Sociobiology of Caviomorph Rodents

Fully integrative approach to the socibiology of caviomorph rodents   Brings together research on social systems with that on epigenetic, neurendocrine and developmental mechanisms of social behavior Describes the social systems of many previously understudied caviomorph species, identifying the fitness costs and benefits of social living in current day populations as well as quantified evolutionary patterns or trends   Highlights potential parallels and differences with other animal models

Acknowledgments ix Notes on contributors xi Introduction xv 1 The caviomorph rodents: distribution and ecological diversification 1 Ricardo A. Ojeda, Agustina A. Ojeda and Agustina Novillo 2 Diversity of social behavior in caviomorph rodents 28 Christine R. Maher and Joseph R. Burger 3 Comparative neurobiology and genetics of mammalian social behavior 59 Annaliese Beery, Yasmin Kamal, Raúl Sobrero and Loren D. Hayes 4 Developmental underpinnings of social behavior 91 Valentina Colonnello, Ruth C. Newberry and Jaak Panksepp 5 Dispersal in caviomorph rodents 119 Eileen A. Lacey 6 Mechanisms of social communication in caviomorph rodents 147 Gabriel Francescoli, Selene Nogueira and Cristian Schleich 7 Causes and evolution of group-living 173 Luis A. Ebensperger and Loren D. Hayes 8 Rodent sociality: a comparison between caviomorphs and other rodent model systems 201 Nancy G. Solomon and Brian Keane 9 Cooperation in caviomorphs 228 Rodrigo A. Vásquez 10 Caviomorphs as models for the evolution of mating systems in mammals 253 Emilio A. Herrera 11 Parent-offspring and sibling-sibling interactions in caviomorph rodents: a search for elusive patterns 273 Zuleyma Tang-Martínez and Elizabeth R. Congdon 12 Fitness consequences of social systems 306 Loren D. Hayes and Luis A. Ebensperger 13 An integrative view of caviomorph social behavior 326 Luis A. Ebensperger and Loren D. Hayes Glossary 356 Index 371