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Other than people, not many other animals get care from their fathers. When animals do, their offspring may benefit. The University of Notre Dame revealed that early father-daughter connections affect female baboon survival.
The Proceedings of the Royal Society B study examined how father baboons may affect their daughters when they co-reside or engage with them, even if their mothers give complete care. Early-life paternal connections’ effects on young ones were mainly unknown till now.
After a few youngsters and as their condition decreases, adult male baboons enter ‘dad mode,’ when they don’t depart or mate as often. Thus, they may spend more time with their kids.
In the Amboseli region in East Africa, researchers discovered that one-third of 216 female baboons lived with their fathers for three years or longer. The remaining two-thirds had fathers who departed or died within their daughters’ initial three-year period.
They also examined young females’ grooming practices with their fathers and other adult males, which suggests father-daughter and other connections may be strong. The researchers suggested that grooming, which promotes hygiene and socialization, is like sitting down for coffee and a talk.
The research discovered that daughters who had good father-daughter connections, co-resided with their fathers for a minimum of three years and survived up to four years longer than those with poor relationships.
This study implies that having a father helps girls who have had early life trauma recover some of those costs.
Fathers are known for not providing much care in many species, but we now know that even these small efforts have substantial effects, at least in baboons.
More time together strengthened father-daughter grooming relationships. Strong connections between juvenile females and adult males failed to predict adult survival. This may be because male baboons protect their daughters and the mothers from other members of the group during conflicts.
Males’ popularity in their social group seems to extend a child’s social network. Many baboons approach the males. Thus, little ones that hangs out with a guy has more diversified relationships with others than with the mother. Fathers may provide a safe space for their daughters.
The researchers think this study may reveal the evolutionary foundations of human parental care, even if mammalian fathers may not provide much for their kids.
Sources:
David J. Jansen et al. (2025). Early-life paternal relationships predict adult female survival in wild baboons, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2025.0194
Father-daughter bonding may help female baboons live longer. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-father-daughter-bonding-female-baboons.html
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