Animal societies are typically divided into those in which reproduction within a group is monopolized by a single female versus those in which it is shared among multiple females. It remains controversial, however, whether ...

Tropical and subtropical species typically experience relatively high atmospheric temperatures during reproduction, and are subject to climate-related challenges that are largely unexplored, relative to more extensive work ...

Butterfly eyespots are known to function in predator deflection and predator intimidation, but it is still unclear what factors cause eyespots to serve one function over the other. Both functions have been demonstrated in ...

Discrete colour morphs associated with alternative mating tactics are assumed to be ecologically equivalent. Yet suites of behaviours linked with reproduction can also favour habitat segregation and exploitation of different ...

How to optimally allocate time, energy and investment in an effort to maximize one’s reproductive success is a fundamental problem faced by all organisms. This effort is complicated when the production of each additional ...

Animals communicating via scent often deposit composite signals that incorporate odorants from multiple sources however, the function of mixing chemical signals remains understudied. We tested both a ‘multiple-messages’ ...

Ancient population expansions and dispersals often leave enduring signatures in the cultural traditions of their descendants, as well as in their genes and languages. The international folktale record has long been regarded ...

Behavioural plasticity can drive the evolution of new traits in animals. In oviparous species, plasticity in oviposition behaviour could promote the evolution of new egg traits by exposing them to different selective ...

There is increasing evidence that females can somehow improve their offspring fitness by mating with multiple males, but we understand little about the exact stage(s) at which such benefits are gained. Here, we measure ...

Humans divide themselves up into separate cultures, which is a unique and ubiquitous characteristic of our species. Kinship norms are one of the defining features of such societies. Here we show how norms of marital residence ...