Dear MARMAM community, We are happy to share our latest publication:
Bouveroux, Th., Cantor, M., Berggren, P., Dulau, V., Estrade, V., Pérez-Jorge, S., Sharpe, M., Kiszka, J.J. (2026). Potential effects of geographic isolation and density-dependence on the social structure of coastal dolphins. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 80:134 ABTRACT Understanding the drivers of social structure in free-ranging cetaceans remains challenging, as sociality emerges from the interplay between intrinsic (e.g., age, sex) and extrinsic factors (e.g., habitat characteristics, population density). In bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.), social structure varies among populations, but the relative importance of multiple drivers has been hindered by the lack of standardized, comparative analyses across contrasting ecological and geographic contexts. Addressing this gap requires coordinated datasets spanning multiple populations and spatial scales. Here, we examined location-specific variation in association patterns and social network structure of Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (T. aduncus) across four sites in the southwestern Indian Ocean: two in eastern Africa (southern Kenya and Zanzibar) and two remote oceanic islands (Mayotte and Reunion). We specifically assessed the potential roles of density-dependent processes, dolphin home range size and geographic isolation in shaping social structures in these populations. Across sites, dolphins in Kenya and Zanzibar exhibited the highest social connectivity and network density, consistent with their smaller home ranges and higher local densities, while maintaining moderate levels of social differentiation. In contrast, the population off Mayotte, despite low density and large home range, showed the strongest social differentiation and the most fragmented network, characterized by highly selective associations and well-defined community structure. Dolphins off Reunion displayed high network cohesion but weak pairwise associations and moderate social differentiation, suggesting a well-mixed population. Overall, our results suggest that home range size and density-dependent effects play a stronger role in shaping social structure of bottlenose dolphins than geographic isolation. You can read the paper here: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-026-03812-7 Or contact me for a PDF copy: [email protected] Best regards, Thibaut Bouveroux, PhD Marine Mammal Expertise, Belgium Dauphin Island Sea Lab, Alabama USA
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