'J-Lo effect' causing primate passion chaos
Flirty female baboons cause group chaos by distracting males, study finds
Also In The News
|
By James Christie. |  |
Monday, 26, Oct 2009 12:46
Female baboons can cause havoc amongst groups by distracting males with their "flirting", a study has found.
According to scientists from the Zoological Society of London's (ZSL) female baboons on the 'look-out for love' cause disruption in their primate groups.
The project studied groups of chacma baboons (Papio ursinus) in the Namib Desert, and found they were more likely to work as a team when there is a higher ratio of pregnant females to single females in the group.
They said the 'flirty' females advertise their availability and distract the males by displaying their swollen derrieres; the result being males dedicating their time to guarding their new prized mate, which the scientists said had "knock-on effects for the entire group".
Dr Andrew King, lead author on the paper says: "We found that synchrony in our baboon groups was higher when they were travelling in 'risky' woodland habitats - this makes sense as it means they are able to stick together and more easily communicate.
"But, surprisingly, we also found that the reproductive states of females played an important role in determining synchrony."
On the contrary to single female baboons, the pregnant females exert a calming influence, because the males are not distracted by mating opportunities.
With no males to hassle them the pregnant females can concentrate on foraging to find enough food to meet their increasing appetites, bringing about higher group synchrony.
The authors of the study added: "Working as a cohesive group is important not only for baboons, but all sorts of group-living animals since it allows individuals to detect predators more easily and concentrate on finding enough food to survive."