Male influx, infanticide, and female transfer in Macaca radiata radiata

Abstract

In bonnet macaques, males usually disperse between groups and females remain philopatric, but researchers have reported female transfer. We report a rare case of male influx during the mating season in our bonnet macaque study group in the Anaimalai Hills. The density of bonnet macaques in the study region was unusually high. The study group had a single, crippled adult male with a long tenure and 5 adult females. During the mating season, adult females approached and mated with outgroup males, and then several males entered the group. The adult male left the group without any resistance. The incoming males mated with 3 receptive females, forcibly mated with 2 lactating females, and attacked and killed 2 infants. During the influx, 2 outgroup females joined the group. The data suggest that male influxes provide an opportunity for infanticide and female transfer, which can have important fitness consequences even in species in which they rarely occur.