Mongooses are remarkably cooperative small carnivores. Understanding how their social systems protect individual welfare offers insights into animal cooperation and group living.
Mongoose social systems provide natural welfare protections through cooperation. Injured group members are tolerated and may receive care from group-mates, suggesting evolved welfare behaviors. However, within-group competition also generates social stress, particularly for subordinate females whose reproductive attempts may be suppressed or whose pups may be killed. Mongooses in wild habitats face growing threats from snares, road mortality, and habitat degradation. Research into mongoose social behavior has produced insights into the evolution of cooperation that inform both conservation management and our understanding of animal welfare in social species.