Alpha Male Smartest, Not Strongest

O

Orleander

OH JOY!!!!
Valued Senior Member
Isn't this how humans have evolved. The alpha male is now the smartest, not the strongest?

For every 300 Muscovites, there's a stray dog wandering the streets of Russia's capital. And according to Andrei Poyarkov, a researcher at the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, the fierce pressure of urban living has driven the dogs to evolve wolf-like traits, increased intelligence, and even the ability to navigate the subway.

Poyarkov has studied the dogs, which number about 35,000, for the last 30 years. Over that time, he observed the stray dog population lose the spotted coats, wagging tails, and friendliness that separate dogs from wolves, while at the same time evolving social structures and behaviors optimized to four ecological niches occupied by what Poyarkov calls guard dogs, scavengers, wild dogs, and beggars.

The guard dogs follow around, and receive food from, the security personnel at Moscow's many fenced in sites. They think the guards are their masters, and serve as semi-feral assistants. The scavengers roam the city eating garbage. The wild dogs are the most wolf-like, hunting mice, rats, and cats under the cover of night.

But beggar dogs have evolved the most specialized behavior. Relying on scraps of food from commuters, the beggar dogs can not only recognize which humans are most likely to give them something to eat, but have evolved to ride the subway. Using scents, and the ability to recognize the train conductor's names for different stops, they incorporate many stations into their territories.

Additionally, Poyarkov says the pack structure of the beggars reflects a reliance on brain over brawn for survival. In the beggar packs, the smartest dog, not the most physically dominant, occupies the alpha male position.

The evolution of Moscow's stray dogs has been going on since at least the mid-1800s, when Russian writers first mentioned the stray dog problem in the city. And that evolution has been propelled by deadly selective pressure. Most of the strays arrive on the streets as rejected house pets. Of those dogs kicked out of their homes, Poyarkov estimates fewer than 3 percent live long enough to breed. To survive those odds, a dog really does have to be the fittest.
 
The same thing is happening with deer in the United States. We have essentially wiped out all of their predators, so their population has mushroomed to the point that they have had to migrate into our cities and feed on our rich supply of cultivated vegetation. Buffalo has something like five times as many deer per square mile as any forest had 200 years ago. (They'll probably have to change the city name.;)) Nurseries struggle to stock the latest "deer-proof" ornamentals, only to find that there really is no such thing. When deer get hungry enough they will apparently eat any plant no matter how vile it tastes.

Without predation, their biggest threat to survival is now auto traffic. To avoid being killed by cars does not require speed and stealth, it requires intelligence. They can now read the lines on highways and will blithely stand and feed two inches from the edge of the traffic lanes on rural roads as the cars go whizzing past them.

They even understand signals. Here in the Washington region I have personally observed them standing at an intersection waiting for the pedestrian light to turn green, and then nonchalantly walking across the street in the crosswalk. Out here in the suburbs they're still a little wary of humans on foot, but in the city I've seen them stand in a huddle with the pedestrians, all waiting together for the light to change.

Biologists put radio collars on them to study their movements. One doe who lives in Rock Creek Park crosses one of the busiest, fastest streets in Washington twenty times every day, and in a year she has never been hit by a car.

Oh, and did I forget to mention that she has only three legs?
 
Orleander said:
Isn't this how humans have evolved. The alpha male is now the smartest, not the strongest?
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I disagree. The alpha male may be the smart, but they don't have to be. The person who seizes leadership of a group is usually the most charismatic, people usually follow you because they like what you have to say (if they don't feel physically threatened into it). People who are extremely smart do not always posess leadership abilities and people may not like their personality enough to consider them the leader.
 
CutsieMarie89 said:
People who are extremely smart do not always posess leadership abilities and people may not like their personality enough to consider them the leader.
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Smart people may not be the leader, but without smart people - your country becomes a banana republic ...more like Haiti.

The top leaders of China are all smart engineers (except one)
 
kmguru said:
Smart people may not be the leader, but without smart people - your country becomes a banana republic ...more like Haiti.

The top leaders of China are all smart engineers (except one)
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there are always smart people, whether the leader chooses to consult with them or not... But either way the smartest ones tend to not take leadership positions. They give advice. At least in my experience :shrug:
 
I believe the alpha male to be the most social (influential) one of the group these days
 
Fraggle Rocker said:
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They even understand signals. Here in the Washington region I have personally observed them standing at an intersection waiting for the pedestrian light to turn green, and then nonchalantly walking across the street in the crosswalk. Out here in the suburbs they're still a little wary of humans on foot, but in the city I've seen them stand in a huddle with the pedestrians, all waiting together for the light to change.

