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Warsi S, Chicas-Mosier AM, Balusu RR, Jacobson AL, Fadamiro HY. Direct and Indirect Competitive Interactions between Ooencyrtus nezarae and Paratelenomus saccharalis Parasitizing Megacopta cribraria Egg Patches. INSECTS 2022; 14:35. [PMID: 36661963 PMCID: PMC9863137 DOI: 10.3390/insects14010035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2022] [Revised: 12/26/2022] [Accepted: 12/29/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The present study investigated egg parasitoid interspecific interactions between a generalist, Ooencyrtus nezarae Ishii (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) and a specialist, Paratelenomus saccharalis Dodd (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae) in a laboratory setting using kudzu bug (Megacopta cribraria Fabricius, (Hemiptera: Plataspidae)) eggs as their shared host. Three experiments were conducted to evaluate the emergence of wasps from parasitized hosts after the simultaneous and sequential release of wasps, monitor aggressive behavior of P. saccharalis, and quantify intraguild predation of O. nezarae larvae on heterospecific P. saccharalis larvae. Results showed that total host egg parasitism was higher when both wasps were released simultaneously than if wasps were released sequentially. Ooencyrtus nezarae produced more total offspring than P. saccharalis in all sequential/simultaneous treatments but produced male offspring in most cases. In the aggressive behavioral experiment, specialist, P. saccharalis used head butting to fight O. nezarae, but no other aggressions were observed. In an experiment examining intraguild predation, O. nezarae was able to develop in host eggs parasitized by P. saccharalis four days earlier, acting as a superior larval competitor. These findings shed light on the potential interspecific interactions between O. nezarae and P. saccharalis, which may determine their relative abundance and influence their compatibility in kudzu bug biological control programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanower Warsi
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA
| | - Ana M. Chicas-Mosier
- Center for Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Rammohan R. Balusu
- BASF Agricultural Products Group, Research Triangle, Durham, NC 27709, USA
| | - Alana L. Jacobson
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA
| | - Henry Y. Fadamiro
- Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
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2
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Kleptoparasitic interactions modeling varying owner and intruder hunger awareness. Theor Popul Biol 2020; 136:31-40. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tpb.2020.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2020] [Revised: 10/13/2020] [Accepted: 11/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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3
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Dombrovski M, Kuhar R, Mitchell A, Shelton H, Condron B. Cooperative foraging during larval stage affects fitness in Drosophila. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2020; 206:743-755. [PMID: 32623493 PMCID: PMC7392940 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-020-01434-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2020] [Revised: 06/18/2020] [Accepted: 06/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Cooperative behavior can confer advantages to animals. This is especially true for cooperative foraging which provides fitness benefits through more efficient acquisition and consumption of food. While examples of group foraging have been widely described, the principles governing formation of such aggregations and rules that determine group membership remain poorly understood. Here, we take advantage of an experimental model system featuring cooperative foraging behavior in Drosophila. Under crowded conditions, fly larvae form coordinated digging groups (clusters), where individuals are linked together by sensory cues and group membership requires prior experience. However, fitness benefits of Drosophila larval clustering remain unknown. We demonstrate that animals raised in crowded conditions on food partially processed by other larvae experience a developmental delay presumably due to the decreased nutritional value of the substrate. Intriguingly, same conditions promote the formation of cooperative foraging clusters which further extends larval stage compared to non-clustering animals. Remarkably, this developmental retardation also results in a relative increase in wing size, serving an indicator of adult fitness. Thus, we find that the clustering-induced developmental delay is accompanied by fitness benefits. Therefore, cooperative foraging, while delaying development, may have evolved to give Drosophila larvae benefits when presented with competition for limited food resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Dombrovski
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22901, USA
- Department of Biological Chemistry, HHMI, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Rives Kuhar
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22901, USA
| | - Alexandra Mitchell
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22901, USA
| | - Hunter Shelton
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22901, USA
| | - Barry Condron
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, 22901, USA.
