Final answer:
Male lions commit infanticide to increase their reproductive success by eliminating offspring that are not theirs, bringing the females back into estrus, and ensuring their genes are passed on, henceforth influencing the genetic composition of the lion population.
Step-by-step explanation:
Why Male Lions Commit Infanticide
Male lions commit infanticide primarily as a strategy to increase their own reproductive success. When a new male lion takes over a pride, he will often kill the cubs that are not his offspring. This behavior can be understood through several biological mechanisms:
- Male lions are thrown out of their pride when they reach sexual maturity. This solitary period ends when they take over pride, and their goal becomes to pass on their genes.
- By committing infanticide, a male lion is able to bring the females back into estrus sooner, as nursing females do not ovulate. This allows the new male to mate and have his own offspring, thus securing his lineage within the pride.
- Infanticide as a behavior can thus alter allele frequencies in the population by ensuring that only the genes of the strongest and most dominant males are passed on to the next generation.
This behavior also highlights the serious competition among males within the pride dynamics, where males will compete for the right to mate with the females, ensuring that only the strongest genes survive.