Female Socioecology

Spatial distribution (“patchiness”) of resources & female sociality

dispersed resources vs clumped resources

dispersed resources (eg leaves)

no direct competition, little incentive for aggression (bc highly abundant and low quality), scramble competition

scramble competition

females are weakly bonded and often disperse from natal group

scramble competition examples

gorilla (folivorous, leaves everywhere), colobus monkey (leaf eater), guenon (forest monkey, generalist diet)

clumped resources (e.g fruit)

high incentive for aggression, monopolizable, direct competition, contest competition

clumped resources - high incentive for aggression note

bc patchier (found in fewer places & in smaller clumps) and ephemeral (available only for short windows @ a time)

contest competition can happen…

between and/or within groups

between group competition

high population density, low within group competition, communal resource defense between groups

between group competition example

proboscis monkeys

within group competition

low population density, low between group competition, coalitionary support within groups for preferred access to food

within group competition example

baboons

(blank) can limit within group contest competition

fission fusion dynamics limit within group contest competition (spider monkey, chimp, orangutan)

female territoriality

when food patches (like fruit trees) are dense & defensible, females can benefit from keeping exclusive access by defending a territory

female territoriality measurement

Mitani-Rodman “Index of Defensibility” (D) - territorial if D>1, not territorial if D<1

Mitani-Rodman “Index of Defensibility” (D) formula

D = day range (d)/home range diameter (d’)

Female Socioecology & Food

females as the ecological sex