Socially transmitted diffusion of a novel behavior from subordinate chimpanzees
Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) demonstrate much cultural diversity in the wild, yet a majority of novel behaviors do not become group‐wide traditions. Since many such novel behaviors are introduced by low‐ranking individuals, a bias toward copying dominant individuals (“rank‐bias”) has been proposed as an explanation for their limited diffusion. Previous experimental work showed that chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) preferentially copy dominant over low‐rank models. We investigated whether low ranking individuals may nevertheless successfully seed a beneficial behavior as a tradition if there are no “competing”...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - February 7, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Stuart K. Watson, Lisa A. Reamer, Mary Catherine Mareno, Gillian Vale, Rachel A. Harrison, Susan P. Lambeth, Steven J. Schapiro, Andrew Whiten Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Seminal coagulation and sperm quality in different social contexts in captive tufted capuchin monkeys (Sapajus apella)
In the present study, we aimed to assess the influence of different social contexts on the seminal coagulation and sperm quality in captive tufted capuchin monkeys. For this, males were housed either individually, in mixed‐sex groups (with females), or in male‐only groups. Monkeys were housed in cages and each cage type (i.e., individual or group cage) was placed in a different room. Forty‐one males were subjected to semen collection by rectal electroejaculation. The degree of seminal coagulation was determined on a scale of I–IV. Seminal volume, sperm concentration, sperm motility, vigor, and plasma membrane integ...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - February 6, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Julianne S. Lima, Danuza L. Le ão, Karol G. Oliveira, Adriel B. Brito, Wlaisa V. Sampaio, Regiane R. Santos, Helder L. Queiroz, Sheyla F. Domingues Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Individual differences in zoo ‐housed squirrel monkeys' (Saimiri sciureus) reactions to visitors, research participation, and personality ratings
In this study, 23 squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus), housed in an environment that is both a zoo enclosure and research facility, were assessed for (i) the time they spent by an observation window under three visitor conditions: no visitors, small groups, and large groups; (ii) their likelihood of participating in voluntary research; and (iii) zookeepers, ratings of personality. A Friedman's ANOVA and Wilcoxon post‐hoc tests comparing mean times found that the monkeys spent more time by the window when there were large groups present than when there were small groups or no visitors. Thus, visitors do not seem to have a...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - February 2, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Zita Polg ár, Lara Wood, Marie J. Haskell Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Investigating the dental toolkit of primates based on food mechanical properties: Feeding action does matter
Although conveying an indisputable morphological and behavioral signal, traditional dietary categories such as frugivorous or folivorous tend to group a wide range of food mechanical properties together. Because food/tooth interactions are mostly mechanical, it seems relevant to investigate the dental morphology of primates based on mechanical categories. However, existing mechanical categories classify food by its properties but cannot be used as factors to classify primate dietary habits. This comes from the fact that one primate species might be adapted to a wide range of food mechanical properties. To tackle this issue...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - February 1, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Ghislain Thiery, Franck Guy, Vincent Lazzari Tags: REVIEW ARTICLE Source Type: research
Total energy expenditure in captive capuchins (Sapajus apella)
Primates have markedly lower total energy expenditure (TEE; kcal/day) than other placental mammals, expending approximately 50% less energy for their mass than non‐primate eutherians. However, little is known regarding interspecific variation of energy expenditure within platyrrhine primates. We investigated TEE in captive tufted capuchins (Sapajus apella, n = 8, ages 7–36), a frugivorous platyrrhine, to compare TEE with other placental mammals and primates. We tested the hypothesis that large‐brained capuchins would exhibit greater TEE than other platyrrhines that are less encephalized. We used the doubly labele...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 25, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Wren Edwards, Elizabeth V. Lonsdorf, Herman Pontzer Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Fruit availability drives the distribution of a folivorous –frugivorous primate within a large forest remnant
Understanding the ecological factors that influence the presence, abundance, and distribution of species within their habitats is critical for ensuring their long‐term conservation. In the case of primary consumers, such as most primates, the availability and richness of plant foods are considered key drivers of population density at these variables influence the spatial distribution of social units within a finer, habitat patch level scale. We tested the hypothesis that the spatiotemporal availability and richness of plant foods, drive the spatial distribution of brown howler monkeys (Alouatta guariba clamitans) at a fi...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 23, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Danielle Camaratta, Óscar M. Chaves, Júlio César Bicca‐Marques Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Issue Information
(Source: American Journal of Primatology)
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 23, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Tags: Issue Information Source Type: research
Do same ‐sex mounts function as dominance assertion in male golden snub‐nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana)?
