The Mongoose!
It turns out the banded mongoose also participates in the planned and systematic battle that humans are famous for! Lovely! The banded mongoose is a highly social, squirrel-like creature commonly found in the savannas and plains of western Africa and feeds on insects and small rodents. Families of mongeese stay very close, and remain together throughout their life spans. Because of this, the mongoose is very territorial and during breeding season will actually participate in full-scale warfare.
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Unlike other animal conflicts, battle between groups of mongeese is highly organized, mimicking the warfare styles of humans. They will arrange themselves in lines facing each and charge forward as one, knocking rivals into bushes and killing each other mercilessly. This fighting actually promotes solidarity and closeness within groups. Similar to the “rape and pillage” technique of early humans, rival mongeese often mate with each other. This proves very beneficial to the groups as it eliminates the repercussions of inbreeding that can occur in small isolated groups of mammals.
A Strange Phenomenon!
Surprisingly, pregnant females are more likely to carry their litter to term in times of warfare. Females seem to find some way to better maintain their pregnancies. Perhaps this is due to the higher tensions and need for new “troops”. Scientists are unsure.
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