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From: A.S.Chamove@massey.ac.nz (A.S. Chamove)
Newsgroups: sci.bio,alt.romance,soc.men,soc.women,soc.singles
Subject: Re: Are Humans Naturally Monogamous?
Message-ID: <1990Nov14.005513.28667@massey.ac.nz>
Date: 14 Nov 90 00:55:13 GMT
References: <1990Oct25.140829.19268@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu> <58695@microsoft.UUCP> <1990Nov2.204258.9087@isc.rit.edu> <58975@microsoft.UUCP>
Organization: Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
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One way to suggest an answer to the question, is to describe
the characteristics of monogamy in mammals.
There are two types of monogamy
1--Faculative monogamy may result when a species exists at very
low densities, with males and females being so spaced that only a
single member the opposite sex is available for mating.
2--Obligate monogamy appears to occur when a solitary female cannot
rear a littter without aid from conspecifics, but the carrying
capacity of the habitat is insufficiant to allow more than one
female to breed simultaneously within the same home range.

Within BOTH types of monogamy, the following traits are typically
seen:
1--adults show little sexual dimorphism either physically or
behaviourally;
2--the adult male and female exhibit infrequent sexual interactions
except during the early stage of pair bonding.
Additional trends specific to mammals showing obligate monogamy are:
1--the young show delayed sexual maturing in the presence of parents,
and thus only the adult pair breed;
2--the older juveniles aid in the care of young sibs;
3--the adult male aids in the rearing of the young by any or all of
the following: carrying, feeding, defending, and socializing 
offspring.

arnold
new zealand

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