Sexual conflict. The evolution of infanticide by males in mammalian societies.
Type
Article
Change log
Authors
Lukas, Dieter https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7141-3545
Huchard, Elise
Abstract
Male mammals often kill conspecific offspring. The benefits of such infanticide to males, and its costs to females, probably vary across mammalian social and mating systems. We used comparative analyses to show that infanticide primarily evolves in social mammals in which reproduction is monopolized by a minority of males. It has not promoted social counterstrategies such as female gregariousness, pair living, or changes in group size and sex ratio, but is successfully prevented by female sexual promiscuity, a paternity dilution strategy. These findings indicate that infanticide is a consequence, rather than a cause, of contrasts in mammalian social systems affecting the intensity of sexual conflict.
Description
Keywords
Animals, Biological Evolution, Conflict, Psychological, Female, Male, Mammals, Pair Bond, Reproduction, Sex Ratio, Sexual Behavior, Animal
Journal Title
Science
Conference Name
Journal ISSN
0036-8075
1095-9203
1095-9203
Volume Title
346
Publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Publisher DOI
Sponsorship
European Research Council (294494)