Doctoral Dissertation Research: Sources of of Conflict and Power Variation in Male-Female Relationship in White Sifaka (Propithecus Verreauxi Verreauxi)

动物社会中的力量通常是根据战斗能力或优势的差异来研究的。然而，其他更经济的权力形式，或杠杆，可能会影响个人的权力。两性之间的关系对于研究权力特别有趣，因为交配机会和保护服务可能在男性和女性之间交换，通常不能被武力夺走。这项研究的目的是考察一些与权力相关的因素，这些因素可能会导致男女关系的变化。这项研究将研究杠杆(基于雌性生殖状态和雌雄比例)和优势(基于战斗力)对白色西法卡雌雄关系的影响。白色梅花鹿是研究雌雄关系的理想物种。首先，男性和女性的战斗力不会有什么不同，因为他们的体型相同。尽管如此，雌性西法卡拥有优先获得资源的权利，并且经常对雄性具有攻击性。其次，生殖状态对雌雄关系的影响可以在不依赖激素分析的情况下确定，因为西法卡的交配季节非常短。第三，监视捕食者、呼叫警报和防御捕食者等服务可能是交换西法卡的重要货币。最后，这些狐猴生活在不同群体中的雄性和雌性比例不同的社会群体中。这些特征表明，优势的影响将减少，杠杆效应将更容易在这种物种中被观察到。从2000年10月到2002年3月，4名观察员将在马达加斯加基林迪森林收集6个不同性别比例的焦点群体的性别比、行为和体型数据。社区将按月进行人口普查。为了评估每个个体使用武力的能力，研究期间将收集4次身体大小和状况的数据，并将其与犬类大小数据结合起来。这项研究的更广泛意义包括更好地理解所有哺乳动物的雌雄关系，在交配系统之外，这一领域缺乏广泛的理论框架。此外，男女关系在关于人类社会进化的假说中发挥了重要作用。服务的交换，如父母照顾和杀婴保护，可能导致了性别之间的某种联系。利用经济和政治理论，这个跨学科的项目试图通过在一个雄性和雌性体型相同的物种中测试这些理论，来更好地理解人类的社会进化，因此，最适合研究非支配权力。

Power in animal societies is typically studied in terms of differences in fighting abilities, or dominance. However, other more economic forms of power, or leverage, may influence an individual's power. Relationships between the sexes are particularly interesting for studying power because mating opportunities and protection services may be exchanged between males and females and often cannot be taken by force. The objective of this research is to examine some power-related factors that can lead to variation in male-female relationships. This study will examine the effects of leverage (based upon female reproductive status and the ratio of males to females) and dominance (based upon fighting ability) on male-female relationships in white sifaka. The white sifaka is an ideal species for studying male-female relationships. First, males and females are not expected to differ in their fighting abilities because they are the same size. Nevertheless, female sifaka have priority of access to resources and often are aggressive towards males. Second, the effects of reproductive status on male-female relationships can be determined without depending upon hormone analysis because sifaka have a very short mating season. Third, services such as watching for predators, alarm calling, and defense against predators may be an important currency for exchange for sifaka. Finally, these lemurs live in social groups where the ratio of males to females varies across groups. These characteristics suggest that the effects of dominance will be reduced and that leverage effects will more easily be observed in this species.Sex ratio, behavioral, and body size data will be collected by 4 observers on 6 focal groups with different sex ratios at Kirindy forest in Madagascar from October 2000-March 2002. Neighborhoods will be censused monthly. To estimate each individual's ability to use force, body size and condition data will be collected 4 times during the study and combined with canine size data.The broader implications of this research include a better understanding of male-female relationships in all mammals, where a broad theoretical framework is lacking outside of mating systems. Moreover, male-female relationships have played a prominent role in hypotheses about human social evolution. The exchange of services, such as parental care and infanticide protection, may have led to some sort of bonding between the sexes. Using economic and political theory, this interdisciplinary project attempts to better understand human social evolution by testing these theories in a species where males and females are the same size, and hence, non-dominance power can best be studied.