Two levels of alliance formation among male bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.).
نویسندگان
چکیده
In Shark Bay, Western Australia, male bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.) cooperate in pairs and triplets to sequester and control the movements of females. We refer to this behavior as "herding" and to the male pairs and triplets as alliances. During a 25-month study (1987-1989) on the social relationships of males, we documented herding in 10 alliances. Males preferentially herded nonpregnant females likely to be in estrus. Alliance members associated with one another consistently when not herding females. Each alliance associated preferentially with one or two other alliances. Occasionally, two alliances combined and took females from another alliance or defended females against such efforts. This study documents multiple-level male alliances within a social group outside of humans.
منابع مشابه
A new level of complexity in the male alliance networks of Indian Ocean bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.).
Male bottlenose dolphins in Shark Bay, Western Australia form two levels of alliances; two to three males cooperate to herd individual females and teams of greater than three males compete with other groups for females. Previous observation suggested two alliance tactics: small four to six member teams of relatives that formed stable pairs or trios and unrelated males in a large 14-member secon...
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عنوان ژورنال:
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
دوره 89 3 شماره
صفحات -
تاریخ انتشار 1992