| A. Food limitation |
| 1. General | |
| (a) GCs increase in response to natural food limitation | |
| (i) GCs increase in the dry season and are negatively correlated with rainfall in African elephant (Loxodonta africana) [12] | |
| (ii) GCs were higher in a food-limited group versus a food-abundant group in black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) [25] | |
| (b) GCs increases in response to experimental food limitation | |
| (i) GCs increase under food limitation in black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) [27] | |
| (ii) Food limitation during development increases GCs in western scrub-jays (Aphelocoma californica) [28] | |
| (iii) Food limitation and unpredictability increase GCs in mountain chickadees (Poecile gambeli) [29] | |
| (iv) Food limitation increases GCs in barn swallows (Hirundo rustica) [30] | |
| 2. Access to anthropogenic food resources | Negative |
| (a) GCs decrease during anthropogenic food provisioning in Sykes’ monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis albogularis) [18] | |
| (b) Refuse-feeding banded mongooses exhibit better physical condition than non-refuse-feeders [54] | |
| (c) Banded mongoose area use is concentrated around refuse sites [39, 55] | |
| (i) GCs increase with increased foraging travel time in Mexican howlers (Alouatta palliata mexicana) [23] | |
| (ii) GCs increase under high food search demand effort in squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) [22] | |
| (d) Banded mongoose escorts lose body mass while provisioning pups and exhibit increased fGCMs, but fGCMs are reduced in these animals if fed supplementally [43] | |
| 3. Fecal organic matter | Negative |
| (a) Indicator of organic matter intake in cattle (Bos taurus) and goats (Capra aegagrus) [56] | |
| (b) Complementary measures, fecal ash and ingested soil, also indicate food limitation | |
| (i) Domestic sheep (Ovis aries) increase soil ingestion as forage [57] and food supplementation [58, 59] decrease and stocking rates increase [60] | |
| (ii) Aardwolves (Proteles cristata) have more fecal sand when termites are scarce [61] | |
| (iii) Tamanduas (Tamandua tetradactyla) ingest more substrate during behavioral or dietary deficits [62] | |
| (iv) Three-banded armadillos (Tolypeutes tricinctus) ingested more soil in dry seasons [63] | |
| (v) Giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) fecal nutrition markers were inversely related to fecal ash [64] | |
| 4. Recent rainfall | Negative |
| (a) Millipedes and (at times) termite alates dominate banded mongoose diet [65] | |
| (b) Rainfall affects banded mongoose prey availability: soil macroinvertebrates [66]; millipedes [67]; termite alates [68] | |
| (i) Residual effect of rain on millipede availability may last up to 8 days [67] | |
| 5. Soil macrofauna density | Negative |
| (a) Soil macrofauna densities at our study site vary by habitat type [66] | |
| B. Reproduction |
| 1. Breeding status | Positive |
| (a) GCs increase in female meerkats (Suricata suricatta) as pregnancy progresses [8] | |
| (b) GCs increase in mate-guarding male long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) [69] | |
| (c) Mating, parturition, associated agonistic encounters, and pup depredations increase GCs in captive banded mongooses [38] | |
| (d) Alloparental care (pup provisioning) in banded mongoose is associated with increased fGCMs (although this may be driven by energetic losses) [43] | |
| (e) Subordinate female banded mongoose have higher fGCM concentrations in late pregnancy than higher ranked females (although this may be driven by exclusion from food resources and resulting energetic losses) [50] | |
| C. Predation risk |
| 1. Group size | Negative |
| (a) GCs increase under higher predation risk in European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) [10] | |
| (i) Larger groups should lower per capita predation risk—dilution effect [70,71,72,73] | |
| (ii) Larger groups should lower per capita vigilance—detection effect [74, 75] | |
| (iii) Larger group sizes do exhibit lower per capita vigilance in banded mongooses [76] | |
| (iv) GCs are positively associated with vigilance in meerkats [11] | |
| 2. Canopy cover | Negative |
| (a) Aerial predators are putatively important, if not predominant natural predators of banded mongooses e.g. martial eagles (Polemaetus bellicosus) [77] | |
| (i) Hunting success for large raptors is diminished in areas of higher canopy cover e.g. Bonelli’s eagle (Aquila fasciata) [78, 79] | |