It has been hypothesized that same‐sex mounts can reflect the hierarchical relationship in a mounting dyad and it is widely deemed that mounting and being mounted are demonstrations of dominant and subordinate status, respectively. In this research, we aimed to test whether same‐sex mounts function as dominance assertion in male golden snub‐nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana). We investigated this behavior in eight‐individuals, captive all‐male unit (AMU) in Shanghai wild animal park, China. Behavioral observations were conducted with a total of 1,855 mounts recorded from November, 2014 to June, 2015, during ...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 20, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Pengzhen Huang, Xin He, Endi Zhang, Min Chen Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Fine ‐scale genetic structure analyses reveal dispersal patterns in a critically endangered primate, Trachypithecus leucocephalus
Dispersal is a critically important life history trait of social organisms that has a major impact on the population genetic structure and social relationships within groups. Primates exhibit highly diversified dispersal and philopatry patterns, but knowledge of these patterns is difficult to obtain and usually limited to observations of a small number of focal social groups or individuals. Here, we investigated the dispersal pattern of a critically endangered colobine monkey, the white‐headed langur (Trachypithecus leucocephalus), using molecular approaches, and sex‐specific population genetic structure analyses at fi...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 19, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Weiran Wang, Meng Yao Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Functional planning units for the management of an endangered Brazilian titi monkey
Conservation practices in the tropics often rely on the data available for a few, better‐known species and the adoption of an appropriate spatial scale. By defining a set of landscape units that account for critical aspects of the focal species, the information available on these conservation targets can support regional conservation policies. Here, we define and classify adjacent landscapes, termed planning units, to orientate management decisions within and among these landscapes, which are occupied by an endangered flagship primate species (Coimbra‐Filho's titi monkey, Callicebus coimbrai) from eastern Brazil. We us...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 18, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Sidney F. Gouveia, Jo ão Pedro Souza‐Alves, Bruno B. de Souza, Raone Beltrão‐Mendes, Leandro Jerusalinsky, Stephen F. Ferrari Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Automated face detection for occurrence and occupancy estimation in chimpanzees
Surveying endangered species is necessary to evaluate conservation effectiveness. Camera trapping and biometric computer vision are recent technological advances. They have impacted on the methods applicable to field surveys and these methods have gained significant momentum over the last decade. Yet, most researchers inspect footage manually and few studies have used automated semantic processing of video trap data from the field. The particular aim of this study is to evaluate methods that incorporate automated face detection technology as an aid to estimate site use of two chimpanzee communities based on camera trapping...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 18, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Anne ‐Sophie Crunchant, Monika Egerer, Alexander Loos, Tilo Burghardt, Klaus Zuberbühler, Katherine Corogenes, Vera Leinert, Lars Kulik, Hjalmar S. Kühl Tags: NEW APPROACHES Source Type: research
Validation of an enzyme immunoassay and comparison of fecal cortisol metabolite levels in black and gold howler monkeys (Alouatta caraya) inhabiting fragmented and continuous areas of the humid Chaco region, Argentina
In the last years, the study of how environmental stimuli influence the physiology and specifically the endocrinology of an organism became increasingly important, relying mainly on the quantification of glucocorticoids to monitor animal welfare. Most studies investigating cortisol levels in primates were focused on the impact of social stressors; however, a major concern for the conservation of howler monkeys is the increased habitat fragmentation led by the advancement of the agricultural frontier. We compared fecal cortisol metabolite levels (FGCM) in howler monkeys (Alouatta caraya) living in fragmented and continuous ...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 17, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Ver ónica Inés Cantarelli, Maria Amparo Perez‐Rueda, Martin M. Kowalewski, Gabriela F. Mastromonaco, Marina Flavia Ponzio Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Minerals in the foods and diet of diademed sifakas: Are they nutritional challenges?
We report mineral content in diademed sifakas’ diets, highlighting differences across foods, seasons and habitats, and the difficulty in assessing “adequacy”. (Source: American Journal of Primatology)
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 16, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Mitchell T. Irwin, Jean ‐Luc Raharison, Colin A. Chapman, Randall E. Junge, Jessica M. Rothman Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Vocal repertoire of free ‐ranging black howler monkeys’ (Alouatta pigra): Call types, contexts, and sex‐related contributions
This report provides the first detailed description of the vocal repertoire of black howler monkeys (Alouatta pigra), focusing on acoustic structures and contexts of emission of both loud and soft calls as well as on the contribution rate of males and females to the different call types. Three free‐ranging social groups of black howler monkeys living in Palenque National Park, Mexico were monitored. We identified twelve acoustically discriminable call types, eight described previously and four described here for the first time. A few call types were systematically emitted either isolated or during howling bouts, but most...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 16, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Margarita Brise ño‐Jaramillo, Véronique Biquand, Alejandro Estrada, Alban Lemasson Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
Human quarantine: Toward reducing infectious pressure on chimpanzees at the Ta ï Chimpanzee Project, Côte d'Ivoire
This study investigates the incidence of respiratory symptoms and human respiratory viruses in humans at a human‐great ape interface, the Taï Chimpanzee Project (TCP) in Côte d'Ivoire, and consequently, the effectiveness of a 5‐day quarantine designed to reduce the risk of potential exposure to human respiratory pathogens. To assess the impact of quarantine as a preventative measure, we monitored the quarantine process and tested 262 throat swabs for respiratory viruses, collected during quarantine over a period of 1 year. Although only 1 subject tested positive for a respiratory virus (HRSV), 17 subjects developed s...
Source: American Journal of Primatology - January 16, 2017 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Kim Gr ützmacher, Verena Keil, Vera Leinert, Floraine Leguillon, Arthur Henlin, Emmanuel Couacy‐Hymann, Sophie Köndgen, Alexander Lang, Tobias Deschner, Roman M. Wittig, Fabian H. Leendertz Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research
