Kin Recognition in Animals: The prevalence of nepotism among animals raises basic questions about how and why they distinguish relatives from unrelated individuals
Holmes WG and Sherman PW. 1983. Kin Recognition in Animals: The prevalence of nepotism among animals raises basic questions about how and why they distinguish relatives from unrelated individuals. American Scientist. 71(1):46-55
This report looks at S. Belding's ground squirrels in Tioga Pass at the process of kin recognition. Kin recognition is the differential treatment of conspecifics as a function of their genetic relatedness. Investigators with various theoretical orientations have employed a diversity of techniques to investigate how and why individuals discriminate among conspecifics. We have suggested that, from a proximate perspective, kin recognition is usually based on spatial distribution or direct association during rearing. We have also described an additional mechanism that could facilitate recognition between relatives who have not previously associated with each other. This mechanism, phenotype matching, is based on learning about one's own phenotype or those of known relatives, and then comparing phenotypes of unfamiliar conspecifics to this template.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Holmes, Warren; Sherman, Paul
- Units
- YOSE
- Keywords
- Animal Studies, Belding's ground squirrel (Spermophilus beldingi), kinship, phenotypes