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4
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Cooperation and conflicts during prey capture in colonies of the colonial spider Parawixia bistriata (Araneae: Araneidae). Acta Ethol 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s10211-020-00342-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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5
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Hirsch BT, Malpass E, Di Blanco YE. Interindividual spacing affects the finder’s share in ring-tailed coatis (Nasua nasua). Behav Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arz181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Social foraging models are often used to explain how group size can affect an individual’s food intake rate and foraging strategies. The proportion of food eaten before the arrival of conspecifics, the finder’s share, is hypothesized to play a major role in shaping group geometry, foraging strategy, and feeding competition. The variables that affect the finder’s share in ring-tailed coatis were tested using a series of food trials. The number of grapes in the food trials had a strong negative effect on the finder’s share and the probability that the finder was joined. The effect of group size on the finder’s share and foraging success was not straightforward and was mediated by sociospatial factors. The finder’s share increased when the time to arrival of the next individual was longer, the group was more spread out, and the finder was in the back of the group. Similarly, the total amount of food eaten at a trial was higher when more grapes were placed, arrival time was longer, and the number of joiners was smaller. Individuals at the front edge of the group found far more food trials, but foraging success was higher at the back of the group where there were fewer conspecifics to join them. This study highlights the importance of social spacing strategies and group geometry on animal foraging tactics and the costs and benefits of sociality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ben T Hirsch
- College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, College of Science and Engineering, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
| | - Erica Malpass
- Instituto de Biología Subtropical (IBS), Universidad Nacional de Misiones (UNaM), Bertoni, Puerto Iguazú (N3370BFA), Misiones, Argentina
| | - Yamil E Di Blanco
- Instituto de Biología Subtropical (IBS), Universidad Nacional de Misiones (UNaM), Bertoni, Puerto Iguazú (N3370BFA), Misiones, Argentina
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Facultad de Ciencias Forestales-UNaM, Asociación Civil Centro de Investigaciones del Bosque Atlántico (CeIBA), Bertoni 85, Puerto Iguazú (N3370BFA), Misiones, Argentina
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6
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Phillips JA, Peacock SJ, Bateman A, Bartlett M, Lewis MA, Krkošek M. An asymmetric producer-scrounger game: body size and the social foraging behavior of coho salmon. THEOR ECOL-NETH 2018; 11:417-431. [PMID: 30931016 PMCID: PMC6405016 DOI: 10.1007/s12080-018-0375-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2017] [Accepted: 04/09/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
A tension between cooperation and conflict characterizes the behavioral dynamics of many social species. The foraging benefits of group living include increased efficiency and reduced need for vigilance, but social foraging can also encourage theft of captured prey from conspecifics. The payoffs of stealing prey from others (scrounging) versus capturing prey (producing) may depend not only on the frequency of each foraging strategy in the group but also on an individual's ability to steal. By observing the foraging behavior of juvenile coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), we found that, within a group, relatively smaller coho acted primarily as producers and took longer to handle prey, and were therefore more likely to be targeted by scroungers than relatively larger coho. Further, our observations suggest that the frequency of scrounging may be higher when groups contained individuals of different sizes. Based on these observations, we developed a model of phenotype-limited producer-scrounger dynamics, in which rates of stealing were structured by the relative size of producers and scroungers within the foraging group. Model simulations show that when the success of stealing is positively related to body size, relatively large predators should tend to be scroungers while smaller predators should be producers. Contrary to previous models, we also found that, under certain conditions, producer and scrounger strategies could coexist for both large and small phenotypes. Large scroungers tended to receive the highest payoff, suggesting that producer-scrounger dynamics may result in an uneven distribution of benefits among group members that-under the right conditions-could entrench social positions of dominance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica A. Phillips
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Stephanie J. Peacock
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
- Present Address: Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Andrew Bateman
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
- Salmon Coast Field Station, Simoom Sound, Echo Bay, Canada
| | - Mackenzie Bartlett
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Mark A. Lewis
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
- Department of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Martin Krkošek
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- Salmon Coast Field Station, Simoom Sound, Echo Bay, Canada
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7
