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This editorial examines the impact of sex and gender on power, status, dominance, and leadership in human and mammalian societies. It emphasizes the need for collaboration between natural and social sciences to study these topics. The research combines contributions from ecology, biology, psychology, and management to gain a deeper understanding of gender inequalities and explore ways to reduce disparities. The article discusses various studies on the effects of sex and gender on power dynamics, including the role of emotional labor in women's prosocial power and the dynamics of male-female power in non-human societies. The goal is to develop a more comprehensive and interdisciplinary understanding of gender differences in power dynamics, which could contribute to empowering women. [Extracted from the article]

In monotocous mammals, most individuals experience the birth of a younger sibling. This period may induce losses in maternal care and can be physiologically, energetically and emotionally challenging for the older sibling, yet has rarely been studied in wild primates. We used behavioural data collected from a natural population of mandrills to investigate changes in maternal care and mother-juvenile relationship throughout the transition to siblinghood (TTS), by comparing juveniles who recently experienced the birth of a younger sibling, to juveniles who did not. We found that the TTS was associated with an abrupt cessation of the weaning process for the juvenile, and to a decrease in maternal affiliation. Juveniles' reactions were sex-specific, as males associated less with their mother, while females tended to groom their mother more often after the birth of their sibling. Despite the substantial loss of maternal care, juveniles did not show an increase in conflict or anxiety-related behaviours. This study contributes to explain why short interbirth intervals often pose a risk to juveniles' survival in monotocous primates. Our results contrast existing studies and further highlight the importance of examining the TTS in species and populations with various life histories and ecologies., Competing Interests: We declare we have no competing interests., (© 2024 The Authors.)