Individual aggression, but not winner–loser effects, predicts social rank in male domestic fowl

Lay Summary We show that winning or losing a contest change male aggressiveness, and that aggressiveness predicts future social rank better than winner–loser effects. Although aggression is often associated with winning a contest, little is known about how winning or losing predict future aggression. Further, the relative importance of aggression and recent contest experiences for establishment of future dominance relationships is unclear. Our study improves the understanding of factors affecting the outcome of male–male dominance interactions.