Hanna Bensch

Research

In group living species, individuals can benefit from for example shared food search and predator avoidance, but these advantages often also come with costs of competition. My PhD research focused on understanding the causes and consequences of group living, from individual growth and survival to how group membership shape the gut microbiome. To do this, I used the Damaraland mole-rat (Fukomys damarensis) as my study species, using data from a long-term study population in the South African Kalahari Desert.

The Damaraland mole-rat live in family groups with of a single breeding pair and their non-breeding offspring in large tunnel systems under ground. With my data of several field seasons of recaptures of individuals and groups, and over 1000 of faecal samples to study their gut microbiome, I was able to dig deeper into the ecology of the Damaraland mole-rat in their natural habitat. My results revealed for example that: 1) large group sizes do not provide as strong benefits to the individuals, 2) single females are a widespread within our study population and can stay fit despite living by themselves for extended periods, 3) group compositions matter; within-group sex ratios and group sizes can predict growth of non-breeding individuals, and 4) group members have more similar gut microbiomes; group membership and birth group strongly predict gut microbiome variation within the population.