Unveiling the Dark Side: The Hidden Motives of Female Meerkats

Dominant female meerkats exhibit a brutal behavior of killing female relatives and eating their offspring to maintain control of the mob. A new study suggests that these murderous matriarchs have a sex-specific signature of dominance that gives them super-immunity, resembling immunity genes seen in male baboons. Dominant female meerkats control up to 80% of breeding and have higher levels of cortisol and androgen hormones, as well as a higher body mass. They also show an increased response to inflammatory stimuli, indicating better preparedness to fight infections. The findings support the hypothesis that social status is dependent on the energy needed to achieve dominance and highlights the impact of social interactions on molecular processes in animals.