Multilevel Organisation of Animal Sociality

Cyril C Grueter; Xiaoguang Qi; Dietmar Zinner; Thore Bergman; Ming Li; Zuofu Xiang; Pingfen Zhu; Andrea Bamberg Migliano; Alex Miller; Michael Krützen; Julia Fischer; Daniel I Rubenstein; T N C Vidya; Baoguo Li; Maurício Cantor; Larissa Swedell

doi:10.1016/j.tree.2020.05.003

Multilevel Organisation of Animal Sociality

Trends Ecol Evol. 2020 Sep;35(9):834-847. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2020.05.003. Epub 2020 May 27.

Authors

Cyril C Grueter¹, Xiaoguang Qi², Dietmar Zinner³, Thore Bergman⁴, Ming Li⁵, Zuofu Xiang⁶, Pingfen Zhu⁷, Andrea Bamberg Migliano⁸, Alex Miller⁹, Michael Krützen⁸, Julia Fischer¹⁰, Daniel I Rubenstein¹¹, T N C Vidya¹², Baoguo Li¹³, Maurício Cantor¹⁴, Larissa Swedell¹⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Human Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia; Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia. Electronic address: cyril.grueter@uwa.edu.au.
² Shaanxi Key Laboratory for Animal Conservation, Northwest University, College of Life Sciences, Xi'an, 710069, China. Electronic address: qixg@nwu.edu.cn.
³ Cognitive Ethology Laboratory, German Primate Center (DPZ), Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, 37077 Göttingen, Germany; Leibniz ScienceCampus for Primate Cognition, 37077 Göttingen, Germany.
⁴ Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
⁵ CAS Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China; Center for Excellence in Animal Evolution and Genetics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650223, China.
⁶ College of Life Science and Technology, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan 410004, China.
⁷ CAS Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China.
⁸ Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland.
⁹ School of Human Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA 6009, Australia.
¹⁰ Cognitive Ethology Laboratory, German Primate Center (DPZ), Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, 37077 Göttingen, Germany; Department for Primate Cognition, Georg-August-University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany.
¹¹ Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
¹² Evolutionary and Organismal Biology Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur, Bengaluru 560064, India.
¹³ Shaanxi Key Laboratory for Animal Conservation, Northwest University, College of Life Sciences, Xi'an, 710069, China; Center for Excellence in Animal Evolution and Genetics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650223, China.
¹⁴ Department for the Ecology of Animal Societies, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Konstanz, 78464, Germany; Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, 78464, Germany; Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, 78464, Germany; Departamento de Ecologia e Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, 88048-970, Brazil; Centro de Estudos do Mar, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Pontal do Paraná, 83255-000, Brazil; School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2000, South Africa.
¹⁵ Department of Anthropology, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, NY 11367-1597, USA; New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 11367, USA; Anthropology, Biology and Psychology Programs, CUNY Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA; Department of Archaeology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, 7701, Cape Town, South Africa.

PMID: 32473744
DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2020.05.003

Abstract

Multilevel societies (MLSs), stable nuclear social units within a larger collective encompassing multiple nested social levels, occur in several mammalian lineages. Their architectural complexity and size impose specific demands on their members requiring adaptive solutions in multiple domains. The functional significance of MLSs lies in their members being equipped to reap the benefits of multiple group sizes. Here, we propose a unifying terminology and operational definition of MLS. To identify new avenues for integrative research, we synthesise current literature on the selective pressures underlying the evolution of MLSs and their implications for cognition, intersexual conflict, and sexual selection. Mapping the drivers and consequences of MLS provides a reference point for the social evolution of many taxa, including our own species.

Keywords: multilevel society; social complexity; socioecology.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Animals
Biological Evolution
Mammals*
Social Behavior*