Agonistic Behavior

Abstract

The term “agonistic behavior” denotes all behavior shown in situations of conflict between two—or more—individuals (I limit its application to intraspecific interactions). This includes all forms of aggression, threat, and intimidation, but also “nonaggressive” responses to them, viz. defense, appeasement, and submission. The behavior involved is very complex, and the scope of this presentation does not allow an exhaustive treatment, quite apart from the fact that large gaps still exist in our knowledge of the agonistic behavior of African ungulates. I will first attempt to outline some theoretic aspects, including what has been deduced on the evolution of various facets of agonistic behavior, and then give a condensed group-by-group review with specific examples.