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Evidence from human and nonhuman primates suggests that females avoid breeding with close kin and may choose mates based on MHC diversity, which can improve offspring survival. In despotic societies, female mate choice may be hindered by male sexual coercion, but in egalitarian societies, females may be less constrained. Among northern muriquis—an egalitarian, polygynandrous primate with male philopatry—analyses of new data on paternity and variation at microsatellite and MHC loci, combined with behavioural and life-history data, revealed that sires showed higher MHC diversity than expected by chance and were never close kin of dams, consistent with predictions of female mate choice and close inbreeding avoidance. However, females did not differentially reproduce with males who were more distantly related to them or more dissimilar at the MHC than expected by chance, nor with those who had more MHC alleles distinct from their own. The lack of male dominance may permit females to identify and reproduce preferentially with non-offspring males and with males who are more diverse at the MHC. Nonetheless, the absence of disassortative mating at the MHC and neutral loci suggests that female mate choice may be limited by other factors impacting male fertilization success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic tropical deforestation and degradation imminently threaten primates today. Primates living in these disturbed habitats may also be subjected to increasingly severe tropical storms such as cyclones or hurricanes. These disturbances pose an immediate risk to their livelihood and can dramatically alter their habitats, in turn potentially shifting behavioral patterns. We had the unique opportunity to study the effects of seasonality, anthropogenic disturbances, and the immediate effects of a cyclone on the behavior of the critically endangered northern sportive lemur (NSL) in an anthropogenically disturbed forest in Madagascar. Cyclone Enawo made landfall on March 7, 2017 in northeast Madagascar with sustained wind speeds of 230 km/h. We collected behavioral data on nine individual NSLs during both wet and dry seasons, before and after Cyclone Enawo, and in areas of differing human activity, using scan sampling at 5‐min intervals. We ran generalized linear mixed models to test the effects of seasonality and disturbances on behavior. We found that NSLs spent more time feeding in dry months compared with wet (Z = −4.21, p < 0.001). More specifically, they spent more time‐consuming leaves and vine species in the dry season (Z = −2.26, p = 0.02; Z = −2.3; p = 0.02). We also found that NSLs were observed at lower heights in trees after the cyclone (Z = −2.45; p = 0.016) and spent more time in the interior portions of trees (Z = 3.44; p < 0.001), perhaps due to extensive limb damage of emergent trees documented after the cyclone. Our analyses show that seasonality affected most aspects of NSL behavior, followed by the effects of Cyclone Enawo, with anthropogenic disturbances having little effect. Our data suggest that the behavioral flexibility of NSLs in response to predictable seasonality may enable them to respond similarly to stochastic climatic disturbances. However, their generalist diet may allow them to persist in anthropogenically disturbed landscapes without the need to greatly alter their behavior. Highlights: Seasonality impacts most aspects of northern sportive lemur behavior while little variation in behavior was observed in response to anthropogenic disturbances.Immediately after Cyclone Enawo, northern sportive lemurs were observed at lower heights in trees and spent significantly more time at the interior portions of trees than before the cyclone.The biggest threat to northern sportive lemurs may not be their ability to persist in altered and degraded landscapes, but the limited availability of possible habitat at Montagne des Français and the increasing fragmentation of what few patches still remain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main factors influencing feeding competition among members of diurnal primate groups are the distribution, availability, and quality of food resources. Socioecological models predict that temporal availability of preferred resources, such as fruit, can influence intragroup feeding competition, which is expected to affect rates of agonism and intragroup spatial patterns. We evaluated the effects of temporal variation in fruit availability on the degree of frugivory (i.e., the proportion of time spent feeding on fruit in relation to total food consumption) and the effects of fruit availability and degree of frugivory on rates of agonistic interactions, and intragroup proximity in two wild groups of gray woolly monkeys (Lagothrix lagotricha cana) in southwestern Brazilian Amazonia. We recorded 227 agonistic interactions via the all occurrences method and 3549 records of spacing via scan sampling during an 8-mo field study from March to October 2017. We found that fruit availability showed a positive relationship with the woolly monkeys' degree of frugivory, which in turn showed a positive relationship with the rates of agonism. We also found that degree of frugivory positively affected intragroup proximity in periods of lower fruit availability, and that agonistic interactions and proximity covaried positively. Conversely, as the degree of frugivory increased, monkeys exhibited