Primatology Exam 2

Primatology

Study of behavior, biology, evolution, and taxonomy of nonhuman primates.

Interdisciplinary

Combining different areas of studies to work on a topic together.

Research Approaches

Field studies, Captive studies, Laboratory studies, and Conservation

Carl Linnaeus (1758)

Classified humans in primate family

Charels Darwin- Origin of Species & Descent of Man

Man originated from man-like apes in Africa, prompted research on animal behavior, and animal rationality and morality.

Richard Lynch Garner (1848-1920)

Interested in evolution of human speech, recorded primate vocalizations at zoos, and first field studies on gorillas and chimpanzees.

Clarence R. Carpenter

studied howler and spider monkeys in Panama and Gibbons in Thailand

Japanese Macaques

also known as snow monkeys, are adaptable primates native to Japan.

United States with the help of monkey research

Rhesus Macaques (most like humans), Biomedical research, Vaccines, Psychological Studies, Wire and Cloth Surrogate Mothers, and Space Programs.

Jane Goodall (1960s)

Chimpanzees (diet, tool use, aggression, feeding station, and troop acceptance)

Dian Fossey (1966)

Gorillas (family ties and diets)

Birute Galdikas (1971)

Orangutans (migrations and birth intervals)

Impact of the Trimates

Long-term field methods, Culture in primates, and Conservation

Mammals

Higher parental investment (placenta and nursing), fewer offspring, and survival

Arboreal Adaptations

Generalized limb structure (tails for grabbing and learned behaviour), Presence of clavicle, opposable thumb, flattened nails, Tactile pads with skin ridges

Pentadactyly

5 digits

Prehensile

capable of being used to grasp objects

Forward facing eyes (trichromatic color vision)

Binocular Stereoscopic vision (Arboreal Hypothesis v. Visual Predation Hypothesis or, move around in trees safely v. hunting behavior to catch insects and small prey)

Reduced olfactory senses

Evolutionary Trade Off (smaller nose or longer nose)

Ear

Petrosal bulla (unique to primates)

Dentition

Generalized teeth (Humans: 2 incisors, 1 canine, 2 premolars, and 3 molars)

Primates brain size

Large brains relative to body size (diet v. social interactions)

Life History

pace at which an organism grows, reproduces, ages, and so forth

Life History Traits

Extended ontogeny, Single offspring at Infrequent Intervals (Exception – marmosets and tamarins (twins)), Extended life spans

Activity Patterns

Increased day light hours (Olfactory < Visual)

Sociality

Group living (exception orangutan), social units, mating systems, Interactions between individuals, mates, and social structures

Diversity of primates

Comparison of closely related species allows us to understand evolution and adaptation

Important Ecological Functions

Interactions with other species and Plant survival and reproduction

Human-Other Primate Interactions

Primates contribute to human economies, Improve lifespans of primates in captivity, Conservation efforts

Field studies

Observation of primates in natural habitats and habituation

Captive Studies

Zoos, sanctuaries, research centers, and Controlled conditions

Laboratory Studies

Cognition, Social behavior, and Welfare

Modern Technologies

Remote sensing (satellites, drones, etc.), High-res cameras, non-invasive genetics (feces, hair samples)

Challenges and Ethics

Long-term commitment and costs, Research v. welfare, and Human interactions

Strepsirrhines v. Haplorhines

wet-nosed v. dry-nosed

Strepsirrhines

Smaller brain, Reliance on smell, Olfactory behavior, Tapetum lucidum, grooming claw, dental comb

Strepsirrhines (lemuroidea)

lemurs, dwarf lemur, indris, sifakas, aye-ayes

Lemuroidea

range in size, diurnal and nocturnal, range in diets, terrestrial and arboreal, various modes of locomotion, different social structures, communication

Lorisoidea (lorises and galagos (bush babies)

Lorises: Nocturnal, arboreal, diet-insectivores, solitary foragers, large forward-facing eyes, long limbs, no tail

Lorisoidea (lorises and galagos (bush babies)

Bushbabies: nocturnal, diet-insects, large forward-facing eyes, grooming claw, tooth comb, powerful hind limbs

Haplorrhines

Short, dry nose, no vitamin c, facial expressions, brain:body, vision,

Tarsioidea

No wet nose, smaller brain, reliance on smell, no tooth comb, grooming claw, no tapetum lucidum, DNA

Tarsiers

nocturnal, carnivores, arboreal, vertical climbing and leaping, and family unit, dental formula: 2.1.3.3/1.1.3.3, claws on 2nd and 3rd digits, finger pads, large immovable eyes, head rotation, facial expression, elongated talus/calcaneus

Platyrrhines (new world monkeys)

Callitrichidae – marmosets, tamarins, lion tamarins, Cebidae – capuchin, squirrel monkeys, Aotidae – owl monkeys, Pitheciidae – titis, saki monkeys, uakaris, Atelidae – howler monkey, spider monkey, woolly monkey, woolly spider monkey, Capuchins, Owl Monkeys, Marmosets and tamarins

Platyrrhines

Greek for “broad-nosed”, outward-facing nostrils, 2.1.3.3/2.1.3.3, arboreal, Quadrupedal suspensory locomotion, Diet: sap, insects, fruits, leaves, prehensile tails and tactile pad (howler and spider monkeys)

Catarrhines

Old World Monkeys, Apes, Humans, downward-facing nostrils, 2.1.2.3/2.1.2.3, no prehensile tail, varied social patterns

Cercopithecoidea (old world monkeys)

