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INTEGRATING MOLECULAR TECHNIQUES WITH FIELD METHODS IN STUDIES OF SOCIAL BEHAVIOR: A REVOLUTION RESULTS
Author(s) -
Hughes Colin
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.144
H-Index - 294
eISSN - 1939-9170
pISSN - 0012-9658
DOI - 10.1890/0012-9658(1998)079[0383:imtwfm]2.0.co;2
Subject(s) - polygyny , mating system , kinship , kin selection , behavioral ecology , mating , ecology , social evolution , biology , evolutionary biology , field (mathematics) , vertebrate , selection (genetic algorithm) , sociology , computer science , artificial intelligence , demography , genetics , population , mathematics , pure mathematics , anthropology , gene
Studies of social behavior cover a broad spectrum of interactions, from short‐term pairing between individuals to more complex interactions within and among groups that have stable membership, particularly in vertebrate and insect societies. The addition of molecular techniques to widely used ecological, demographic, and behavioral methods has provided evidence that the behavioral dynamics of populations are far more complex than had been thought. These revelations have caused reassessment of established hypotheses and broadened the array of tractable questions. In this review I first discuss studies of vertebrate mating systems in which these techniques have been used to reveal the “genetic mating system,” often yielding results that have shaken long‐held hypotheses about monogamy and polygyny. Second, I discuss studies of social groups in which the techniques have allowed assessment of kinship and thereby permitted more comprehensive application of kin selection theory; these studies have illuminated phenomena as diverse as ant colony sex ratios and cooperative breeding in birds. The use of DNA sequence data to provide robust phylogenies that support rigorous comparative analyses is just beginning. Such analyses will lead to investigation of how changes in species’ environments have been associated with evolutionary changes in social behavior.