greater interindividual distances and, consequently, lower rates of agonism, consistent with lower levels of feeding competition in periods of higher fruit availability. Therefore, we suggest that intragroup contest competition for fruits is an important cost of group living even for generalized, opportunistic frugivorous primates, such as woolly monkeys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Madagascar is experiencing some of the most persistent and alarming rates of anthropogenic forest loss, threatening its endemic flora and fauna. Numerous factors contribute to this forest degradation and loss, but in Madagascar it is most often attributed to heavy human reliance on forest products for income and survival. Montagne des Français (MDF) is a forest in northern Madagascar and the last remaining home of the Critically Endangered northern sportive lemur (Lepilemur septentrionalis). We assessed the type and frequency of anthropogenic disturbances observed at MDF, as well as the forest loss and fragmentation in this region over six decades. To assess current conditions, we systematically recorded occurrences of anthropogenic disturbances in ten lemur home ranges and three trails over two field seasons (June to July 2016; February to May 2017). To assess historical landcover change, we analyzed six, classified, 30-m resolution forest cover maps from 1953, 1973, 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2014. We recorded a total of 1,412 human-caused disturbances of eight different types in about 15 ha. Felled trees were the most frequently observed disturbance, with Bonaramatsigny (Leucaena leucocephala) the most frequently felled species. Forest cover at MDF drastically decreased from 76% in 1953, to 24% in 2014. Our results indicate that human disturbances are widespread and pervasive, contributing to overall forest cover loss and fragmentation at MDF, which impact the quality, connectivity, and availability of habitat for endemic lemurs of this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on Ruth Tringham's research journey, highlighting how various sources of inspiration shaped her approach to archaeology. The topics include her early focus on stone assemblages, the influence of ethnographic and historical frameworks, the impact of political and feminist changes, and her embrace of digital technology to interpret archaeology.

In remembrance of Charles T. Snowdon (Chuck), 1941–2023, world renown Primatologist and member of ASP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Demographic data are essential to assessments of the status of endangered species. However, establishing an integrated monitoring program to obtain useful data on contemporary and future population trends requires both the identification of priority areas and populations and realistic evaluations of the kinds of data that can be obtained under different monitoring regimes. We analyzed all known populations of a critically endangered primate, the muriqui (genus: Brachyteles) using population size, genetic uniqueness, geographic importance (including potential importance in corridor programs) and implementability scores to define monitoring priorities. Our analyses revealed nine priority populations for the northern muriqui (B. hypoxanthus) and nine for the southern muriqui (B. arachnoides). In addition, we employed knowledge of muriqui developmental and life history characteristics to define the minimum monitoring intensity needed to evaluate demographic trends along a continuum ranging from simple descriptive changes in population size to predictions of population changes derived from individual based life histories. Our study, stimulated by the Brazilian government’s National Action Plan for the Conservation of Muriquis, is fundamental to meeting the conservation goals for this genus, and also provides a model for defining priorities and methods for the implementation of integrated demographic monitoring programs for other endangered and critically endangered species of primates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interest in intraspecific behavioral variation has grown with concerns about the ability of primates to adapt to the rapidly changing ecological and demographic conditions that threaten their survival. Now, in addition to identifying the causes and phylogenetic distribution of normative, species-specific behavior patterns for interspecific comparisons, there is widespread recognition of the need to incorporate intraspecific variation. This variation is evident across groups and populations of the same species as well over the long histories of single groups of long-lived, socially complex animals with overlapping generations. Yet, analyses of both cross-sectional and longitudinal data require explicit criteria about how to classify and interpret behavioral variation, and must be sensitive to the limitations of space-for-time substitutions in these comparisons. Current approaches have made great advances, but there remains an urgent challenge of understanding intraspecific variation in a way that will facilitate the development of new predictive models to assess population resilience and extinction risks in the face of climate change and other anthropogenic influences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses inhabiting a transgressive and generative interdisciplinary space, in this instance at the nexus of linguistics, anthropology, and psychology.

