are generally young nonbreeding males or breeding females who have contributed to the current litter; they help to minimize competition over food allocation among pups. During this time they are guarded by these helpers while the other group member go on their foraging trips. After four weeks, the pups are able to go foraging themselves. Each pup is cared for by a single adult "escort" who helps the pup to find food and protects it from danger. Inbreeding Few studies have found evidence of regular incest avoidance in mammals, but banded mongooses are an exception. Successfully breeding pairs were found to be less related than expected under random mating. Inbreeding depression is largely caused by the homozygous expression of deleterious recessive alleles. Inbreeding depression appears to occur in banded mongooses as indicated by a decline in progeny body mass with increasing inbreeding coefficient. Interspecies relations Banded mongooses have been observed removing ticks, fleas, and other parasites from warthogs in Kenya and Uganda. References External links Banded Mongoose Research Project Species profile bandedmongoose.org banded mongoose Mammals of Sub-Saharan Africa Incestuous animals banded mongoose banded mongoose