reproductive suppression
the inability of one or several individuals within a group to reproduce, despite having reached reproductive maturity. In many cooperative-breeding species, dominant, breeding individuals suppress reproduction in subordinates. Both behavioral and physiological cues can be involved. Reproductive suppression can be temporary, as in wolves, marmosets, or meerkats, in which an individual can quickly become a breeder in the absence of cues from the dominant animal, or it can be permanent, as in social insects.