Fission‐Fusion Group Dynamics and Cooperative Hunting Stabilise Social Carnivore Populations

Theoretical ecology is largely founded on the principle of mass action, in which uncoordinated populations of predators and prey move in a random and well-mixed fashion across a featureless landscape. The conceptual core of this body of theory is the functional response, predicting the rate of prey consumption by individual predators as a function of predator and/or prey densities. This assumption is seriously violated in many ecosystems in which predators and/or prey form social groups. Here we develop a new set of group-dependent functional responses to consider the ecological implications of sociality and apply the model to the Serengeti ecosystem. All of the prey species typically captured by Serengeti lions (Panthera leo) are gregarious, exhibiting nonlinear relationships between prey-group density and population density. The observed patterns of group formation profoundly reduce food intake rates below the levels expected under random mixing, having as strong an impact on intake rates as the seasonal migratory behaviour of the herbivores. A dynamical system model parameterized for the Serengeti ecosystem (using wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) as a well-studied example) shows that grouping strongly stabilizes interactions between lions and wildebeest. Our results suggest that social groups rather than individuals are the basic building blocks around which predator-prey interactions should be modelled and that group formation may provide the underlying stability of many ecosystems.

Cooperatively breeding species vary widely in degree of social complexity, and disentangling relationships among group members can reveal the costs and benefits of cooperation. Here, we describe the social system of the cooperatively breeding Variegated Fairywren (Malurus lamberti) and explore how social complexity and group dynamics may affect cooperation and conflict. We used a combination of field-based population monitoring and detailed social association observations to determine group membership annually across four breeding seasons (2014–2017) and used a ddRAD-seq genotyping method to determine genetic relationships within social groups. Social groups ranged in size from two to eight individuals and nearly half of all social groups had multiple adult individuals of both sexes. Approximately half of all groups exhibited plural breeding, in which multiple females within the same social group nested individually in the same territory. Genetic relationships were diverse among social groups due to high rates of extra-pair paternity and immigration, with most groups containing close relatives and non-relatives of each sex. Notably, although related females were often present within a social group, co-breeding females in the same social group were never closely related to each other. Given the extensive variation in relatedness among group members, cooperation in the Variegated Fairywren is likely maintained by a combination of direct and indirect fitness benefits.

Social groups are often an essential part of pedestrian crowds and influence their behaviour. In order to describe not only the influence of social groups in evacuations on entire pedestrian crowds, but also the dynamics of the groups themselves, we introduce a new set of quantitative group parameters. This set includes (1) the centre of mass of social groups with its velocity and orientation and (2) the shape of the groups. They are approximated as an ellipse of minimal area while containing all social group members. The main properties of this ellipse give some indication about the dynamics of the members, whereas the centre of mass quantities describe the dynamics of an entire social group. By combining both aspects it is possible to determine whether the members order along the group’s direction of movement. Additionally, the orientation of the social groups is determined via a gyration tensor approach. All quantities are determined from data of an experimental study on the influence of social groups on pedestrian evacuation dynamics. This study investigated several evacuation scenarios with groups and was performed in schools. Young adults performed evacuation runs including social groups of different sizes.

Bovine tuberculosis, caused by Mycobacterium bovis, is a pathogen of growing concern in free-ranging wildlife in Africa, but little is known about the disease in Tanzanian wildlife. Here, we report the infection status of Mycobacterium bovis in a range of wildlife species sampled from protected areas in northern Tanzania. M. bovis was isolated from 11.1% (2/18) migratory wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) and 11.1% (1/9) topi (Damaliscus lunatus) sampled systematically in 2000 during a meat cropping program in the Serengeti ecosystem, and from one wildebeest and one lesser kudu (Tragelaphus imberbis) killed by sport hunters adjacent to Tarangire National Park. A tuberculosis antibody enzyme immunoassay (EIA) was used to screen serum samples collected from 184 Serengeti lions (Panthera leo) and 19 lions from Ngorongoro Crater sampled between 1985 and 2000. Samples from 212 ungulates collected throughout the protected area network between 1998 and 2001 also were tested by EIA. Serological assays detected antibodies to M. bovis in 4% of Serengeti lions; one positive lion was sampled in 1984. Antibodies were detected in one of 17 (6%) buffalo (Syncerus caffer) in Tarangire and one of 41 (2%) wildebeest in the Serengeti. This study confirms for the first time the presence of bovine tuberculosis in wildlife of northern Tanzania, but further investigation is required to assess the impact on wildlife populations and the role of different wildlife species in maintenance and transmission.

