| The selfish nature of generosity: harassment and food sharing in primates. | |
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MedLine Citation:
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PMID: 15129953 Owner: NLM Status: MEDLINE |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
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Animals may share food to gain immediate or delayed fitness benefits. Previous studies of sharing have concentrated on delayed benefits such as reciprocity, trade and punishment. This study tests an alternative model (the harassment or sharing-under-pressure hypothesis) in which a food owner immediately benefits because sharing avoids costly harassment from a beggar. I present an experiment that varies the potential ability of the beggar to harass, and of the owner to defend the food, to examine the effects of harassment on food sharing in two primate species: chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and squirrel monkeys (Saimiri boliviensis). For both species, high levels of harassment potential significantly increased both beggar harassment and sharing by the owner. Food defensibility did not affect harassment or sharing. Interestingly, squirrel monkeys and chimpanzees shared equally frequently with conspecifics despite a much higher natural sharing rate in chimpanzees. These results suggest that harassment can play a significant role in primate food sharing, providing a simple alternative to reciprocity. The selfish nature of harassment has implications for economic, psychological and evolutionary studies of cooperative systems. |
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Authors:
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Jeffrey R Stevens |
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Publication Detail:
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Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't |
Journal Detail:
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Title: Proceedings. Biological sciences / The Royal Society Volume: 271 ISSN: 0962-8452 ISO Abbreviation: Proc. Biol. Sci. Publication Date: 2004 Mar |
Date Detail:
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Created Date: 2004-05-07 Completed Date: 2004-06-07 Revised Date: 2010-09-20 |
Medline Journal Info:
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Nlm Unique ID: 101245157 Medline TA: Proc Biol Sci Country: England |
Other Details:
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Languages: eng Pagination: 451-6 Citation Subset: IM |
Affiliation:
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Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA. jstevens@wjh.harvard.edu |
Export Citation:
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| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
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Analysis of Variance Animals Cooperative Behavior* Evolution Feeding Behavior* Models, Biological* Pan troglodytes / physiology* Saimiri / physiology* Social Behavior* |
| Comments/Corrections | |
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