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HandWiki. Alpha (Ethology). Encyclopedia. Available online: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/32817 (accessed on 26 September 2026).
HandWiki. Alpha (Ethology). Encyclopedia. Available at: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/32817. Accessed September 26, 2026.
HandWiki. "Alpha (Ethology)" Encyclopedia, https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/32817 (accessed September 26, 2026).
HandWiki. (2022, November 04). Alpha (Ethology). In Encyclopedia. https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/32817
HandWiki. "Alpha (Ethology)." Encyclopedia. Web. 04 November, 2022.
Alpha (Ethology)
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In studies of social animals, the highest ranking individual of a dominance hierarchy is sometimes designated as the alpha. Males, females, or both, can be alphas, depending on the species. Where one male and one female fulfill this role together, they are sometimes referred to as the alpha pair. Other animals in the same social group may exhibit deference or other species-specific subordinate behavior towards the alpha or alphas. Alpha animals usually gain preferential access to food and other desirable items or activities, though the extent of this varies widely between species. Male or female alphas may gain preferential access to sex or mates; in some species, only alphas or an alpha pair reproduce. Alphas may achieve their status by superior physical strength and aggression, or through social efforts and building alliances within the group, or more often, simply by breeding and being the parent of all in their pack. The individual with alpha status sometimes changes, often through a fight between the dominant and a subordinate animal. These fights are often to the death, depending on the animal.

dominance hierarchy social group physical strength

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