Social Evolution in African Mole-Rats - A Comparative Overview.
Adv Exp Med Biol
; 1319: 1-33, 2021.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34424511
ABSTRACT
The African mole-rat superfamily are a unique group of subterranean rodents that are remarkable for their adaptations to a subterranean lifestyle and their range in sociality, spanning strictly solitary species to the naked mole-rat, the most social of all rodents. Widely distributed through sub-Saharan Africa their occurrence is associated with the presence of food resources in the form of underground roots, bulbs and tubers, which form their staple diet. African mole-rats have an ancient Oligocene/Eocene origin, with the naked mole-rat, the extant species with the earliest divergence from the common ancestor of the clade. As a consequence of its early evolution the naked mole-rat appears to have acquired many extraordinary biological features, even when compared with other mole-rats. Molecular phylogenies indicate that complex sociality and cooperative breeding has been convergently gained and/or lost more than once among African mole-rats, making them a fascinating group for comparative studies of social evolution. Ultimately, ecological constraints on digging and finding food have played a role in increasing cooperative behavior and social complexity, from what was most likely a monogamous ancestor living in family groups. Phylogenetically controlled comparisons suggest that proximate control of their lifestyle shows both conservation and divergence in the underlying mechanisms.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Ratos-Toupeira
/
Evolução Social
Limite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article