allomother

plural allomothers

1. biologyA human or other creature that provides some maternal care for the young born of another.

   Among the !Kung foragers of the Kalahari, babies are held by a father, grandmother, older sibling or some other allomother maybe 25 percent of the time.

   2009 March 3, Natalie Angier, “In a Helpless Baby, the Roots of Our Social Glue”, in New York Times

   1 more example

   Within hours of birth, baby langurs are spirited away from their mothers. They spend up to 50 percent of daylight hours passed from allomother to allomother

   2000, Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, Mother Nature: Maternal Instincts and how They Shape the Human Species, page 162

   Synonyms: othermother

present singular third person allomothers · participle present allomothering · participle past allomothered · past allomothered

1. transitiveTo provide maternal care for another creature's young.