Biology subjects

Ben Mocha, Y.

Publications and source records attributed to Ben Mocha, Y..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2024

Advancing cooperative breeding research with a peer-reviewed and "live" Cooperative-Breeding Database (Co-BreeD)

Research on cooperative breeding (a system with the core characteristic of individuals providing care for the offspring of others) is important for understanding sociality and cooperation. However, large-scale comparative analyses on the drivers and consequences of cooperation frequently use considerably inaccurate datasets (e.g. due to inconsistent definitions and outdated information). To advance comparative research on cooperative breeding, we introduce the Cooperative-Breeding Database (Co-BreeD), a growing database of key socio-biological parameters of birds and mammals. First, we describe Co-BreeDs structure as a (i) sample-based (i.e. multiple samples per species linked to an exact sampling location and period), (ii) peer-reviewed and (iii) updatable resource. Respectively, these curating principles allow for (i) investigating intra- and inter-species variation and linking between fine-scale social and environmental parameters, (ii) accuracy and (iii) continuous correction and expansion with the publication of new data. Second, we present the first Co-BreeD dataset, which estimates the prevalence of breeding events with potential alloparents in 265 samples from 233 populations of 150 species, including 2 human societies (N = 26,366 breeding events). We conclude by demonstrating (i) how Co-BreeD facilitates more accurate comparative research (e.g. increased explanatory power by enabling the study of cooperative breeding as a continuous trait, and statistically accounting for the sampling error probabilities), and (ii) that cooperative breeding in birds and mammals is more prevalent than currently estimated.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2023

Evidence for a reproductive sharing continuum in cooperatively breeding mammals and birds: consequences for comparative research

Extreme reproductive skew occurs when a dominant female/male monopolises reproduction within a group of multiple sexually mature females/males. It is sometimes considered an additional, restrictive criterion in the definition of cooperative breeding (i.e., when conspecifics provide parental care to other group members offspring). However, datasets that use this restrictive definition to classify species as cooperative breeders have two critical shortcomings. First, reproductive skew is systematically overestimated by including groups with a single sexually mature female/male when calculating the reproductive output of "dominant" females/males. Second, a lack of reporting on which species are classified based on limited data prevents accounting for uncertainty in classification. Considering these shortcomings, we show that extreme reproductive skew in multi-female and multi-male groups only occurs rarely in species previously classified as cooperative breeders using restrictive definitions (11 mammal species, 12 bird species). We further provide updated datasets on reproductive sharing in multi-female/male groups of cooperatively breeding mammals and birds that allow accounting for classification uncertainty. Our results demonstrate a reproductive sharing continuum even among those cooperatively breeding species argued to exhibit extreme reproductive skew. At the practical level, these findings call for significant changes in datasets that classify species by social systems. At the conceptual level, we suggest that reproductive skew should not be a defining criterion of cooperative breeding.

animal behavior and cognition↗