Infanticide in the hippopotamus: evidence for polygynous ungulates
作者:
Rebecca Lewison,
期刊:
Ethology Ecology & Evolution
(Taylor Available online 1998)
卷期:
Volume 10,
issue 3
页码: 277-286
ISSN:0394-9370
年代: 1998
DOI:10.1080/08927014.1998.9522857
出版商: Taylor & Francis Group
关键词: infanticide;hippopotamus;sexual selection;polygynous ungulates
数据来源: Taylor
摘要:
Infanticide has been reported in a wide range of taxa. Although recent work suggests that infanticide may be present in managed populations of ungulate species, it has not been documented in wild ungulates. Here, I present qualitative evidence of infanticide in a wild ungulate, the hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) and suggest that infanticide in the hippopotamus may be a strategy by which males increase reproductive success. I present a conceptual model in which infanticide by males occurs within approximately 50 days post parturition and acts as a means to shorten the interbirth interval, particularly when water resources are scarce, and territory takeovers or changes in dominance hierarchy are likely.
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