SUMMARY Prolegomena to a Theory of Social Change. The formulation of a general theory of the processes of change of social systems is one of the chief tasks of sociology; none of the models of society currently in vogue provides an adequate basis on which such a theory could be built. The structural‐functional analysis of social interaction systems is capable of understanding the majority of the various processes which go under the name of “social change” as processes within a (major) social system whose boundaries may be theoretically determined at will. On the other hand a working definition of a sociology of “social change” is suggested, in which the term will primarily refer to processes of transition from one social system to another.An obstacle to a “dynamic” sociology of this kind appears in the form of the conception of social systems in equilibrium. The inadequacy of functionalism lies in its ontological postulate that the final end of a social system is its own existence, which is derived from a false analogy with the biological law of the preservation of the species. This analogy holds good only for one social system in “Society” as a whole; the functionalist approach does not suffice to explain the existence of any particular social system or type of system as a particular case among any number of possible arrangements, each of which may equally well satisfy the basic needs of man.The criteria for the transition from one social system to another must be sought in the change of social structure. Since the notion of dynamic equilibrium always implies processes changing the relative position of units within the structure, “social change” must be viewed as the changing of changing structures with regard to the essential properties of particular structures. The change of power structure in the form of the substitution of one social stratum through another one as the ruling element has inescapable consequences for the structural arrangement of the total system. To a certain extent Marxian sociology offers univocal criteria which permit identification of social change, but the alternation of ruling classes is not the only significant change of social structure one could think of.Social change should above all be viewed independently of culture change. Both concepts refer to the same total reality, but at different levels of abstraction. The problem of determining the boundaries of cultural units is not solved by identifying any particular culture with the behaviour patterns and/or norm systems of given social groups. The concept of an “integrated culture” is as much a theoretical model as a social system in equilibrium. The essential property of cultural unity consists in a definite, existentially coloured hierarchy of values, the “Weltanschauung”, whose change is the criterion of cultural change. One possibility of correlating social and cultural change arises from the consideration of the underlying world view as one among many essential properties of social systems.

For highly social species, population dynamics depend on hierarchical demography that links local processes, group dynamics, and population growth. Here, we describe a stage-structured matrix model of hierarchical demography, which provides a framework for understanding social influences on population change. Our approach accounts for dispersal and affords insight into population dynamics at multiple scales. The method has close parallels to integral projection models but focuses on a discrete characteristic (group size). Using detailed long-term records for meerkats (Suricata suricatta), we apply our model to explore patterns of local density dependence and implications of group size for group and population growth. Taking into account dispersers, the model predicts a per capita growth rate for social groups that declines with group size. It predicts that larger social groups should produce a greater number of new breeding groups; thus, dominant breeding females (responsible for most reproduction) are likely to be more productive in larger groups. Considering the potential for future population growth, larger groups have the highest reproductive value, but per capita reproductive value is maximized for individuals in smaller groups. Across a plausible range of dispersal conditions, meerkats' long-run population growth rate is maximized when individuals form groups of intermediate size.

Cooperative breeding and a reproductive division of labor are characteristic features of callitrichid primates. Of key importance in understanding this kind of social strategy is knowledge of the kin structure of groups, yet until recently the patterns of relatedness within and among social groups have remained unclear, even in the best-studied species such as the common marmoset Callithrix jacchus. Of particular interest is the role of kin selection in helping behavior and group dynamics, and the application of molecular genetic techniques to investigate group structure, dynamics, and parentage is now unequivocally addressing such issues. Both microsatellite genotyping and mitochondrial DNA sequence analysis have revealed that while social groups may often be composed of extended family groups, considerable genetic heterogeneity may also arise as a result of inter-group migrations. In one study, a group of nine animals was shown to contain individuals from five matrilines. The occurrence of groups of mixed lineages raises interesting questions about potential reproductive conflicts of interest and the extent of kin-selected altruism in the evolution and maintenance of cooperative behavior in this species.

