Naked mole rat colonies are unusual among vertebrate...

Naked mole rat colonies are unusual among vertebrate societies, because
a. workers surrender breeding rights without challenge to a few males.
b. workers compete for breeding rights.
c. workers share breeding rights.
d. females select breeding males based on courtship signals.

Labs

Want to see this concept in action?

NEW

Explore this concept interactively to see how it behaves as you change inputs.

View Labs

Key Concepts

Eusociality

Eusociality is an advanced form of social organization characterized by a reproductive division of labor, cooperative care of young, and overlapping generations within a single colony. This system is well-known in social insects and rarely in vertebrates, where only a few individuals are responsible for reproduction while the rest perform supportive tasks.

Reproductive Skew

Reproductive skew refers to the uneven distribution of reproductive opportunities within a group, where only selected members have the chance to breed. In species that display high reproductive skew, the majority of the individuals forgo their own reproduction, ensuring that only designated breeders contribute genetically to future generations.

Cooperative Breeding

Cooperative breeding is a strategy exhibited by individuals in a social group who assist in raising offspring that are not their own. This behavior is often linked with eusociality and significant reproductive skew, as non-breeding members work collectively to improve the survival and success of the group’s offspring.

Transcript

Please give Ace some feedback