It is argued that one form of socioterritorial organization is most common among the larger social carnivores and may be optimal under most conditions. This form of organization is based on a stable territorial group with the capacity to disperse into independent subgroups and yet retain its identity. The importance of such a unit among hyenas, lions, and wolves is documented. By analogy, the earliest hominid big-game hunters may have been organized in much the same way. This view is consistent with other evidence for early hominid socioterritorial organization, derived from observations on chimpanzees and human hunters.