Academic process in Ukraine have dramatically changed due to pandemic Covid 19 and martial law. Practical online classes have been adapted to the need for interruptions during air raids and training of students with an individual schedule. Practical online were organized offline and online, and adapted to the need for interruptions during air raids. Therefore, teachers should to change an approach to academic process, improving in students listening, communication, soft, and practical skills.
 The aim of the study was assessment the students` attitudes towards different teaching methods, which they evaluated maximally useful. Questioning was conducted among 401 international students of the thirdfive years of study, language of learning of which was Ukrainian or English. Survey included questions about social-demographic factors and students` attitudes towards different teaching methods in pediatric therapeutic dentistry. Teaching methods included Power Point presentation (PP), conventional lecture, case study method, work with whole group, usual and control questioning, discussion in small group, videomaterials, problem basic learning (PBL) and role playing. Answers evaluated based on 4-scores scale and united into 2 groups of favorable and unfavorable answers. Obtained results were processed with Excel.
 75,7% males chose сase study method, 73,78% selected work in small groups, and 71,2% preferred PBL that was higher compared to females, but the difference was statistically significant only for сase study (р<0,01). 70,65% females prefer PP, 68,48% conventional lecture, 70,65% questioning, 55,43 % work at whole group and 51,09% role playing, but the difference was statistically significant only for PP (р<0,01). The most effective teaching methods were lecture (69,82%), case study (69,08%), usual questioning (70,07%), videomaterials (76,05%) and PBL (71,07%), however, the lowest estimation had role playing, on our opinion, due no familiarization with this method.
 Students learnt on Ukrainian language better evaluated PBL, videomaterials, usual and control questioning. On our opinion, these students better accepted overmentioned methods, because they studied at preparatory department before PSMU or familiarized with these methods at another department. PBL, case study and role playing used significantly more during practical classes of students of the 4-5 years of study, but were enough effective for students of the third year of study.
 Students studied in English better evaluated role playing, work in small groups, conventional lecture and PP. Perhaps, these methods were usual for them in home countries. It would be grateful, if students could study in small subgroups at dental departments.
 Therefore, students should to move from passive obtaining of knowledge to active participation in learning process with aid of teacher. Implementation of alternative education technologies complemented conventional ones, may improve professional competences, stimulate development of communication skills, thinking, and improve motivation to study. It is important to take into consideration exist attitudes of the second year students towards different teaching methods in clinical departments and involve students in effective teaching methods actively.
 The relationship between gender and student preferences, language of studying and evaluation of the effectiveness of different teaching methods have been identified. Understanding how to involve students in different teaching methods will help researchers to find a way to encourage every international student to active learning. Future research should assess how students' attitudes toward different teaching methods change from the 2nd to the 5th year.

Introduction. Diagnostics of social identification strategies in social groups of various types has not lost its relevance for many decades. In modern conditions, the discussion and development of the methodology and methods of applied diagnostics of identification strategies in small and large social groups receives a new direction of development, thanks to the development of the theory and practice of network methods. This is due to the fact that two multidirectional processes are simultaneously developing in a network society: on the one hand, globalization, which integrates the values of people of various social entities, and, on the other hand, differentiation, dividing the society into many social groups –-social networks, striving to preserve their values and differences. Under these conditions, network diagnosis of identification strategies has several advantages.Methodology and sources. The research methodology for network diagnostics of identification strategies in social groups is formed from a combination of theoretical principles and methodological procedures that combine the advantages of a number of sociological theories: firstly, theories that consider social groups as an object of direct research; secondly, theories, which show the role and importance of identification strategies that influence the success of social identification; thirdly, theories that show the methodological principles and approaches to the formation of technologies for network diagnostics of identification strategies.Results and discussion. Network diagnostics of identification strategies is built as a set of principles and research technologies aimed at collecting and analyzing information about the goals, means and results of mastering patterns of behavior and imitation by members of social groups. Its object is the social mechanism for determining the direction and use of means of mastering standards, assigning these standards and forming behaviors that integrate and include the individual in social groups, achieving on this basis a unifyingcommon, allowing to correlate, compare and unite with groups - to achieve identity. Network diagnostics, formed on the basis of the study of values, involves the study of identification strategies as a process that can be organized in different ways. In the most general sense, these strategies are formed as conscious or unconscious standards, goals and actions leading to the result – identification. Identification strategies in a social group may differ in direction with identification strategies that are proclaimed by organizations within which, for example, small groups appear. These strategies may also differ in the goals and benchmarks of large social groups.Conclusion. There are discusses the theoretical foundations of constructing network diagnostics of identification strategies in the paper, also it contents the empirical experience of using such a technique. A modern networked society is formed as countless small groups arising on a common basis. Network identification diagnostics has several advantages of studying the standards of unity, which allows a purposeful and planned study of the success of identification in social groups.

