Relationship Between Social Status and Wound-Healing in Wild Baboons
Findings show it’s best to be “top baboon”
Turns out it’s not bad being top dog, or in this case, top baboon.
Results of a study by University of Notre Dame biologist Beth Archie and colleagues from Princeton University and Duke University finds that male baboons that have a high rank within their society recover more quickly from injuries, and are less likely to become ill than other males.
The finding is somewhat surprising, given that top-ranked males also experience high stress, which should suppress immune responses. (more…)