Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate
Summary: Similarity or homophily in personality drives preferential strong social bonds or friendships in humans and some non-human primate species. However, little is known about the general behavioral “decision rules” underlying animal friendships in other taxa. We investigated a feral and free-ra...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2024-12-01
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| Series: | iScience |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224026440 |
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| author | Debottam Bhattacharjee Kate J. Flay Alan G. McElligott |
| author_facet | Debottam Bhattacharjee Kate J. Flay Alan G. McElligott |
| author_sort | Debottam Bhattacharjee |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Summary: Similarity or homophily in personality drives preferential strong social bonds or friendships in humans and some non-human primate species. However, little is known about the general behavioral “decision rules” underlying animal friendships in other taxa. We investigated a feral and free-ranging population of water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) to determine whether homophily in personality drives female friendships (n=30) in this social ungulate. Close spatial proximity served as an indicator of friendship, validated by affiliative body contact. A “bottom-up” method revealed three personality traits – social tension, vigilance, and general dominance. We found that individuals with lower personality differences (i.e., more similar) in social tension and general dominance traits exhibited higher spatial associations, suggesting that friendships in buffalo can form based on personality homophily. Our findings offer crucial insights into the role of personalities driving complex social patterns in species beyond primates. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-22c944930a4f45178cb12b2f87a7c8c1 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2589-0042 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | iScience |
| spelling | doaj-art-22c944930a4f45178cb12b2f87a7c8c12024-12-22T05:29:18ZengElsevieriScience2589-00422024-12-012712111419Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulateDebottam Bhattacharjee0Kate J. Flay1Alan G. McElligott2Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR; Centre for Animal Health and Welfare, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR; Corresponding authorDepartment of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SARDepartment of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR; Centre for Animal Health and Welfare, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR; Corresponding authorSummary: Similarity or homophily in personality drives preferential strong social bonds or friendships in humans and some non-human primate species. However, little is known about the general behavioral “decision rules” underlying animal friendships in other taxa. We investigated a feral and free-ranging population of water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) to determine whether homophily in personality drives female friendships (n=30) in this social ungulate. Close spatial proximity served as an indicator of friendship, validated by affiliative body contact. A “bottom-up” method revealed three personality traits – social tension, vigilance, and general dominance. We found that individuals with lower personality differences (i.e., more similar) in social tension and general dominance traits exhibited higher spatial associations, suggesting that friendships in buffalo can form based on personality homophily. Our findings offer crucial insights into the role of personalities driving complex social patterns in species beyond primates.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224026440Wildlife behaviorZoologyEvolutionary biology |
| spellingShingle | Debottam Bhattacharjee Kate J. Flay Alan G. McElligott Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate iScience Wildlife behavior Zoology Evolutionary biology |
| title | Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate |
| title_full | Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate |
| title_fullStr | Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate |
| title_full_unstemmed | Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate |
| title_short | Personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate |
| title_sort | personality homophily drives female friendships in a feral ungulate |
| topic | Wildlife behavior Zoology Evolutionary biology |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004224026440 |
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