Mutual cooperation is a very basic local wisdom culture.Wich is the foundation of Indonesia society. This articel aims to find out more about the existence of mutual cooperation which has become a social system that continues and is relevant in the context of community life in Indonesia. In the literature study method, this study will analyze the historical, sociological, and cultural dimensions of the practice of mutual cooperation. Mutual cooperation has undergone social changes due to modernization and globalization. Although some traditional activities have shifted, with the basic principles of solidarity and mutual assistance to maintain mutual cooperation activities as an important role in building relationships between residents and in solving social problems. In theory. Clifford Geertz, an anthropologist from America has conducted in-depth research in Indonesia, which has provided an interesting comparative view. In his book entitled "Agricultural Involution", Geertz describes that mutual cooperation is a complex reciprocity system, especially in the lives of farmers in Java. He explains how the practice of mutual cooperation is not just a division of labor, but can also create a complex and mutually supportive social network. This research provides theoretical contributions to understanding changes in socio-cultural practices in Indonesia, as well as providing new insights into adaptation in the face of global social change.

60 Efforts to construct a theory of social group work have fallen short because, among other things, they have not recognized that the social group-work group is artificial. They have always taken it for granted that the group—almost any group—is a natural phenomenon that just grows by itself. They have never stopped to consider whether social group workers might be cre ating a particular type of group, and whether the product of social group workers might be different from a natural group. This, in part, is why small-group theory, social psychology, and group dynamics have had so little to contribute to the practice and theory of social group work. It is true that social psychology attempts to ex plain groups in both natural situations and artificially generated ones, but so far it has never come to grips with the empir ical gestalt composed of a social group worker mindful of certan values (those of the agency) and a collection of individuals who are in a special relationship with the worker and with whom the worker is try ing to form a group. This is the totality that would have to be accounted for in

The modeling of opinion dynamics is social systems has attracted a good deal of attention in the last decade. Even though based on intuition and observation, the mechanisms behind many of these models need solid empirical grounding. In this work, we investigate the relation among subjective variables (such as the personality), the dynamics of the affinity network dynamics, the communication patterns emerging throughout the social interactions and the opinions dynamics in a series of experiments with five small groups of ten people each. In order to ignite the discussion, the polemic topic of animal experimentation was proposed. The groups essentially polarized in two factions with a set of stubborn individuals (those not changing their opinions in time) playing the role of anchors. Our results suggest that the different layers present in the group dynamics (i.e., individual level, group dynamics and meso-communication) are deeply intermingled, specifically the stubbornness effect appears to be related to the dynamical features of the network topologies, and only in an undirected way to the personality of the participants.

The development of cooperative learning (CL) in mathematics began with my dissertation on the “small group discovery method” (1970). This method is based on a combination of Dewey’s philosophy of education, research on social psychology and group dynamics, and a discovery approach to learning mathematics in small cooperative groups. During the 1970s, small-group learning began to attain recognition in the mathematics education community. This occurred through articles in professional journals on mathematics education, books, curriculum projects, and numerous professional presentations. The latter half of my career continued my focus on teaching and learning in mathematics but expanded it to include teaching and learning in general. This section of the chapter addressed CL and the IASCE, theoretical issues and edited books, hundreds of presentations, graduate education with doctoral programs and dissertations, teacher education, staff development, and university faculty development. Theoretical comparisons of the four major forms of small-group learning were based on my analysis of the common and varying elements of CL.

Background, Aims, and ScopeSediment management in coastal zones is taking place in high complex environments. Present management options do not have a sophisticated way of dealing with the actual complexity of the physical and the social systems and with the unpredictability that is inherent with these systems. Therefore, a new approach in both policy making and sediment management is needed that takes this complexity into account. The aim of this article is to explore the dynamics in social and natural systems and to draw the contours of this new approach for policy processes and sediment management that fits to the dynamics of the systems.MethodsThree case studies concerning sediment management in Germany and the Netherlands are analysed in this article, in which unpredictability, or whimsicality, appeared through the occurrence of unexpected events. The case studies are analysed from the perspective of complexity theory. Complexity theory is a systemic theory, which means that it explains empirical phenomena from complex system behaviour. To understand the capricious character of sediment management in coastal zones, we need to frame the issue as the interdependency between the physical system and the social system, causing the two systems to develop in mutual adjustment through feedback. The process of mutual adjustment is one that is characterised by a non-linear nature. This is caused by the multiple relationships and the feedback within and between the systems, and the occurrence of chance events. Chance events (surprises) happen suddenly without an apparent cause and are important triggers for change in the systems. In three empirical cases, the occurrence, nature and response to these chance events are analysed as these factors influence the course of sediment management.Results and DiscussionThe case studies show that chance events can occur in the biophysical and in the social system. In the three cases, players or actors in the decision process are left with the choice to adapt themselves to the occurring chance events or to refrain from any adaptive behaviour. Chance events can open up new possibilities by activating (new) actors and by coupling to new issues. If the situation is too locked-in (i.e. a stalemate) and is intentional on behalf of the actors, than the chance event will have no effect. There are, however, situations of lock-in that are unintentional, and in such situations a chance event can remove this lock-in. The effects depend largely on the adaptive capacity of the actors to respond adequately and timely to such situations. The adaptive capacity can be increased (and uncertainty reduced) by a better understanding of both the physical and the social system. The case studies show that adaptation is an adequate way of dealing with the occurrence of chance events.ConclusionsWe conclude that the way to deal with non-linear developments is through an adaptive policy approach with short feedback loops in order to allow for timely adjustments and learning loops that will progress the understanding of the systems — both social and physical. Besides the instruments that are already available, like modelling and forecasting, instruments like observation and monitoring, stakeholder involvement processes, and learning and adaptation should be developed in this new adaptive approach. Monitoring of the physical system is a key element in this approach as all involved parties and stakeholders can learn how the physical system behaves. In this adaptive approach, whimsicality — that occurs through unexpected events — is an interesting challenge for all concerned with sediment management.Recommendations and PerspectivesThe proposed adaptive policy approach should be developed further and should be experimented with in real life situations that are well monitored.

