Ring-tailed lemur

In the wild, ring-tails live in matriarchal social groups of up to 30 individuals. Females stay with their troop their whole lives. Hierarchy is typically established in their youth through play-fighting. Males are completely dominated by the females - even the lowliest female is superior to the highest-ranked male.

During mating season, males contest for female attention through ‘stink fights’. Coating their tails with smelly gland secretions, they wave them high in the air, each trying to out-stink rival males.

Males move between troops every 2-5 years. Many leave their natal troop as subadults to join other groups. They must fight their way to the top, otherwise lowly-ranked males get smacked around a lot.

Low-ranking males often end up hanging around the periphery of their troop to avoid being picked on. But these outliers risk getting picked off by predators easily. Studies show that these males use the gift of the gab to keep within the good graces of their group.

They rely on two sounds: a moan to stay in touch and a ‘hmm’ sound to signal friendliness towards more tolerant troop members.