In a study done at Masoala Peninsula on red ruffed lemurs three levels of organization were identified and defined: communities, core groups, and subgroups. Communities are individuals that affiliated regularly with each other, but rarely with conspecifics outside of the community. Although the entire multi-male/multi-female community lives within a discrete home range, all individuals are never seen in the same location at the same time. Instead, individuals form dispersed social networks, known as core groups, within the community. Core groups are individuals that shared the same core area within a community territory throughout the year. Core groups typically consist of two reproductive females, as well as reproductive males and subadults, ranging in size from two individuals to nine. Females within the groups are cooperative, but male encounters are often agonistic. Subgroups, on the other hand, vary daily in size, composition, and duration, and consist of associated individuals from either the same core group or different core groups, depending on the season. It is from the consistent, daily changes in these subgroups that occur throughout the year, as well as the seasonal formations of core groups in core areas, that demonstrate the fission-fusion nature of ruffed lemur social structure.