Society (animal behavior)

An organized group of animals whose members interact over time and may cooperate, communicate, or divide tasks. Animal societies range from loose associations to stable groups with differentiated roles.

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Social behavior: Behavior involving interactions between members of the same species. The broader category includes the interactions that form animal societies.
Cooperation: Interaction in which individuals jointly produce outcomes that benefit one or more participants. Cooperation enables shared tasks such as defense, care, and food gathering.
Honey bee: A eusocial bee species whose colonies contain reproductive queens, males, and worker females. Honey bee colonies illustrate extensive task specialization and coordinated group activity.
Aggregation (biology): A temporary or persistent gathering of organisms in one place, not necessarily involving social bonds. An aggregation may resemble a society while lacking sustained relationships or coordination.
Sociality: The tendency of individuals to associate and interact with others of their species. Differences in sociality help explain why some animals form enduring groups and others do not.
Reciprocal altruism: Behavior that benefits another individual at a cost to the actor, with benefits returned later. Repeated exchanges can sustain cooperation between nonrelatives.
Naked mole-rat: A burrowing rodent species with eusocial organization and a strongly skewed reproductive system. Its colonies show that eusociality occurs beyond insects.
Solitary animal: An animal that typically lives and forages alone outside mating or parental periods. Solitary species show the alternative to stable group living.
Animal communication: The transmission of information between animals through signals such as sounds, scents, displays, or touch. Signals coordinate group activity and convey information among members.
Division of labor: The allocation of different tasks to different individuals or groups. Specialized tasks let some animal societies coordinate work beyond what individuals do alone.