Together with earlier studies assessing hetrospecific aggression in sympatry, our current results highlight the importance of coevolution and learning in species interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Topi K Lehtonen
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland. .,School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
| | - Karine Gagnon
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Will Sowersby
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Bob B M Wong
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
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Goodwin SE, Podos J. Team of rivals: alliance formation in territorial songbirds is predicted by vocal signal structure. Biol Lett 2014; 10:20131083. [PMID: 24573153 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2013.1083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Cooperation and conflict are regarded as diametric extremes of animal social behaviour, yet the two may intersect under rare circumstances. We here report that territorial competitors in a common North American songbird species, the chipping sparrow (Spizella passerina), sometimes form temporary coalitions in the presence of simulated territorial intruders. Moreover, analysis of birds' vocal mating signals (songs) reveals that coalitions occur nearly exclusively under specific triadic relationships, in which vocal performances of allies and simulated intruders exceed those of residents. Our results provide the first evidence that animals like chipping sparrows rely on precise assessments of mating signal features, as well as relative comparisons of signal properties among multiple animals in communication networks, when deciding when and with whom to form temporary alliances against a backdrop of competition and rivalry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Goodwin
- Graduate Program in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, , Amherst, MA, USA
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Stiver KA, Wolff SH, Alonzo SH. Sharing of potential nest sites by Etheostoma olmstedi males suggests mutual tolerance in an alloparental species. PLoS One 2013; 8:e56041. [PMID: 23468853 PMCID: PMC3585326 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0056041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2011] [Accepted: 01/09/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
When reproductive competitors tolerate or cooperate with one another, they may gain particular benefits, such as collectively guarding resources or attracting mates. Shared resources may be those essential to reproduction, such as a breeding site or nest. Using the tessellated darter, a species where males but not females compete over potential nest sites, we examined site use and sharing under controlled conditions of differing competitor density. Sharing was observed even when competitor density was low and individuals could have each occupied a potential nest site without same-sex sharing. Males were more likely to share a nest site with one other when the difference in size between them was larger rather than smaller. There was no evidence that female sharing was dependent on their relative size. Fish were generally more likely to use and share larger sites, in accordance with the greater relative surface area they offered. We discuss how one or both sharing males may potentially benefit, and how male sharing of potential nest sites could relate to female mating preferences. Tessellated darter males are known to provide alloparental care for eggs but this occurs without any social contact between the alloparent and the genetic father of the young. Thus, the suggestion that they may also share sites and maintain social contact with reproductive competitors highlights the importance of increased focus on the potential complexity of reproductive systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly A Stiver
- Psychology Department, Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.
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Allocleaning behavior by the sentinel crab Macrophthalmus banzai: a case of mutual cooperation. J ETHOL 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s10164-013-0360-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
The macrophthalmid crab Macrophthalmus banzai performs allocleaning behavior, in which an individual feeds off the carapace or walking legs of a conspecific male or female. Cleaning continues until the recipient (‘cleanee’) rejects the cleaning or the cleaner ceases cleaning. In cases where the recipient did not reject the cleaning, the cleanee often retreated to its own burrow site after the cleaner ceased cleaning, allowing the cleaner to feed on its territory. We suggest that this is mutual cooperation, in which the cleaner assists the recipient to clean the body surface, and the recipient in return provides a feeding ground for the cleaner. Using field observation, we explored the factors responsible for the retreat of the cleanee in response to the cleaning behavior. Factors influencing the retreat of the cleanee were the time of the cleaning incident relative to low tide, the cleanee’s position relative to its own burrow, and the duration of the cleaning bout. The third factor showed that retreat was more common when the cleaning was thorough, which suggests that allocleaning is a form of mutual cooperation in M. banzai.
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Callander S, Hayes CL, Jennions MD, Backwell PR. Experimental evidence that immediate neighbors affect male attractiveness. Behav Ecol 2012. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ars208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gilbert Roberts
- Centre for Behaviour and Evolution, Institute of Neuroscience, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK
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Sprau P, Roth T, Amrhein V, Naguib M. Distance-dependent responses by eavesdroppers on neighbour–stranger interactions in nightingales. Anim Behav 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2012.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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Booksmythe I, Hayes C, Jennions MD, Backwell PRY. The effects of neighbor familiarity and size on cooperative defense of fiddler crab territories. Behav Ecol 2011. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arr184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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Callander S, Jennions MD, Backwell PRY. The effect of claw size and wave rate on female choice in a fiddler crab. J ETHOL 2011. [DOI: 10.1007/s10164-011-0309-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Bolton J, Callander S, Jennions MD, Backwell PR. Even Weak Males Help Their Neighbours: Defence Coalitions in a Fiddler Crab. Ethology 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0310.2011.01961.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Callander S, Jennions MD, Backwell PRY. Female choice over short and long distances: neighbour effects. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2011. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-011-1216-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Abstract
Natural root grafts occur in many tree species, but this widespread phenomenon has received only little attention. For many years, physiological aspects such as transfer of organic materials, water and minerals were considered their major significance. Better anchorage in flooded areas or in windy habitats was also proposed to select for this character. I propose that root grafts provide several additional types of benefit to intact grafted trees, to neighbors of trees that have lost their crowns, and sometimes even to the ones that have lost their crowns. These include: being a mate (female, male or both) for one's own gametes; taking a chance that the grafted neighbor will lose its crown, leaving it with its neighbor's grafted root system; for trees that reproduce vegetatively, there is a good chance that the neighbor is a ramet of the same genet, and root grafting thus supports the same genotype, and since most seeds are dispersed near the parent tree there is a good chance that the grafted neighbor is genetically close. For a grafted root system that has lost its original crown, the genotype continues to live and in certain taxa it still has a chance to resume canopy growth and reproduction. While root grafts may enable acquisition of beneficial fungi or microorganisms from the grafted neighbor, there is a risk of pathogen transmission. Since roots produce various toxins that defend the canopy, root grafts with other genotypes that provide additional types of defensive molecule may increase the tree's resistance to various herbivores and pathogens. In spite of the potential benefits, pathogen transmission and increased neighbor competition may select against the characteristic of root grafting.
