We conclude with a discussion of the applicability of the FDI to other studies. Furthermore, the amount of time that individuals spent together was only weakly correlated with their propensity to remain together during fission events. Our FDI method indicated that association decisions of adult males appeared random, but those of other sex and age categories were nonrandom, particularly when we included the fission events associated with adult males. The traditional approach suggested that the buffalo population was spatially and temporally structured into four different ‘herds’ with adult males only peripherally associated with mixed herds. We compare the conclusions resulting from traditional methods with those of the FDI using data from African buffalo, Syncerus caffer, in the Kruger National Park. In this study, we use a heuristic simulation model to illustrate potential problems in applying traditional techniques of association analysis to fission–fusion societies and propose a new index of association: the fission decision index (FDI). Examples discussed in the literature include ungulates, primates and cetaceans (Lott and Minta, 1983, Whitehead et al., 1991, Henzi et al., 1997, Christal et al., 1998 and Chilvers and Corkeron, 2002). Many animal populations can be classified as fission–fusion societies, whereby groups form and separate over time. Fission: A type of asexual reproduction where an unicellular organism upon maturation divides into 2 or more cells. Example: Fragmentation is seen in Spyrogyra( a type of green algae). A description of the social network of a population aids us in understanding dispersal, the spread of disease, and genetic structure in that population. Fragmentation: A type of asexual reproduction where an organism upon maturation breaks down into fragments (or pieces) and each fragment grows into a new organism.
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