Long-term consequences of mother-offspring associations in eastern grey kangaroos

Abstract

Abstract: Close behavioural association between mothers and offspring should enhance survival and growth of the young. Eastern grey kangaroos Macropus giganteus are gregarious and live in fission-fusion societies where adult females do not form strong bonds with other females but associate closely with their juvenile offspring. We aimed to determine whether the strength of these mother-offspring associations correlated with offspring size, survival and reproduction. We observed 129 marked offspring, aged 10 to 21 months, and their mothers in a high-density population at Wilsons Promontory National Park, Australia. We used half-weight indices to quantify mother-offspring associations and dete..