Sex-specific body mass aging trajectories in adult Asian elephants

In species with marked sexual dimorphism, the classic prediction is that the sex which undergoes stronger intrasexual competition ages earlier or quicker. However, more recently, alternative hypotheses have been put forward, showing that this association can be disrupted. Here, we utilise a unique, longitudinal dataset of a semi-captive population of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus), a species with marked male-biased intrasexual competition, with males being larger and having shorter lifespans, and investigate whether males show earlier and/or faster body mass ageing than females. We found evidence of sex-specific body mass ageing trajectories: adult males gained weight up to the age of 48 years old, followed by a decrease in body mass until natural death. In contrast, adult females gained body mass with age until a body mass decline in the last year of life. Our study shows sex-specific ageing patterns, with an earlier onset of body mass declines in males than females, which is consis..., , The datasets have been anonymised. Please contact Prof. Virpi Lumma (virpi.lummaa at utu.fi) for information about Asian elephants datasets.
Please open README file for a description of the dataset and R-scripts., , # Sex-specific body mass ageing trajectories in adult Asian elephants

Dryad DOI: [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.5dv41ns59](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.5dv41ns59)

Lucas D. Lalande^1,2,3,*^, Virpi Lummaa^1,*^, Htoo H. Aung^4^, Win Htut^4^, U. Kyaw Nyein^4^, Vérane Berger^1,*^, Michael Briga^1,5,*^

^1^ Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland\
^2^ Université Bourgogne Franche- Comté, Dijon, France\
^3^ Université de Lyon, Université ClaudeBernard Lyon 1, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, UMR 5558, Villeurbanne CEDEX, France\
^4^ Myanma Timber Enterprise, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation, West Gyogone Forest Compound, Yangon, Myanmar\
^5^ Infectious Disease Epidemiology Group, Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Berlin, Germany

Sex-specific body mass ageing trajectories in adult Asian elephants\
*Journal of Evolutionary Biology*, **2022**\
DOI: [10.1111/jeb.14008](https://doi.org/10.1111/jeb.14008)

^*Corres...