SOCIAL ORGANISATION IN

ANIMALS.

SAJU J ZACHARIA
17-PZO-017

SAJU J ZACHARIA
17-PZO-017
 CONTENT
• Introduction- Definition
• Charecters of animal society
• Social organization in Invertebrates
• Social organization in Vertebrates
• Advantages of Social organization
• Disadvantages of Social organization
• Socialization in Humans.
 DEFINITION

Animal society is a stable group of individuals which

• Inter communicates with each other
• Posses a permanent social structure
• Specialised based on division of labour.
• Strict cohesion among the members
• Impermeability to non-Conspecifics.
 Why Social Organization?
Individuals of species which exist as societies give up solitary existence to
become members of a group mainly because of two reasons.
1. KIN SELECTION.
2. DIRECT BENEFIT.
 Kin selection
• Kin selection is a type of natural selection where individuals will sacrifice
their own lives in an effort to save closely related organisms therefore,
ensuring the survival of genes that they both share.
• Animal group may be composed of close relatives. Every organisms has
tendency to protect and propagate its own or relative genetic material.
• Eg. Alarm calls o ground squirrels.
 Direct Benefit
Eg.
1. Birds that joins a flock may receive greater protection from the predators.
Because there are more individuals to scan the environment.
2. Hunting in groups can increase success and allow group to tackle large
prey beyond the limit of an individual.
CHARECTERS OF ANIMAL SOCIETY
1. Communication.
2. Cohesion
3. Division of labour
4. Permanence and impermeability.
 1. Communication.
• All organised animal societies have some forms of communication systems.
• Forms of communication may be
i. Chemical
ii. Visual
iii. Auditory
iv. Tactile.
 2. Cohesion
• Individuals constituting a society tend to remain in close proximity to one
another.
Eg. All bees of a group live in one hive.
 3. Division Of Labour.
• In organised societies animals of different status, sexes or age groups have
different functions in maintaining the society.

• Eg. In a bee hive:

Workers(builders, nurses, fanners, repairers and foragers)
Drones(fertilizes queens)
Queens of (lays eggs)
 4. Permanence and Impermeability
• The individuals making up a society tend to be same. There is a little
migration occurs from the group.
• Most organised societies resist immigration.
• Thus social groups remains same.
 SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AMONG
INVERTEBRATES
SOCIAL ORGANIZATION OF INSECTS.
o Sociality has chiefly evolved in two orders
• Hymenoptera – Wasp, Bees and Ants.
• Isoptera – Termites.
o Exhibit Eusociality- True Sociality, Highest level of social organisation
charecterised by:
• Overlap of adult generations
• Division of reproductive labour
• Cooperative care for young ones.
 HONEYBEES
• Queen(fertile female) secretes a pheromone called ‘Queen substance’ which
suppresses development of ovaries in other females( Sterile workers)
• Drones( Male fertile) are produced only for mating.
• Average life span of worker bees is about 6 weeks, in which her activities are
synchronised with her physiology.
Period in lifespan of a worker bee. Activities
.
1-3 Cleans the cell, feed older larvae.

6-14 Start to secrete ‘Royal jelly’ feed queen larvae and other
younger larvae
After 10th day wax gland secretion begins, start to construct comb cells.

18-20 guard the hive.

21-42 foraging
• Workers posses Nasonov Scent Gland(NSG), releases a pheromone which
attracts other workers.
• Waggle dances and round dances are the important communication methods
of honey bees to communicate location of food.
• Some members of the colony do not receive sufficient quantity of ‘queen
substance’ as the colony grows. They began to develop into new queens.
Which are fed by ‘Royal Jelly’ by the workers.
• Then the Colony begin preparation for swarming.
• Scout workers look for new suitable nest site communicate the location of
the colony. Old queen and swarm of bees move to new site.
A new queen emerges in the left behind hive. Flies out to mate. Returns to hive
to ‘rule’.
 TERMITES
• Both sexes are differentiated
Females – Queens(fertile), Workers, Soldiers
Males – Kings(fertile), Workers, soldiers.
• Soldiers posses a large mandible with big head portion which can produce defensive
secretions.
• Workers are larger/smaller in size, white coloured, wingless, broad headed, remain sterile.
• Reproductive pair( Single pair of king and queen usually occurs in a colony)produces
pheromones from their anus, which is circulated in the food, enters other individuals and in
turn passed other individuals through their anal discharge.
 SOCIAL ORGANIZATION IN
VERTEBRATES.

• Vertebrate society are usually less rigidly organised and cohensive than invertebrate societies.
• Parental care is highly developed. Size of the social organization directly proportional to the
length of the parental care.
• Offsprings, after a certain length of parental care are set free for an independent life. -
WEANING.
• Protection is provided by the dominant members of the society, which move towards the
end of the territories and younger/weak move inwards to protect themselves.
• Generally display more conflicts and aggression among group members.
 In Different Vertebrate Groups:

• Fishes.
Social attraction is not so well developed. Female lay eggs in
large number. Males discharge sperms to fertilize it.
They exhibit shoaling and schooling.
Parental care is observed.
• Amphibians
Similar to the case of fishes.
Both sexes comes together for a short time to mate and then depart.
• Reptiles
More advanced than fishes and amphibians. Many individuals come together to form
groups for the purpose of liberation.
Eg. Many snakes come closer to live in dense to avoid cold.

