Primate Social Systems

This book grew from small beginnings as I began to find unexpected patterns emerging from the data in the literature. The more I thought about the way in which primate social systems worked, the more interesting things turned out to be. I am conscious that, at times, this has introduced a certain amount of complexity into the text. I make no apologies for that: what we are dealing with is a complex subject, the product of evolutionary forces interacting with very sophisticated minds. None the less, I have done my best to explain every­ thing as clearly as I can in order to make the book accessible to as wide an audience as possible. I have laid a heavy emphasis in this book on the use of simple graphical and mathematical models. Their sophistication, however, is not great and does not assume more than a knowledge of elementary probability theory. Since their role will inevitably be misunderstood, I take this opportunity to stress that their function is essentially heuristic rather than explanatory: they are designed to focus our attention on the key issues so as to point out the directions for further research. A model is only as good as the questions it prompts us to ask. For those whose natural inclination is to dismiss modelling out of hand, I can only point to the precision that their use can offer us in terms of hypothesis-testing.

1. Primates and their Societies -- Asking the Right Questions -- The Primate Heritage -- Primate Social Systems -- 2. Theory of Reproductive Strategies -- An Evolutionary Perspective -- Optimal Strategy Sets -- A Question of Ontogeny -- Structure and Function in Primate Society -- 3. Survival Strategies -- Nutritional Requirements -- Dietary Strategies -- Optimal Foraging -- Exploiting the Habitat -- Economics of Territoriality -- The Problem of Predation -- 4. Demographic Processes: (1) Lifehistory Variables -- Lifehistory Variables -- Variance in Birth Rates -- Mortality Rates -- 5. Demographic Processes: (2) Population Parameters -- Population Dynamics -- Migration and Fission -- Sex Ratio -- 6. Time Budgets and Other Constraints -- Time Budgets -- Demographic Constraints on Behaviour -- 7. Evolution of Grouping Patterns -- Why Form Groups? -- Costs of Group-living -- Evolution of Groups -- Evolution of Social Structure -- 8. Mating Strategies -- Reproductive Behaviour in Primates -- Gaining Access to Mates -- Male Lifetime Reproductive Success -- Alternative Strategies of Mate Acquisition -- 9. Rearing Strategies -- Primate Rearing Patterns -- Ecology of Motherhood -- Social A…