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Punish the thief-coevolution of defense and cautiousness stabilizes ownership. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2017; 71:102. [PMID: 28706342 PMCID: PMC5486837 DOI: 10.1007/s00265-017-2330-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2017] [Revised: 05/15/2017] [Accepted: 05/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Abstract Ownership of non-controllable resources usually has to be maintained by costly defense against competitors. Whether defense and thus ownership pays in terms of fitness depends on its effectiveness in preventing theft. We show that if the owners’ willingness to defend varies in the population and information about it is available to potential thieves then the ability to react to this information and thus avoid being attacked by the owner is selected for. This can lead to a positive evolutionary feedback between cautiousness in intruders and aggressiveness in owners. This feedback can maintain ownership when the actual direct effectiveness of defense in reducing theft is very low or even absent, effectively turning defense into punishment. We conclude that the deterrence effect of defense in many situations could be stronger than that of prevention and that for many real-world scenarios the purpose of defense of resources might be to punish rather than to drive away intruders. Significance statement Many animals defend resources against conspecifics. Resource defense can usually only evolve if its costs are paid for by foiling attempts at theft. We show that if potential thieves can detect differences in aggressiveness between owners then cautious intruders and aggressive owners coevolve so that in the end even ineffective defense deters thieves and maintains ownership. This result greatly extends the number of situations in which we expect resource defense to evolve and has the potential to unify the concepts of defense and punishment.
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8
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Lee AEG, Cowlishaw G. Switching spatial scale reveals dominance-dependent social foraging tactics in a wild primate. PeerJ 2017; 5:e3462. [PMID: 28674647 PMCID: PMC5494171 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.3462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2017] [Accepted: 05/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
When foraging in a social group, individuals are faced with the choice of sampling their environment directly or exploiting the discoveries of others. The evolutionary dynamics of this trade-off have been explored mathematically through the producer-scrounger game, which has highlighted socially exploitative behaviours as a major potential cost of group living. However, our understanding of the tight interplay that can exist between social dominance and scrounging behaviour is limited. To date, only two theoretical studies have explored this relationship systematically, demonstrating that because scrounging requires joining a competitor at a resource, it should become exclusive to high-ranking individuals when resources are monopolisable. In this study, we explore the predictions of this model through observations of the natural social foraging behaviour of a wild population of chacma baboons (Papio ursinus). We collected data through over 800 h of focal follows of 101 adults and juveniles across two troops over two 3-month periods. By recording over 7,900 social foraging decisions at two spatial scales we show that, when resources are large and economically indefensible, the joining behaviour required for scrounging can occur across all social ranks. When, in contrast, dominant individuals can aggressively appropriate a resource, such joining behaviour becomes increasingly difficult to employ with decreasing social rank because adult individuals can only join others lower ranking than themselves. Our study supports theoretical predictions and highlights potentially important individual constraints on the ability of individuals of low social rank to use social information, driven by competition with dominant conspecifics over monopolisable resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander E G Lee
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.,The Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, London, United Kingdom.,Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Guy Cowlishaw
- The Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, London, United Kingdom
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9
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Vivancos A, Closs G, Tentelier C. Are 2D space-use analyses adapted to animals living in 3D environments? A case study on a fish shoal. Behav Ecol 2016. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arw175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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10
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Marean CW. The transition to foraging for dense and predictable resources and its impact on the evolution of modern humans. