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Maternal Aggression in Mammals

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Parental Care in Mammals

Abstract

The mammalian female exhibits a number of complex behaviors during pregnancy, parturition, and lactation that summate to ensure the survival of her young. The behaviors that have been selected for study have traditionally been those exhibited by the adult toward the young. The literature concerning the psychobiology of nursing, retrieving, and other pup-directed maternal activities is characterized by an impressive accumulation of research findings and theoretical principles (see Rosenblatt and Seigel, this volume). However, a less frequently studied dimension of maternal care is the dramatic change in female social behavior that occurs with pregnancy and subsequently with parturition and lactation. Instead of displaying passivity toward conspecifics, the pregnant and lactating mammal exhibits intense aggressive behavior, referred to as maternal aggression. This behavior most likely serves to protect the young but also may be involved in the regulation of social organization and population dynamics. We will speculate on both of these functions later on in the chapter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Albany, Albany, New York, 12222, USA

    Bruce B. Svare

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  1. Bruce B. Svare
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA

    David J. Gubernick  & Peter H. Klopfer  & 

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© 1981 Plenum Press, New York

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Svare, B.B. (1981). Maternal Aggression in Mammals. In: Gubernick, D.J., Klopfer, P.H. (eds) Parental Care in Mammals. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-3150-6_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-3150-6_5

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-3152-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-3150-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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