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Sex differences in adult lifespan and aging rates of mortality across wild mammals.


ABSTRACT: In human populations, women consistently outlive men, which suggests profound biological foundations for sex differences in survival. Quantifying whether such sex differences are also pervasive in wild mammals is a crucial challenge in both evolutionary biology and biogerontology. Here, we compile demographic data from 134 mammal populations, encompassing 101 species, to show that the female's median lifespan is on average 18.6% longer than that of conspecific males, whereas in humans the female advantage is on average 7.8%. On the contrary, we do not find any consistent sex differences in aging rates. In addition, sex differences in median adult lifespan and aging rates are both highly variable across species. Our analyses suggest that the magnitude of sex differences in mammalian mortality patterns is likely shaped by local environmental conditions in interaction with the sex-specific costs of sexual selection.

SUBMITTER: Lemaitre JF 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7165438 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Sex differences in adult lifespan and aging rates of mortality across wild mammals.

Lemaître Jean-François JF   Ronget Victor V   Tidière Morgane M   Allainé Dominique D   Berger Vérane V   Cohas Aurélie A   Colchero Fernando F   Conde Dalia A DA   Garratt Michael M   Liker András A   Marais Gabriel A B GAB   Scheuerlein Alexander A   Székely Tamás T   Gaillard Jean-Michel JM  

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20200323 15


In human populations, women consistently outlive men, which suggests profound biological foundations for sex differences in survival. Quantifying whether such sex differences are also pervasive in wild mammals is a crucial challenge in both evolutionary biology and biogerontology. Here, we compile demographic data from 134 mammal populations, encompassing 101 species, to show that the female's median lifespan is on average 18.6% longer than that of conspecific males, whereas in humans the female  ...[more]

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