Fitness incentives to male fighters undermine fighting performance in intergroup contests
P. A. Green, D. W. E. Sankey, T. Collins, F. Mwanguhya, H. J. Nichols, M. Cant, F. J. Thompson
The paper examines how personal fitness incentives in wild banded mongooses affect intergroup conflict outcomes, finding that winning fights does not always translate to higher paternity success.
bioRxiv · May 9, 2024Animal Behavior & Cognition