Group living is predicted to arise only when the fitness benefits outweigh the costs of
sociality. Group-living species—including cooperatively breeding and family-living birds and …

For decades, avian endocrinology has been informed by male perspectives and male-
focused research, leaving significant gaps in our understanding of female birds. Male birds …

Carotenoid pigments produce most red, orange and yellow colours in vertebrates. This
coloration can serve as an honest signal of quality that mediates social and mating …

Although cooperatively breeding vertebrates occur disproportionately in unpredictable
environments, the underlying mechanism shaping this biogeographic pattern remains …

Naked mole-rats form eusocial colonies consisting of a single breeding female (the queen),
several breeding males, and sexually immature adults (subordinates). Subordinates are …

Reproduction is an energetically costly phenomenon. Therefore, to optimize reproductive
success, male birds invest enough energetic resources for maintaining well-developed …

Abstract In Damaraland mole-rats (Fukomys damarensis), non-breeding subordinates
contribute to the care of offspring born to the breeding pair in their group by carrying and …

Parental care is costly, thus theory predicts that parents should avoid caring for unrelated
offspring. However, alloparenting has been reported in many taxa because it may increase …

The cost of reproduction results in a life-history trade-off where investment in current
reproduction via costly parental care decreases subsequent fitness. Although this trade-off is …

Highlights•We conducted a field study on a group-living, social cichlid fish.•We used
behavioural scoring and computer tracking to study their social environment.•Groups with …