Abstract
Cooperative breeding systems, in which non-breeding individuals provide care for the offspring of dominant group members, occur in less than 1% of mammals and are associated with social monogamy and the production of multiple offspring per birth (polytocy). Here, we show that the distribution of alloparental care by non-breeding subordinates is associated with habitats where annual rainfall is low. A possible reason for this association is that the females of species found in arid environments are usually polytocous and this may have facilitated the evolution of alloparental care.
Highlights
Cooperative breeding systems, where non-breeding individuals care for the offspring of dominant group members, are rare among mammals, occurring primarily in rodents, carnivores and primates [1]
Cooperative breeding appears to be associated with arid, unpredictable habitats: a global study of breeding systems in birds has recently shown that cooperative breeding occurs in species that live in areas with low and unpredictable rainfall [4] and cooperative breeding has been shown to be associated with arid environments in mole rats [5]
Breeding mammals live in habitats that have significantly lower amounts of rainfall, significantly higher coefficients of variation in annual rainfall and significantly lower between year predictability in rainfall than socially monogamous species where parents are not assisted by alloparents
Summary
Cooperative breeding systems, where non-breeding individuals care for the offspring of dominant group members, are rare among mammals, occurring primarily in rodents, carnivores and primates [1]. Cooperative breeding appears to be associated with arid, unpredictable habitats: a global study of breeding systems in birds has recently shown that cooperative breeding occurs in species that live in areas with low and unpredictable rainfall [4] and cooperative breeding has been shown to be associated with arid environments in mole rats [5]. We compare the distribution of cooperative breeders with that of socially monogamous species (from which cooperative breeders are derived) and show that the distribution of cooperative breeding among all mammals is geographically constrained (figure 1) and associated with arid habitats. Is aridity associated with the formation of breeding groups or with the provision of alloparental care or with both [6,7]? Is aridity associated with the formation of breeding groups or with the provision of alloparental care or with both [6,7]? To explore this issue, we perform separate
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