Sub-Saharan Africa and SE Asia, Bilophodont upper and lower molars, Ischial callosities (red bottom), non-prehensile tail, Sexual dimorphism, also includes rhesus macaque and baboon

Colobines v. Cercopithecines

Locality, diet, morphology, sacculated stomach, cheek pouch, reproduction

Hominoidea

Lesser apes (gibbons and siamangs) (Southeast Asia, Brachiation, small, light skeletions, very long arms), Greater apes (orangutans, gorillas, chimps, bonbobos, humans) (Africa, SE Asia, suspensory locomotion, knuckle walking, arboreal and terrestrial, varied diet, and varied social systems), Humans, features (large-bodied, large-brained, no tail, long arms and long curved fingers, suspensory locomotion, y-5 molar lower molar pattern

Hominoidea (Orangutans)

Borneo and Sumatra, arboreal, pronounced sexual dimorphism, solitary, frugivorous

Hominoidea (Gorillas)

Largest primate, Central Africa, Forests, and Terrestrial

Hominoidea (Chimpanzees)

Equatorial Africa, arboreal, terrestrial, omnivorous, and large troops

Hominoidea (Bonobos)

Zaire river, omnivorous, and closest to chimpanzee’s

Hominoidea (Humans)

Hominidae, primate detention, visual dependence, grasping hands, omnivorous, large brained, and bipedal

Ecology

study of interrelationships of plants, animals, and the physical environment in which they live (explains primate diversity, adaptive radiation, and niche specialization)

Adaptation

evolved phenotypic traits that increase an organism’s reproductive fitness (shaped by natural selection)

Ecological variables

Habitat, food availability, type, predation, and competition.

How does environment shape primate form and function?

Habitat, locomotion, diet, and activity patterns.

Selection Pressures

Rainforests, Woodlands, Grasslands, Desserts, and Mountains

Example → Rainforests

Complex canopy and abundant but scattered fruit (spider monkeys and gibbons)

Example → Open Habitats

Temperature extremes, patchy resources, and predators (Baboons and Patas monkeys)

Habitats

speciation v. extinction, ecological niches aid in survival, influences locomotor strategy

Three general categories in primates

Quadrupedal (using all four limbs to support body weight), Vertical climbing and leaping (longer hindlimb relative to forelimb with slender forelimbs), and Suspensory locomotion (extremely long forelimbs, rotary wrist, and long curved fingers)

Primate locomotion

Body size, locomotion, diet (habitat influences food distribution and food distribution influences locomotion)

Primates and Diet

Food considerations (basal metabolic rate, active metabolism, growth rate, reproduction), Protein v. Calories, Availability (Abundance and distribution), Diet Specialization (Frugivores → fruit, Insectivores → insects, and Folivores →leaves), Diet specialization →teeth, gum eaters, gut, vision

Home range

the spatial area used by a primate group (core area and territory)

Day range

distance a group or individual travels in a day (frugivore > folivore)

Activity budget

Foraging/Feeding, Resting/Sleeping, Locomotion/Traveling, and Social Behavior

Activity Patterns as Adaptation

When a primate is active, and shaped by food availability, temperature, and predation

Diurnal primates

rely on vision and larger social groups

Nocturnal primates

rely on hearing and smell and smaller more solitary

Cathemeral

Irregular activity day and night, flexible feeding schedule and predator avoidance, reduced interspecies competition

Predation and Activity

Influence temporal movement and trade-off between safety and foraging time

Costs and source of sociality

competition among group members, vulnerability to disease, group pressures, feeding competition, and predation

Behavior

an action in response to an internal or external stimuli

Primate behavioural ecology

how behaviour evolves under ecological and social pressure (Strategy → behaviour that has been selected for)

Primate societies

food distribution, competition, reproduction

Predators

vigilance, mobbing, and alarm calling

Social system

the set of social interactions and behaviours that is typical for a species (group size, composition, mating system, ranging behaviour, dispersal, and interactions)

Solitary

individuals do not live or travel together (exception: mothers and unweaned offspring)

One Male-One Female (Monogamy or Pair)

sometimes refered to as “family” or “nuclear” unit

One Male-Multi Female (One-make polygyny)

can result in bands of all male groups

One Female-Multi Male (Polyandry)

only found in marmosets and tarmarines

Multi Male- Multi Female

(Multimale Polygyny)

Fission-Fusion (polygyny)

when the size and composition of a social group changes, with groups splitting (fission) or merging (fusion) depending on food availability

Female philopatry v. male philopatry

Which sex remains in the group of their birth

Shaped by reproductive strategies

Female v. Male (gestation and lactation)

Male parental investment

additional mates are not easily acquired, and parental care significantly increases offspring’s fitness

Mother-infant care

Limited number of offspring and infant = significant proportion of female’s lifetime fitness

Resources acquisition

growth, maturation, and shorter birth intervals

Sexual receptivity signals

Estrus, posture, rump color, and increase male competition

Age of female

middle age = most successful

Longevity + Reproduction

long life = more offspring

Hierarchies

More dominant = more resources and subordinates

Sociality

close bonds = more reproductive success and seen in philopatric females (remaining in the group of one’s birth)

Males dependent on females for reproduction

Sexual selection > Natural selection

Intersexual selection

large body sizes, large canines, and other traits to enhance fighting ability

Sexual dimorphism driven by intersexual selection

Most pronounced in solitary and one male-multi female groups

Multi Male-Multi-Female

Promiscuity → increased sperm production

Investment in Offspring

pair bonding, mate guarding, one female-multi male, care for offspring