In Washington DC, coalitions are always formed, with prominent congress(wo)men establishing a staunch public stance on controversial topics, usually to increase their own popularity with certain constituencies, and/or to increase their power. But what about the little-known, junior representative who backs the political giant? What does s/he get? Usually, a nice transportation funding package for the home state, ensuring future votes, or the gratitude of the senior official, perhaps leading to a future seat on an important committee. Well, it seems that chimpanzees operate in much the same way.

Although this won’t be the first time that someone compares Washington politics to monkey business, a new study in Current Biology exposes some of the intricate policies that exist in the world of male dominance amongst chimps. While these great apes may cooperate on a variety of tasks designed to help the colony as a whole, there is a fierce competition amongst the males for dominance and, of course, females. In order to ensure a dominant position, stronger males form coalitions to achieve and maintain status within the group. Once the alpha male is in place, these coalitions are sustained. What is unclear is what benefits the “supporters” derive from protecting and promoting the status of another male.

In the current study, the authors found that when females were ready to mate, the alpha male seized the lion’s share of the opportunities, as expected. Interestingly, they went on to describe that the way other males supported their leader was to protect him during his mating attempts. In return, the alpha male from this particular colony paid in full with the only currency that has long-lasting value to his cohorts: mating opportunities for themselves. The alpha male was much more tolerant of the mating attempts initiated by chimpanzees that supported his own copulatory tendencies the most, and interfered with the reproductive advances made by non-supportive males. It seems that the advantage of even a little access to receptive females is enough of a carrot to entice weaker males to defend Darwinian law and make it easier for the most-fit male to pass on his genes. For the alpha male, the allure and rich compensation of being on top trumps the instinct to fend off every potential rival, leading to the relinquishment of a handful of valuable mating attempts. Therefore, as in Washington, the price of remaining in power for a chimp is to make life easier for your friends and downright miserable for your enemies.

Duffy, K., Wrangham, R., & Silk, J. (2007). Male chimpanzees exchange political support for mating opportunities Current Biology, 17 (15) DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2007.06.001