Fitness consequences of variation in social group size are not population-specific but are associated with access to food in the communally breeding rodent, <i>Octodon degus</i>

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dc.contributor.authorHayes, Loren D.
dc.contributor.authorStrom, Madeline K.
dc.contributor.authorLeon, Cecilia
dc.contributor.authorRamirez-Estrada, Juan
dc.contributor.authorGrillo, Sara
dc.contributor.authorGao, Cuilan L.
dc.contributor.authorVasquez, Rodrigo A.
dc.contributor.authorEbensperger, Luis A.
dc.date.accessioned2025-01-20T16:15:37Z
dc.date.available2025-01-20T16:15:37Z
dc.date.issued2024
dc.description.abstractStudies that concurrently investigate the functional benefits of group living in multiple populations of the same species are rare. Over a 3-year period (2014-2016), we examined two ecologically contrasting populations to test multiple hypotheses for the adaptive significance of group living in the communally breeding rodent Octodon degus. We quantified the size of social units (number of adults, number of adult females), edible vegetation at burrow systems, and per capita offspring weaned (PCOW) in each population. Contrary to expectations, we did not observe population-specific associations between group size and edible vegetation or PCOW nor universal benefits of group living. In one population, PCOW increased in mid-sized groups with more edible vegetation. However, this trend was not consistent across years. Notably, we observed a complete reproductive failure in one population during the first year of study, one that was characterized by low rainfall and no detectable edible vegetation. This result is important because reproductive failure occurred regardless of group size, suggesting that communal living may not buffer degus against the harshest of environmental conditions. Examining how social organization shapes individual reproductive success under extreme variation in food availability is an important step towards understanding how populations will respond to a changing climate.
dc.fuente.origenWOS
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/eth.13491
dc.identifier.eissn1439-0310
dc.identifier.issn0179-1613
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1111/eth.13491
dc.identifier.urihttps://repositorio.uc.cl/handle/11534/90504
dc.identifier.wosidWOS:001249057400001
dc.issue.numero9
dc.language.isoen
dc.revistaEthology
dc.rightsacceso restringido
dc.subjectgroup size
dc.subjectharsh environment
dc.subjectOctodon degus
dc.subjectreproductive success
dc.subjectsociality
dc.subject.ods15 Life on Land
dc.subject.ods13 Climate Action
dc.subject.odspa15 Vida de ecosistemas terrestres
dc.subject.odspa13 Acción por el clima
dc.titleFitness consequences of variation in social group size are not population-specific but are associated with access to food in the communally breeding rodent, <i>Octodon degus</i>
dc.typeartículo
dc.volumen130
sipa.indexWOS
sipa.trazabilidadWOS;2025-01-12
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