Group structure in a restricted entry system is mediated by both resident and joiner preferences |
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Authors: | Lyndon A Jordan Carla Avolio James E Herbert-Read Jens Krause Daniel I Rubenstein Ashley J W Ward |
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Institution: | (1) Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, UNSW, Sydney, NSW, Australia;(2) School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia;(3) Department of Biology and Ecology of Fishes, Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany;(4) Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA |
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Abstract: | The benefits of grouping behaviour may not be equally distributed across all individuals within a group, leading to conflict
over group membership among established group members, and between residents and outsiders attempting to join a group. Although
the interaction between the preferences of joining individuals and existing group members may exert considerable pressure
on group structure, empirical work on group living to date has focussed on free entry groups, in which all individuals are
permitted entry. Using the humbug damselfish, Dascyllus aruanus, we examined a restricted entry grouping system, in which group residents control membership by aggressively rejecting potential
new members. We found that the preferences shown by joining members were not always aligned with strategies that incurred
the least harm from resident group members, suggesting a conflict between the preferences of residents and preferences of
group joiners. Solitary fish preferred to join familiar groups and groups of size-matched residents. Residents were less aggressive
towards familiar group joiners. However, resident aggression towards unfamiliar individuals depended on the size of the joining
individual, the size of the resident and the composition of the group. These results demonstrate that animal group structure
is mediated by both the preferences of joining individuals and the preferences of residents. |
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