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150239. [PMID: 27298470 PMCID: PMC4920296 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/06/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Scientists have identified a series of milestones in the evolution of the human food quest that are anticipated to have had far-reaching impacts on biological, behavioural and cultural evolution: the inclusion of substantial portions of meat, the broad spectrum revolution and the transition to food production. The foraging shift to dense and predictable resources is another key milestone that had consequential impacts on the later part of human evolution. The theory of economic defendability predicts that this shift had an important consequence-elevated levels of intergroup territoriality and conflict. In this paper, this theory is integrated with a well-established general theory of hunter-gatherer adaptations and is used to make predictions for the sequence of appearance of several evolved traits of modern humans. The distribution of dense and predictable resources in Africa is reviewed and found to occur only in aquatic contexts (coasts, rivers and lakes). The palaeoanthropological empirical record contains recurrent evidence for a shift to the exploitation of dense and predictable resources by 110 000 years ago, and the first known occurrence is in a marine coastal context in South Africa. Some theory predicts that this elevated conflict would have provided the conditions for selection for the hyperprosocial behaviours unique to modern humans.This article is part of the themed issue 'Major transitions in human evolution'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Curtis W Marean
- School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Institute of Human Origins, Arizona State University, PO Box 872402, Tempe, AZ 85287-2402, USA Centre for Coastal Palaeoscience, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape 6031, South Africa
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11
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12
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Glover B, Foltz K, Holásková I, Moritz J. Effects of modest improvements in pellet quality and experiment pen size on broiler chicken performance. J APPL POULTRY RES 2016. [DOI: 10.3382/japr/pfv054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
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13
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Acker P, Grégoire A, Rat M, Spottiswoode CN, van Dijk RE, Paquet M, Kaden JC, Pradel R, Hatchwell BJ, Covas R, Doutrelant C. Disruptive viability selection on a black plumage trait associated with dominance. J Evol Biol 2015; 28:2027-41. [PMID: 26249359 PMCID: PMC4949555 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2015] [Revised: 07/26/2015] [Accepted: 08/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Traits used in communication, such as colour signals, are expected to have positive consequences for reproductive success, but their associations with survival are little understood. Previous studies have mainly investigated linear relationships between signals and survival, but both hump-shaped and U-shaped relationships can also be predicted, depending on the main costs involved in trait expression. Furthermore, few studies have taken the plasticity of signals into account in viability selection analyses. The relationship between signal expression and survival is of particular interest in melanin-based traits, because their main costs are still debated. Here, we first determined the main factors explaining variability in a melanin-based trait linked to dominance: the bib size of a colonial bird, the sociable weaver Philetairus socius. We then used these analyses to obtain a measure representative of the individual mean expression of bib size. Finally, we used capture-recapture models to study how survival varied in relation to bib size. Variation in bib size was strongly affected by year and moderately affected by age, body condition and colony size. In addition, individuals bearing small and large bibs had higher survival than those with intermediate bibs, and this U-shaped relationship between survival and bib size appeared to be more pronounced in some years than others. These results constitute a rare example of disruptive viability selection, and point towards the potential importance of social costs incurred by the dominance signalling function of badges of status.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Acker
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier - EPHE, Montpellier Cedex 05, France.,Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique (UMR 5174 EDB), Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier - CNRS - ENFA, Toulouse, France
| | - A Grégoire
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier - EPHE, Montpellier Cedex 05, France
| | - M Rat
- Percy FitzPatrick Institute, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
| | - C N Spottiswoode
- Percy FitzPatrick Institute, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.,Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - R E van Dijk
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - M Paquet
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier - EPHE, Montpellier Cedex 05, France.,Percy FitzPatrick Institute, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
| | - J C Kaden
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.,The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, Edinburgh Zoo, Edinburgh, UK
| | - R Pradel
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier - EPHE, Montpellier Cedex 05, France
| | - B J Hatchwell
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - R Covas
- Percy FitzPatrick Institute, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.,CIBIO, University of Porto, Vairão, Portugal.,Biology Department, Science Faculty, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - C Doutrelant
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS - Université de Montpellier - Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier - EPHE, Montpellier Cedex 05, France.,Percy FitzPatrick Institute, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
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14
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Who bullies whom at a garden feeder? Interspecific agonistic interactions of small passerines during a cold winter. J ETHOL 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s10164-015-0424-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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15