Biologists put radio collars on them to study their movements. One doe who lives in Rock Creek Park crosses one of the busiest, fastest streets in Washington twenty times every day, and in a year she has never been hit by a car.

Oh, and did I forget to mention that she has only three legs?
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That is beyond awesome!
 
In the world we live in today, the Alpha Male isn't always the one in the position of power or influence. Our systems of government and organizational and social structures are such that you sometimes end up with a person in that position who would not have achieved such status if the selection process had been more natural.

In a more natural setting, the person most equipped to ensure the survival of the group, even if they did not initially assume the role for whatever reason, will eventually emerge as the leader. This is often the result of recognition of certain qualities by the group in this person. There are exceptions to this of course. For example, sometimes the leader of the group is simply the person who is most able and/or most determined to take control.

Obviously, in the end, it's all about the circumstances that you find yourself in. If the situation calls for a physically strong leader, then it's likely that there will be one. If instead it calls for a highly intelligent and insightful individual, then it's likely that the "Alpha Male" will fit that description. Politics tends to royally screw with how this normally works and inevitably leads to instances where the person with the power and influence shouldn't necessarily be wielding it. In politics I guess you could say that the "Alpha Male" is the person who has done all the right favors for all the right people, or as we are fond of pointing out, is simply less unsuitable than the other candidates.
 
In response to OP, I have read this earlier while stumbling, its very intriguing. Perhaps in several decades we will catch these dogs to do our math homework - I'm sure they would make great seeing dogs for the blind. :)

Fraggle Rocker said:
The same thing is happening with deer in the United States. We have essentially wiped out all of their predators, so their population has mushroomed to the point that they have had to migrate into our cities and feed on our rich supply of cultivated vegetation. Buffalo has something like five times as many deer per square mile as any forest had 200 years ago. (They'll probably have to change the city name.;)) Nurseries struggle to stock the latest "deer-proof" ornamentals, only to find that there really is no such thing. When deer get hungry enough they will apparently eat any plant no matter how vile it tastes.

Without predation, their biggest threat to survival is now auto traffic. To avoid being killed by cars does not require speed and stealth, it requires intelligence. They can now read the lines on highways and will blithely stand and feed two inches from the edge of the traffic lanes on rural roads as the cars go whizzing past them.

They even understand signals. Here in the Washington region I have personally observed them standing at an intersection waiting for the pedestrian light to turn green, and then nonchalantly walking across the street in the crosswalk. Out here in the suburbs they're still a little wary of humans on foot, but in the city I've seen them stand in a huddle with the pedestrians, all waiting together for the light to change.
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The power of evolution!! I think it goes to point out that humans are not the only intelligence on the planet. Also, I take it that deer hunting is encouraged in the area? There is a similar problem in new zealand where they have too many rodents of some sort ... I think its possum. People are encouraged to hit them while driving.


I agree, I think good leaders are the most charismatic and not necessarily very intelligent. But this goes for national and democratic leaders - as for intellectual leaders I think that both intelligence and charisma are equally important.
 
DRZion said:
Also, I take it that deer hunting is encouraged in the area?
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It's a little hard to encourage hunting in an urban area. Some of the suburbs allow bow hunting because an errant arrow won't go as far as an errant bullet. Far enough out of town where the houses are farther apart the municipalities hire hunters, but it's not going to make a dent in the problem when every doe has two fawns a year.

The real solution is going to be the gigantic wolf-coyote hybrids that are migrating down from Canada. Unfortunately that's going to make life hard for cat and dog owners. We had regular size coyotes in Los Angeles and they were tough enough to coexist with.
There is a similar problem in new zealand where they have too many rodents of some sort ... I think its possum.
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Opossums (the American species) and possums (the Antipodean species) are not rodents, they're marsupials.
I agree, I think good leaders are the most charismatic and not necessarily very intelligent.
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A really good leader has good "people skills" so he can choose his subordinates wisely.
 
Fraggle Rocker said:
The real solution is going to be the gigantic wolf-coyote hybrids that are migrating down from Canada. Unfortunately that's going to make life hard for cat and dog owners. We had regular size coyotes in Los Angeles and they were tough enough to coexist with.
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Yes, especially since these wolf-coyotes will also be under the same selective pressure as the deer. This will lead to super-smart gigantic wolf-coyote hybrids in the suburbs. :bugeye:
 
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CutsieMarie89 said:
there are always smart people, whether the leader chooses to consult with them or not... But either way the smartest ones tend to not take leadership positions. They give advice. At least in my experience :shrug:
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Yeah. I tend to see that too. Better to lead from behind the throne. Smart guys play the role of Merlin the wizard. Leave it to someone more brave and ambitious to be King Arthur.
 
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