Primate socioecology at the crossroads: Past, present, and future

Abstract

Attempts to explain differences in the size and structure of primate groups have argued that they are a consequence of variation in the intensity of feeding competition caused by contrasts in food distribution. However, although feeding competition can limit the size of female groups, many other factors affect the costs and the benefits of sociality to females and contribute to differences in group size. Moreover, interspecific differences in social relationships between females, in female philopatry, and in kinship between group members appear to be more closely associated with variation in life-history parameters, reproductive strategies, and phylogeny than with contrasts in food distribution or feeding competition. The mismatch between predictions of socioecological theory and observed variation in primate social behavior has led to protracted arguments about the future of primate socioecology. We argue that future attempts to understand the diversity of primate societies need to be based on an approach that explores separate explanations for different components of social organization, combines ecological and phylogenetic information, and integrates research on primates with similar studies of other groups of mammals.

Variation in grouping patterns, mating systems and social structure: what socio-ecological models attempt to explain

“…Others criticized the overemphasis of competition and underemphasis of affiliation and cooperation [91]. Importantly, mismatches between predictions and results have been pointed out [92,93] and the lack of phylogenetic methods and the presence of correlations among social variables [94,95] have resulted in calls to abandon the model altogether [21] or to investigate different components separately [18].…”

“…Nevertheless, given the paucity of data for certain aspects of the model [85], it is clear that a general test is currently unfeasible. It therefore seems that investigating individual aspects of the model is indeed the most viable route [18].…”

“…Therefore, in the following, we will separately describe some core ideas of each model, review historical trends in the results and criticisms, present new results and point to some open questions. We will focus primarily on ecological factors, although phylogenetic, demographic and social ones shape social systems as well [18][19][20][21].…”

Taking note of Tinbergen, or: the promise of a biology of behaviour

“…Bringing this idea to the socioecological model, it seems likely that social groups will be composed of individuals with varying dispositions (as a result of particular kinds of gene-environment interactions, as demonstrated by Runcie et al [15] or various kinds of epigenetic effects: see below), such that the social system is an emergent property of these dynamic social interactions rather than a monolithic entity, a point also argued by Blumstein [16] in his study of marmot social systems. Montiglio et al's [14] analysis thus suggests that, if we investigate immediate ontogenetic history and its influence on proximate mechanism, as well as patterns of phylogenetic history, as suggested by Thierry [5], we could begin to identify a series of tractable, well-specified problems that could be tackled in a series of formal models (see [17] for some examples of problems that the current socioecological model cannot explain), rather than continue to assume that simple (verbal) models can capture the complexity that clearly exists. In this way, we may be able to generate the means by which we can link individual-level processes to grouplevel and population phenomena [18,19], and to evolutionary change over time.…”

Yellow-bellied marmots: insights from an emergent view of sociality

“…But, while not all taxa compete directly for access to food, all species, for at least some point in their lives, experience some risk of predation [7], and many face infanticide risks [8,9]. Thus, some aspects of the socioecological model are certainly applicable to many non-primate species [10].…”