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The hawk-dove game played between mating partners: theoretical predictions and experimental results. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-014-1867-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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16
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Ólafsdóttir GÁ, Andreou A, Magellan K, Kristjánsson BK. Divergence in social foraging among morphs of the three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Alexandreou Andreou
- Research Centre of the Westfjords; University of Iceland; Adalstraeti 21 Bolungarvik IS415 Iceland
| | - Kit Magellan
- Institut d'Ecologia Aquàtica; Universitat de Girona; E-17071 Girona España
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17
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Wheeler BC, Scarry CJ, Koenig A. Rates of agonism among female primates: a cross-taxon perspective. Behav Ecol 2013; 24:1369-1380. [PMID: 24137045 PMCID: PMC3796709 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/art076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2013] [Revised: 07/11/2013] [Accepted: 07/11/2013] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Agonism is common in group-living animals, shaping dominance relationships and ultimately impacting individual fitness. Rates of agonism vary considerably among taxa, however, and explaining this variation has been central in ecological models of female social relationships in primates. Early iterations of these models posited a link to diet, with more frequent agonism predicted in frugivorous species due to the presumed greater contestability of fruits relative to other food types. Although some more recent studies have suggested that dietary categories may be poor predictors of contest competition among primates, to date there have been no broad, cross-taxa comparisons of rates of female-female agonism in relation to diet. This study tests whether dietary variables do indeed predict rates of female agonism and further investigates the role of group size (i.e., number of competitors) and substrate use (i.e., degree of arboreality) on the frequency of agonism. Data from 44 wild, unprovisioned groups, including 3 strepsirhine species, 3 platyrrhines, 5 colobines, 10 cercopithecines, and 2 hominoids were analyzed using phylogenetically controlled and uncontrolled methods. Results indicate that diet does not predict agonistic rates, with trends actually being in the opposite direction than predicted for all taxa except cercopithecines. In contrast, agonistic rates are positively associated with group size and possibly degree of terrestriality. Competitor density and perhaps the risk of fighting, thus, appear more important than general diet in predicting agonism among female primates. We discuss the implications of these results for socio-ecological hypotheses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brandon C Wheeler
- Cognitive Ethology Laboratory, German Primate Center , 37077 Göttingen, Kellnerweg 4 , Germany , ; Courant Research Centre "Evolution of Social Behaviour", University of Göttingen , 37077 Göttingen, Kellnerweg 6 , Germany
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18
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Hinsch M, Pen I, Komdeur J. Evolution of defense against depletion of local food resources in a mechanistic foraging model. Behav Ecol 2012. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ars160] [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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19
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Hadjichrysanthou C, Broom M. When should animals share food? Game theory applied to kleptoparasitic populations with food sharing. Behav Ecol 2012. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ars061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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20
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Sirot E, Maes P, Gélinaud G. Movements and Conflicts in a Flock of Foraging Black-Tailed Godwits (Limosa limosa): The Influence of Feeding Rates on Behavioural Decisions. Ethology 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0310.2011.01995.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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21
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Katsnelson E, Motro U, Feldman MW, Lotem A. Evolution of learned strategy choice in a frequency-dependent game. Proc Biol Sci 2011; 279:1176-84. [PMID: 21937494 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2011.1734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In frequency-dependent games, strategy choice may be innate or learned. While experimental evidence in the producer-scrounger game suggests that learned strategy choice may be common, a recent theoretical analysis demonstrated that learning by only some individuals prevents learning from evolving in others. Here, however, we model learning explicitly, and demonstrate that learning can easily evolve in the whole population. We used an agent-based evolutionary simulation of the producer-scrounger game to test the success of two general learning rules for strategy choice. We found that learning was eventually acquired by all individuals under a sufficient degree of environmental fluctuation, and when players were phenotypically asymmetric. In the absence of sufficient environmental change or phenotypic asymmetries, the correct target for learning seems to be confounded by game dynamics, and innate strategy choice is likely to be fixed in the population. The results demonstrate that under biologically plausible conditions, learning can easily evolve in the whole population and that phenotypic asymmetry is important for the evolution of learned strategy choice, especially in a stable or mildly changing environment.
