Maternal glucocorticoids have persistent effects on offspring social phenotype irrespective of opportunity for social buffering
Exposure to stressors and associated hormones during development can significantly affect offspring phenotype, including social and philopatric behaviour, but these effects can be mediated by the postnatal social environment (‘social buffering’). While the effects of social buffering are well established for complex social behaviours—such as parental provisioning, grooming or cooperative care—the
