Social structure of pilot whales revealed by analytical DNA profiling.
Long-finned pilot whales swim in large, extremely cohesive social groups known as pods. Molecular typing revealed that pod members form a single extended family. Mature males neither disperse from nor mate within their natal pods, a situation unusual for mammals. Such behavior could be explained in terms of inclusive fitness benefits gained by adult males helping the large number of female relatives with which they swim.
Amos
B
B
Department of Genetics, Cambridge University, United Kingdom.
Schlötterer
C
C
Tautz
D
D
D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D004276:DNA, Satellite / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides / Q000235:genetics; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal; D012919:Social Behavior; D014907:Whales / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
D004276:DNA, Satellite; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides