Ripple Effects: Social Turmoil Following Infant Kidnapping Attempts in Wild Geladas

Abstract

ABSTRACT Infant kidnapping is an extreme social disruption reported in some primate species, yet its consequences on social group dynamics remain poorly understood. We document a rare case of repeated attempts of infant kidnapping after handling in a wild gelada one‐male unit and quantify its social impact using Social Network Analysis. The kidnapper, a subadult female frequently aided by another female supporter, repeatedly removed a newborn from its mother without caregiving attempts, inducing stress responses in both mother and infant. Following the kidnapping episodes, grooming networks became denser, more reciprocal and showed a higher tendency to form closed triads, with a marked increase in affiliative exchanges between the kidnapper and her supporter. Agonistic interactions also increased in frequency and involved more individuals, indicating a broad destabilizing effect on group‐level relationships. Our results indicate that, despite being an anecdotal case, this rare naturalistic observation provides a unique opportunity to understand the immediate factors leading to kidnapping and how such an extreme perturbation can trigger rapid, measurable reorganization in a wild primate society.