1. relating to or characterized by limited social interaction or cooperation, especially in animal behavior where individuals show some social tendencies but do not form complex societies
Usage: biology; ethology

Examples

• Many spider species exhibit subsocial behavior, with mothers caring for their young but not forming permanent colonies.
• The researchers studied subsocial insects that live in small family groups.
• Subsocial animals typically show parental care but lack the complex division of labor seen in truly social species.
• Some beetles display subsocial tendencies by remaining with their offspring for extended periods.
• The subsocial nature of these creatures places them between solitary and fully social species on the behavioral spectrum.