Lethal combats in the forest among wild western gorillas

• DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109437
• Publication Date: 2024-03-06T17:47:30Z
• Authors: Hugo Potel; Frédéric Stéphane...; Chloé Cipolletta; Terence Neba Fuh; Giulia Bardino; Emmanuel Konyal; Paolo Strampelli; Phillipp Henschel; Shelly Masi
• Keywords: Gorilla; Frugivore; Sexual dimorphism; Sociality; Polygyny; Crotalus; Scramble competition

Lethal intergroup encounters occur in many species because of sexual selection. While documented mountain gorillas, they are absent western gorillas as, instead, it is predicted by their higher feeding (frugivory) and mate competition (single-vs. multi-male groups). We investigate whether the injuries on three dead silverbacks one adult female from four groups Central African Republic, resulted interactions with or leopards. identified two distinct injury patterns caused (isolated lacerations, round wounds) leopards (punctures clustered head/neck) analyzing to non-gorilla species, respectively. The gorilla pattern similar that suggesting lethal occur, albeit infrequently, as selection a one-male society. dimorphism polygynous sociality favored evolution violent encounters, multiple males may influence frequency.