• Birds
Parental care is more advanced than reptiles.
Many birds make calls or sing song to communicate among their members of society.
Some birds exhibit brood parasitism. Eg. Indian Koel.
Society may be open/Closed. Organised/Unorganised. They may form
pairs/Family/Flocks
Intraspecific/Interspecific (Eg. Pelicans and gulls nest together on the islands of Great
Salt Lake.)
• Mammals
Most mammals live in pairs or groups.
Two factors affecting mammal social organisation
i. Resource distribution - Control the formation of large groups(Top carnivores cannot
live so densely)
ii. Predator pressure – Large groups are better adapted to deal with predator
pressure.(More males are seen in group living in area of high predation pressure.)
• Dominance hierarchy make societies more complex.
• Communication system is highly developed.
 ADVANTAGES OF SOCIAL
ORGANISATION
• I. ANTIPREDATION.- Socialtity enhances defence against predation.
a) Alarm Calls- One or more individuals detect predators and warn others by alarm
calls.
b) Induction of startle response in predators. – Eg. Simultaneous erratic scattering or
flight of many individuals is likely to be more confusing.
c) Mobbing. – In some societies adult animals mob a predator to scare it away.
II. FEEDING EFFICIENCY
a. Cooperative foraging. – It is easier to catch a prey for a group of animals instead of
catching it alone by an individual. Eg. Group of Wolves is able to hunt a larger animal
like Zebra.
b. Aunt Behaviour. – The animals of a group can leave their young ones with other group
members and go for foraging. Eg. In case of lions, few adults of the group look after the
young ones while other members go out for foraging.
c. Mutual vigilance – Each individual gets more foraging time by mutual vigilance for the
predators
III. FACILITATION OF REPRODUCTION.
• It is easy to find a mate by living in in groups.
• The sexual urge for mating increases when a member sees others courting and mating.
IV. CULTURE
• A particular skill once discovered by an inmate suddenly or by trial and error, persist
throughout the group, if it is adaptive. Eg. Japanese monkeys food washing behaviour.
 DISADVANTAGES OF SOCIAL
ORGANISATION.
• Limitation of food and other resources.
• Due to inbreeding, fitness level goes down.
• Due to sexual selection, more aggressive males are created which have lesser
chance of being integrated into societies.
• More chances of occurrence and spread of diseases.
 Socialization Of Man
• Most organised society seen so for in vertebrates, where individual’s life is guided by
Instinct, Learning, Memory, and Intelligence.
• By developing their speech, most efficient system of communication they have
dominated the entire world.
• Using their intelligence;
-they build houses,
-make weapons to protect. (But often used among themselves whenever
conflicts occur
oc for domination.),
-use and conserve natural resources.
-learned information are passed constantly from generations to generations.
-Made different laws for better social living.
RECAP
• Animal society is a stable group of individuals which Inter communicates with
each other, Posses a permanent social structure, Specialised based on division of
labour, Strict cohesion among the members, Impermeability to non-Conspecifics
• Individuals form societies as they are directly benefitted and because of kin selection.
• Charecters of animal society are Communication, Cohesion, Division of labour,
Permanence and impermeability
• In invertebrates, Sociality has chiefly evolved in two orders Hymenoptera(Wasp, Bees
and Ants.) and Isoptera (Termites.). Exhibit Eusociality
• Vertebrates society, is less rigidly organised and cohesive than invertebrate societies
Parental care is highly developed. Size of the society is directly proportional to the
length of the parental care. Protection is provided by the dominant members of the
society. Generally display more conflicts and aggression among group members.
RECAP…
• ADVANTAGES OF SOCIAL ORGANISATION
i. ANTIPREDATION.- Alarm Calls, Induction of startle response in predators and
Mobbing.
ii. FEEDING EFFICIENCY – Cooperative, foraging, Aunt Behaviour and Mutual
vigilance
iii. FACILITATION OF REPRODUCTION- Easy to find mates
iv. CULTURE- Learned behaviours and skills are transferred to inmates.
• DISADVATAGES OF SOCIAL ORGANIZATION.
i. Limitation of food
ii. Inbreeding depression
iii. Through sexual selection more aggressive males are created which have lesser chance of
being integrated into societies.
iv. More chances of occurrence and spread of diseases
RECAP…

• SOCIAL ORGANIZATION IN HUMANS

• Individual’s life is guided by Instinct, Learning, Memory, and Intelligence.
• Speech, the most efficient system of communication has been developed.
• They; make weapons to protect, use and conserve natural resources., pass learned
information constantly and effectively from generations to generations and made different
laws for better social living.
 Thank You.

Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify
your Father in heaven.
(Mathew 5;16)