Intertroop relations of chacma baboon (Papio ursinus)

Intertroop relations among four troops of the chacma baboon population on the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve, southern Transvaal, South Africa, were studied for 18 months using radiotelemetry. Encounters between troops occurred only rarely and were relatively nonantagonistic in character. Dominance among the four troops was difficult to identify by means of behavior although differences in range quality among the four were marked. The way in which intertroop relations affected the fitness of members of each of the troops was, therefore, unclear. Transfer of individuals from one troop to another was easily accomplished by both males and females and probably negated the effects of differential range quality on individual reproductive fitness.