But by forming a more fluid coalition they seem to be able to take on all comers. In the three years that the researchers watched them, they never lost a fight. Sheer force of numbers is one obvious advantage of the supergang, bringing between six and 14 individuals to any fight. But gang members don't just cruise around in one large group. Supergang males still need to form trios to optimise their chances of fatherhood, but they do not have much loyalty to these smaller groups.
Individuals join between three and seven trios in a single year.
Indeed, the most flexible gang members seem to get the most females. He thinks that this extreme fluidity of alliances is what holds the group together. What's remarkable, he notes, is that the overall gang membership did not change during his three years of study. Explaining why the supergang formed in the first place is a bit trickier. Connor points out that group living is usually an adaptation to certain types of habitat.