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22
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Davis JM, Nufio CR, Papaj DR. Resource quality or competition: why increase resource acceptance in the presence of conspecifics? ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2011; 22:730-737. [PMID: 22479135 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arr042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2010] [Revised: 01/17/2011] [Accepted: 03/04/2011] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Some animal species increase resource acceptance rates in the presence of conspecifics. Such responses may be adaptive if the presence of conspecifics is a reliable indicator of resource quality. Similarly, these responses could represent an adaptive reduction in choosiness under high levels of scramble competition. Although high resource quality and high levels of scramble competition should both favor increased resource acceptance, the contexts in which the increase occurs should differ. In this paper, we tested the effect of social environment on egg-laying and aggressive behavior in the walnut fly, Rhagoletis juglandis, in multiple contexts to determine whether increased resource acceptance in the presence of conspecifics was better viewed as a response to increased host quality or increased competition. We found that grouped females oviposit more readily than isolated females when provided small (low-quality) artificial hosts but not when provided large (high-quality) artificial hosts, indicating that conspecific presence reduces choosiness. Increased resource acceptance was observed even when exposure to conspecifics was temporally or spatially separate from exposure to the resource. Finally, we found that individuals showed reduced aggression after being housed in groups, as expected under high levels of scramble competition. These results indicate that the pattern of resource acceptance in the presence of conspecifics may be better viewed as a response to increased scramble competition rather than as a response to public information about resource quality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy M Davis
- Center for Insect Science, University of Arizona, 1007 E. Lowell Street, P.O. Box 210106, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
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Vogel ER, Janson CH. Quantifying Primate Food Distribution and Abundance for Socioecological Studies: An Objective Consumer-centered Method. INT J PRIMATOL 2011. [DOI: 10.1007/s10764-011-9498-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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24
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Ownership, size and reproductive status affect the outcome of food ball contests in a dung roller beetle: when do enemies share? Evol Ecol 2010. [DOI: 10.1007/s10682-010-9428-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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25
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Tennenhouse EM, Weladji RB, Holand Ø, Røed KH, Nieminen M. Mating group composition influences somatic costs and activity in rutting dominant male reindeer (Rangifer tarandus). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2010. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-010-1043-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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26
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Mathot KJ, Giraldeau LA. Within-group relatedness can lead to higher levels of exploitation: a model and empirical test. Behav Ecol 2010. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arq069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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27
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Kaspersson R, Höjesjö J, Pedersen S. Effects of density on foraging success and aggression in age-structured groups of brown trout. Anim Behav 2010. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.12.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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28
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Ecological Determinants of Social Systems. ADVANCES IN THE STUDY OF BEHAVIOR 2010. [DOI: 10.1016/s0065-3454(10)42009-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2023]
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29
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Smallegange IM, van der Meer J. The distribution of unequal predators across food patches is not necessarily (semi)truncated. Behav Ecol 2009. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arp027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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30
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Hirsch BT. Seasonal Variation in the Diet of Ring-Tailed Coatis (Nasua nasua) in Iguazu, Argentina. J Mammal 2009. [DOI: 10.1644/08-mamm-a-050.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
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31
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Overington SE, Dubois F, Lefebvre L. Food unpredictability drives both generalism and social foraging: a game theoretical model. Behav Ecol 2008. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arn037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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32