Animals show great diversity in their social systems, ranging from species living solitarily to species living in highly complex social groups. This variation in social systems provides the perfect setting to investigate evolutionary transitions among social traits. A particularly useful approach consists in comparing closely related species that exhibit different levels of sociality. Social systems have been described differently among distant taxonomic groups. In birds they are generally defined according to the breeding system or social mating system, and most species are socially monogamous, with more complex groups generally characterized by natal philopatry of juveniles and cooperative breeding. Several hypotheses related to the species demography, ecology, life-history and kinship relationships have been proposed to explain the transitions from pair-living to cooperative breeding systems in birds. White-breasted mesites (Mesitornis variegata) are medium-sized ground-dwelling birds that belong to the family Mesitornithidae. This family of birds is endemic to Madagascar and is composed of two additional allopatric species that show quite different levels of sociality: the brown mesite (Mesitornis unicolor), a pair breeder found in the eastern rainy forests, and the subdesert mesite (Monias benschi), which lives in groups and breed cooperatively in the southern spiny forests. White-breasted mesites are usually found in pairs or small groups, that are thought to be family groups, in the dry deciduous forests of western Madagascar, but there is little information on their breeding system and no study has yet examined the genetic relatedness of their small social units. The general aim of this thesis is first to describe several components of the social system of white-breasted mesites, a species that was previously suggested to breed cooperatively but has precocial chicks which in principle do not require much parental care, and then investigate proximate and ultimate mechanisms that may have shaped this system. To do so I combine genetic, behavioural, morphologic and spatial data collected on 10 to 15 social units of M. variegata in Kirindy forest, Western Madagascar, during five field seasons (October 2009 to April 2012). The results of this study indicate that white-breasted mesites live in very cohesive stable pairs or small families formed by delayed dispersal of juveniles and that care is provided only by parents. Additionally, contrary to previous suggestions, the food provisioning period for chicks in M. variegata is intense for 2 months, but can extend to up to 12 months, although at much lower rates. This long parental care period could be related to the juveniles’ slow development of foraging skills I observed in this species. The high cohesion of mesite social units, with inter-individual distances rarely exceeding 3 m, seems to be associated to predator avoidance and not to mate defence. Still, breeding partners’ high cohesion may indirectly explain their strictly monogamous mating system. Analyses of juvenile dispersal patterns revealed that male juveniles stay longer in families than females, matching with the slower adult male population turnover and the presence of some families containing a “stepmother”. Additionally, by comparing adults associated with juveniles with adults living in pairs I show that family-living can be costly for parents in terms of foraging efficiency and investment in future reproduction, which could underlie the parental intolerance I observed towards older juveniles. Overall, limitations for independent breeding and solitarily ranging in combination with slow development of foraging skills and parental costs seem to be important factors explaining juvenile dispersal patterns, family formation and stability in this species. Additionally, predation risk selecting for strong intra-group and pair cohesion may affect the mating system in white-breasted mesites and suggests a link between genetic monogamy and predation risk in a socially monogamous species. Based on comparisons with the other mesite species the breeding system of white-breasted mesites could be considered along the transition between a bi-parental and a cooperative breeding system, with some juveniles able to provide help but prevented from doing so by their parents.