Definition of philopatric in English:
philopatric
adjective ˌfɪlə(ʊ)ˈpatrɪkˌfiləˈpatrik
Zoology (of an animal or species) tending to return to or remain near a particular site or area.
Example sentencesExamples
- The fact that close inbreeding is rarely observed even in highly philopatric species suggests that animals have mechanisms to avoid breeding with close kin.
- The dispersal of the juveniles differs from that of most other promiscuous or polygynous mammals, being female-biased with a fraction of males remaining philopatric.
- Like other waterfowl species, common goldeneye females are natal and breeding site philopatric.
- Another problem is that philopatric and dispersing animals may often overlap in their distance moved because there is generally no clear shift in frequency distributions of distances moved.
- Most individuals are philopatric; they return to the area near where they hatched to breed.
Derivatives
noun
Zoology First-time breeders that came back to breed within their natal colony showed strong philopatry toward their natal breeding sites.
Example sentencesExamples
- Studies of highly kin-structured mammal societies have revealed the importance of natal philopatry in determining the distribution of genetic variation within populations.
- Long-term studies of this population indicate high natal and adult philopatry in general, with males being more philopatric than females.
- For colonial seabirds, studies of natal dispersal are numerous, and two levels of natal philopatry have been recognized: philopatry to the natal colony and within the colony philopatry to the natal breeding site.
- The name for this stay-at-home behavior is philopatry, a term derived from the Greek for ‘home-loving’ and loosely defined as the tendency of an individual to remain in its birthplace as an adult.
Origin
1940s: from philo- 'liking' + Greek patra 'fatherland' + -ic.