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Milner RN, Jennions MD, Backwell PR. Know thine enemy’s neighbor: neighbor size affects floaters’ choice of whom to fight. Behav Ecol 2011. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arr073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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Models of coalition or alliance formation. J Theor Biol 2010; 274:187-204. [PMID: 21195717 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2010.12.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2010] [Revised: 12/08/2010] [Accepted: 12/21/2010] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
More than half a century has now elapsed since coalition or alliance formation theory (CAFT) was first developed. During that time, researchers have amassed a vast amount of detailed and high-quality data on coalitions or alliances among primates and other animals. But models have not kept pace, and more relevant theory is needed. In particular, even though CAFT is primarily an exercise in polyadic game theory, game theorists have devoted relatively little attention to questions that motivate field research, and much remains largely unexplored. The state of the art is both a challenge and an opportunity. In this review we describe a variety of game-theoretic and related modelling approaches that have much untapped potential to address the questions that field biologists ask.
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Abstract
Studies of the evolution of helping have traditionally used the explanatory frameworks of reciprocity and altruism towards relatives, but recently there has been an increasing interest in other kinds of explanations. We review the success or otherwise of work investigating alternative processes and mechanisms, most of which fall under the heading of cooperation for direct benefits. We evaluate to what extent concepts such as by-product benefits, pseudo-reciprocity, sanctions and partner choice, markets and the build-up of cross-species spatial trait correlations have contributed to the study of the evolution of cooperation. We conclude that these alternative ideas are successful and show potential to further increase our understanding of cooperation. We also bring up the origin and role of common interest in the evolution of cooperation, including the appearance of organisms. We note that there are still unresolved questions about the main processes contributing to the evolution of common interest. Commenting on the broader significance of the recent developments, we argue that they represent a justified balancing of the importance given to different major hypotheses for the evolution of cooperation. This balancing is beneficial because it widens considerably the range of phenomena addressed and, crucially, encourages empirical testing of important theoretical alternatives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olof Leimar
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden.
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Booksmythe I, Jennions MD, Backwell PRY. Interspecific assistance: fiddler crabs help heterospecific neighbours in territory defence. Biol Lett 2010; 6:748-50. [PMID: 20534601 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2010.0454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Theory predicts that territory owners will help established neighbours to repel intruders, when doing so is less costly than renegotiating boundaries with successful usurpers of neighbouring territories. Here, we show for the first time, to our knowledge, cooperative territory defence between heterospecific male neighbours in the fiddler crabs Uca elegans and Uca mjoebergi. We show experimentally that resident U. elegans were equally likely to help a smaller U. mjoebergi or U. elegans neighbour during simulated intrusions by intermediate sized U. elegans males (50% of cases for both). Helping was, however, significantly less likely to occur when the intruder was a U. mjoebergi male (only 15% of cases).
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Territorial aggression can be sensitive to the status of heterospecific intruders. Behav Processes 2010; 84:598-601. [DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2010.02.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2009] [Revised: 02/23/2010] [Accepted: 02/25/2010] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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Detto T, Jennions MD, Backwell PRY. When and Why Do Territorial Coalitions Occur? Experimental Evidence from a Fiddler Crab. Am Nat 2010; 175:E119-25. [PMID: 20302425 DOI: 10.1086/651588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tanya Detto
- Evolution, Ecology and Genetics, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia
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38
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Milner RNC, Jennions MD, Backwell PRY. Safe sex: male-female coalitions and pre-copulatory mate-guarding in a fiddler crab. Biol Lett 2010; 6:180-2. [PMID: 19889695 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2009.0767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In fiddler crabs both males and females defend territories that are essential for survival. Given pronounced sexual dimorphism in weaponry, how do weaponless females defend their territory from well-armed males? Using observational data and two simple experiments, we test whether male Uca annulipes protect their female neighbours from conspecific intruders. We show that males defend their female neighbours against male but not female intruders. We also show that females sometimes mate with their immediate neighbours. Male defence of female neighbours appears to represent both pre-copulatory mate-guarding and a territorial coalition. Males who ensure that their neighbour remains female could benefit through increased opportunity for future reproductive success and lower boundary maintenance costs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard N C Milner
- Evolution, Ecology and Genetics, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra 0200, Australia.