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Leone EH, Estévez I. Space use according to the distribution of resources and level of competition. Poult Sci 2008; 87:3-13. [PMID: 18079443 DOI: 10.3382/ps.2007-00026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The manner in which an animal moves throughout and utilizes the space available to it depends on the dispersal, availability, and level of competition for resources the animal requires for its biological functioning. We tested groups of broilers (Gallus gallus domesticus) in 3 experimental group sizes of 5, 10, and 20 individuals per group under 3 resource distribution patterns. Groups were tested with access to 1 large single feeder, 2 medium-sized feeders, or 4 small feeders. In all arrangements the total amount of food available per bird remained constant. During the first phase groups had free access to all available feeders, and in the second phase access at each feeder was restricted to a single bird. Space use, measured by calculating core areas and interindividual distances between group members, increased as group size grew larger and as feeders became more widely distributed. Not all group sizes responded equally to the resource distribution patterns. Space use patterns for the smaller group sizes were more strongly affected by resource distribution patterns than the larger group sizes. When access to the feeders was restricted, consumption, aggression, and space use increased. Broilers adjusted their space use and aggressive behavior according to the level of competition, dictated not only by group size but also resource distribution and accessibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- E H Leone
- Department of Animal and Avian Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
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34
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Vogel ER, Janson CH. Predicting the frequency of food-related agonism in white-faced capuchin monkeys (Cebus capucinus), using a novel focal-tree method. Am J Primatol 2007; 69:533-50. [PMID: 17177313 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.20368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Food abundance and distribution have played a central role in the conceptual theory of primate socioecology [Janson, Behaviour 105:53-76, 1988; Isbell, Behavioral Ecology 2:143-155, 1991; Sterck et al., Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 41:291-309, 1997; van Schaik, In: Standen V, Foley RA, editors, Comparative Socioecology. Oxford: Blackwell. p 195-218, 1989]. This theory predicts that agonistic ("contest") competition should occur when food is distributed in discrete, defensible patches; in contrast, when food sources are distributed uniformly or randomly, non-agonistic ("scramble") competition is expected. Primatologists usually measure resource density and patchiness from a botanical perspective, ignoring the biology of the animal being studied. Such an approach may be irrelevant in terms of how animals view the dispersion of resources. Using a novel focal-tree method that measures resource availability on a scale that is both spatially and temporally relevant to the animal under investigation, we take a cost-benefit approach to predict the frequency of food-related agonism in white-faced capuchin monkeys (Cebus capucinus) from 11 ecological and social variables. We retained four variables in the regression model: two representing the opportunity for aggression (i.e., feeding bout length and the number of feeding adult females), and two representing opportunity costs (i.e., fruit abundance and the number of potential feeding sites in the focal tree). The results of this study indicate that the amount of food-related aggression in white-faced capuchins can be predicted by variables representing the costs and benefits of contesting a food resource.
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Affiliation(s)
- E R Vogel
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, USA.
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37
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Hirsch BT. COSTS AND BENEFITS OF WITHIN‐GROUP SPATIAL POSITION: A FEEDING COMPETITION MODEL. QUARTERLY REVIEW OF BIOLOGY 2007; 82:9-27. [PMID: 17354992 DOI: 10.1086/511657] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
An animal's within-group spatial position has several important fitness consequences. Risk of predation, time spent engaging in antipredatory behavior and feeding competition can all vary with respect to spatial position. Previous research has found evidence that feeding rates are higher at the group edge in many species, but these studies have not represented the entire breadth of dietary diversity and ecological situations faced by many animals. In particular the presence of concentrated, defendable food patches can lead to increased feeding rates by dominants in the center of the group that are able to monopolize or defend these areas. To fully understand the tradeoffs of within-group spatial position in relation to a variety of factors, it is important to be able to predict where individuals should preferably position themselves in relation to feeding rates and food competition. A qualitative model is presented here to predict how food depletion time, abundance of food patches within a group, and the presence of prior knowledge of feeding sites affect the payoffs of different within-group spatial positions for dominant and subordinate animals. In general, when feeding on small abundant food items, individuals at the front edge of the group should have higher foraging success. When feeding on slowly depleted, rare food items, dominants will often have the highest feeding rates in the center of the group. Between these two extreme points of a continuum, an individual's optimal spatial position is predicted to be influenced by an additional combination of factors, such as group size, group spread, satiation rates, and the presence of producer-scrounger tactics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ben T Hirsch
- Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University Stony Brook, New York 11794, USA.
