Acoustic recognition in macaroni penguins: an original signature system
Penguins use vocal signatures as cues to identify their kin in dense colonies. Experimental studies of four species in two genera have pointed out that vocal signatures depend on the breeding ecology of the birds. Penguins that have a meeting site for pair members and chicks (genus Pygoscelis), as in many seabirds, have a less […]
Kin recognition and inbreeding avoidance in zebrafish, Danio rerio, is based on phenotype matching
Differentiating kin from nonkin enables organisms of many species to allocate resources or altruistic behaviour towards related conspecifics and to avoid mating with close relatives. Kin recognition mechanisms can vary among species and may reflect the social environment. Learned familiarity with nest or shoalmates may serve as a good indication that individuals are related, as […]
Visual kin recognition in nonhuman primates: (Pan troglodytes and Macaca mulatta): Inbreeding avoidance or male distinctiveness?
Faces provide important information about identity, age, and even kinship. A previous study in chimpanzees reported greater similarity between the faces of mothers and sons compared with mothers and daughters, or unrelated individuals. This was interpreted as an inbreeding avoidance mechanism where females, the dispersing gender, should avoid mating with any male that resembles their […]
Odor-based recognition of familiar and related conspecifics: A first test conducted on captive humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti)
Studies of kin recognition in birds have largely focused on parent-offspring recognition using auditory or visual discrimination. Recent studies indicate that birds use odors during social and familial interactions and possibly for mate choice, suggesting olfactory cues may mediate kin recognition as well. Here, we show that Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti), a natally philopatric species […]
Mating status and kin recognition influence the strength of cannibalism
Adults that cannibalize juvenile conspecifics gain substantial energy and nutrients that are potentially limited in their normal diet, but they may also face the risk of filial cannibalism: the consumption of an individual’s own offspring. However, the potential costs and benefits of cannibalism change with the reproductive status of an individual during its lifetime. Once […]
Contrasting context dependence of familiarity and kinship in animal social networks
The social structure of a population is a crucial element of an individual’s environment, fundamentally influencing the transfer of genes, information and diseases. A central question in social network analysis is how different traits affect associations within populations. However, previous studies of animal social networks have typically focused on a single predictor or stage in […]