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Milner R, Booksmythe I, Jennions M, Backwell P. The battle of the sexes? Territory acquisition and defence in male and female fiddler crabs. Anim Behav 2010. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.12.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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40
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Investigating the ‘dear enemy’ phenomenon in the territory defence of the fiddler crab, Uca mjoebergi. Anim Behav 2010. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.11.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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41
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Mesterton-Gibbons M, Sherratt TN. Neighbor intervention: A game-theoretic model. J Theor Biol 2009; 256:263-75. [PMID: 18977365 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2008.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2008] [Revised: 09/24/2008] [Accepted: 10/01/2008] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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42
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Interspecific signalling competition between two hood-building fiddler crab species, Uca latimanus and U. musica musica. Anim Behav 2008. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2008.09.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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43
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Fayed SA, Jennions MD, Backwell PRY. What factors contribute to an ownership advantage? Biol Lett 2008; 4:143-5. [PMID: 18089521 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2007.0534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In most taxa, owners win fights when defending a territory against intruders. We calculated effect sizes for four factors that potentially contribute to an 'owner advantage'. We studied male fiddler crabs Uca mjoebergi, where owners won 92% of natural fights. Owners were not more successful because they were inherently better fighters (r=0.02). There was a small effect (r=0.18) of the owner's knowledge of territory quality (food availability) and a medium effect (r=0.29) of his having established relations with neighbours (duration of active tenure), but neither was statistically significant. There was, however, a significant effect due to the mechanical advantage the owner gained through access to the burrow during fights (r=0.48, p<0.005).
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Affiliation(s)
- S A Fayed
- School of Botany and Zoology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia
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45
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46
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47
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Hemmi JM, Marshall J, Pix W, Vorobyev M, Zeil J. The variable colours of the fiddler crab Uca vomeris and their relation to background and predation. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007; 209:4140-53. [PMID: 17023607 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.02483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Colour changes in fiddler crabs have long been noted, but a functional interpretation is still lacking. Here we report that neighbouring populations of Uca vomeris in Australia exhibit different degrees of carapace colours, which range from dull mottled to brilliant blue and white. We determined the spectral characteristics of the mud substratum and of the carapace colours of U. vomeris and found that the mottled colours of crabs are cryptic against this background, while display colours provide strong colour contrast for both birds and crabs, but luminance contrast only for a crab visual system. We tested whether crab populations may become cryptic under the influence of bird predation by counting birds overflying or feeding on differently coloured colonies. Colonies with cryptically coloured crabs indeed experience a much higher level of bird presence, compared to colourful colonies. We show in addition that colourful crab individuals subjected to dummy bird predation do change their body colouration over a matter of days. The crabs thus appear to modify their social signalling system depending on their assessment of predation risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan M Hemmi
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Vision Science, Australian National University, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia
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48
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Zeil J, Hemmi JM. The visual ecology of fiddler crabs. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2005; 192:1-25. [PMID: 16341863 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-005-0048-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 128] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2005] [Revised: 07/27/2005] [Accepted: 07/31/2005] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
With their eyes on long vertical stalks, their panoramic visual field and their pronounced equatorial acute zone for vertical resolving power, the visual system of fiddler crabs is exquisitely tuned to the geometry of vision in the flat world of inter-tidal mudflats. The crabs live as burrow-centred grazers in dense, mixed-sex, mixed-age and mixed-species colonies, with the active space of an individual rarely exceeding 1 m(2). The full behavioural repertoire of fiddler crabs can thus be monitored over extended periods of time on a moment to moment basis together with the visual information they have available to guide their actions. These attributes make the crabs superb subjects for analysing visual tasks and the design of visual processing mechanisms under natural conditions, a prerequisite for understanding the evolution of visual systems. In this review we show, on the one hand, how deeply embedded fiddler crab vision is in the behavioural and the physical ecology of these animals and, on the other hand, how their behavioural options are constrained by their perceptual limitations. Studying vision in fiddler crabs reminds us that vision has a topography, that it is context-dependent and pragmatic and that there are perceptual limits to what animals can know and therefore care about.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jochen Zeil
- Centre for Visual Sciences, Research School of Biological Sciences, The Australian National University, PO Box 475, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.
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Morrell LJ, Backwell PR, Metcalfe NB. Fighting in fiddler crabs Uca mjoebergi: what determines duration? Anim Behav 2005. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2004.11.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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50
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Wong BBM, Bibeau C, Bishop KA, Rosenthal GG. Response to perceived predation threat in fiddler crabs: trust thy neighbor as thyself? Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2005. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-005-0955-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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