Pair living as stepping stone from solitary life to complex societies: study

Alone, as a pair or in groups—the diversity in social systems of primates is interesting because it may also provide insights into human social life. An evolutionary biologist from the German Primate Center—Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, together with a colleague from the University of Texas at San Antonio, investigated how different primate societies evolved and which factors may be responsible for transitions among them. The reconstructions showed that the evolution from a solitary way of life to group living usually occurred via pair living. Pair living thus served as a stepping stone for group living and therefore plays a key role in the evolution of social systems. The study is published in Science Advances.

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