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38
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Effects of patch shape and group size on the effectiveness of defence by juvenile convict cichlids. Anim Behav 2007. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2006.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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39
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40
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Kun Á, Boza G, Scheuring I. Asynchronous snowdrift game with synergistic effect as a model of cooperation. Behav Ecol 2006. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ark009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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41
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Sol D, Elie M, Marcoux M, Chrostovsky E, Porcher C, Lefebvre L. ECOLOGICAL MECHANISMS OF A RESOURCE POLYMORPHISM IN ZENAIDA DOVES OF BARBADOS. Ecology 2005. [DOI: 10.1890/04-1136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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42
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Noël MV, Grant JW, Carrigan JG. Effects of competitor-to-resource ratio on aggression and size variation within groups of convict cichlids. Anim Behav 2005. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2004.07.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
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44
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Dubois F, Giraldeau LA, Hamilton IM, Grant JWA, Lefebvre L. Distraction Sneakers Decrease the Expected Level of Aggression within Groups: A Game‐Theoretic Model. Am Nat 2004; 164:E32-45. [PMID: 15278850 DOI: 10.1086/422199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2003] [Accepted: 03/16/2004] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Hawk-dove games have been extensively used to predict the conditions under which group-living animals should defend their resources against potential usurpers. Typically, game-theoretic models on aggression consider that resource defense may entail energetic and injury costs. However, intruders may also take advantage of owners who are busy fighting to sneak access to unguarded resources, imposing thereby an additional cost on the use of the escalated hawk strategy. In this article we modify the two-strategy hawk-dove game into a three-strategy hawk-dove-sneaker game that incorporates a distraction-sneaking tactic, allowing us to explore its consequences on the expected level of aggression within groups. Our model predicts a lower proportion of hawks and hence lower frequencies of aggressive interactions within groups than do previous two-strategy hawk-dove games. The extent to which distraction sneakers decrease the frequency of aggression within groups, however, depends on whether they search only for opportunities to join resources uncovered by other group members or for both unchallenged resources and opportunities to usurp.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frédérique Dubois
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Case postale 8888 Succursale Centre-Ville, Montreal, Québec H3C 3P8, Canada.
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46
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Reduced resource defence in an uncertain world: an experimental test using captive nutmeg mannikins. Anim Behav 2004. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2003.06.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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47
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Dubois F, Giraldeau LA. The Forager’s Dilemma: Food Sharing and Food Defense as Risk‐Sensitive Foraging Options. Am Nat 2003; 162:768-79. [PMID: 14737714 DOI: 10.1086/379202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2002] [Accepted: 06/17/2003] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Although many variants of the hawk-dove game predict the frequency at which group foraging animals should compete aggressively, none of them can explain why a large number of group foraging animals share food clumps without any overt aggression. One reason for this shortcoming is that hawk-dove games typically consider only a single contest, while most group foraging situations involve opponents that interact repeatedly over discovered food clumps. The present iterated hawk-dove game predicts that in situations that are analogous to a prisoner's dilemma, animals should share the resources without aggression, provided that the number of simultaneously available food clumps is sufficiently large and the number of competitors is relatively small. However, given that the expected gain of an aggressive animal is more variable than the gain expected by nonaggressive individuals, the predicted effect of the number of food items in a clump-clump richness-depends on whether only the mean or both the mean and variability associated with payoffs are considered. More precisely, the deterministic game predicts that aggression should increase with clump richness, whereas the stochastic risk-sensitive game predicts that the frequency of encounters resulting in aggression should peak at intermediate clump richnesses or decrease with increasing clump richness if animals show sensitivity to the variance or coefficient of variation, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frédérique Dubois
- Département des Sciences Biologiques, Université du Québec à Montréal, Case postale 8888, Succursale Centre-Ville, Montréal, Québec H3C 3P8, Canada.
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