Comparative approaches to the evolution of primate social behavior have typically involved two distinct lines of inquiry. One has focused on phylogenetic analyses that treat social traits as static, species-specific characteristics; the other has focused on understanding the behavioral flexibility of particular populations or species in response to local ecological or demographic variables. Here, we combine these approaches by distinguishing between constraining traits such as dispersal regimes (male, female, or bi-sexual), which are relatively invariant, and responding traits such as grouping patterns (stable, fission-fusion, sometimes fission-fusion), which can reflect rapid adjustments to current conditions. Using long-term and cross-sectional data from 29 studies of 22 species of wild primates, we confirm that dispersal regime exhibits a strong phylogenetic signal in our sample. We then show that primate species with high variation in group size and adult sex ratios exhibit variability in grouping pattern (i.e., sometimes fission-fusion) with dispersal regime constraining the grouping response. When assessing demographic variation, we found a strong positive relationship between the variability in group size over time and the number of observation years, which further illustrates the importance of long-term demographic data to interpretations of social behavior. Our approach complements other comparative efforts to understand the role of behavioral flexibility by distinguishing between constraining and responding traits, and incorporating these distinctions into analyses of social states over evolutionary and ecological time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including the role of American Anthropological Association (AAA) and American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and membership in Biological Anthropology Section (BAS).

Assessments of the status of endangered species have focused on population sizes, often without knowledge of demographic and behavioral processes underlying population recovery. We analyzed demographic data from a 28-year study of a critically endangered primate, the northern muriqui, to investigate possible changes in demographic rates as this population recovered from near extirpation. As the population increased from 60 to nearly 300 individuals, its growth rate declined due to increased mortality and male-biased birth sex ratios; the increased mortality was not uniform across ages and sexes, and there has been a recent increase in mortality of prime-aged males. If not for a concurrent increase in fertility rates, the population would have stabilized at 200 individuals instead of continuing to grow. The unexpected increase in fertility rates and in adult male mortality can be attributed to the muriquis' expansion of their habitat by spending more time on the ground. The demographic consequences of this behavioral shift must be incorporated into management tactics for this population and emphasize the importance of understanding demographic rates in the recovery of endangered species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Levels of reproductive skew vary in wild primates living in multimale groups depending on the degree to which high-ranking males monopolize access to females. Still, the factors affecting paternity in egalitarian societies remain unexplored. We combine unique behavioral, life history, and genetic data to evaluate the distribution of paternity in the northern muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus), a species known for its affiliative, nonhierarchical relationships. We genotyped 67 individuals (22 infants born over a 3-y period, their 21 mothers, and all 24 possible sires) at 17 microsatellite marker loci and assigned paternity to all infants. None of the 13 fathers were close maternal relatives of females with which they sired infants, and the most successful male sired a much lower percentage of infants (18%) than reported for the most successful males in other species. Our findings of inbreeding avoidance and low male reproductive skew are consistent with the muriqui's observed social and sexual behavior, but the long delay (=2.08 y) between the onset of male sexual behavior and the age at which males first sire young is unexpected. The allocation of paternity implicates individual male life histories and access to maternal kin as key factors influencing variation in paternal-and grandmaternal-fitness. The apparent importance of lifelong maternal investment in coresident sons resonates with other recent examinations of maternal influences on offspring reproduction. This importance also extends the implications of the "grandmother hypothesis" in human evolution to include the possible influence of mothers and other maternal kin on male reproductive success in patrilocal societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a discussion on why anthropology needs primatology, adapted from the Distinguished Lecture for the General Anthropology Division delivered at the American Anthropological Association annual meeting on November 80, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Long-term field studies of wild primates can have far-reaching impacts that transcend their contributions to science. These impacts can benefit not only the study animals, study areas, and local human communities, but they can also have unintended, potentially negative consequences. Examples of some of the positive impacts from the Northern Muriqui Project of Caratinga, in Minas Gerais, Brazil, include contributions to conservation efforts on behalf of this critically endangered species, capacity building through the training of Brazilian students, and employment opportunities for local people through our collaboration with a locally administered NGO that is facilitating ecotourism, education, and reforestation programs. Some concerns about unintended consequences of the research include the effects of our trails and trail traffic on surrounding vegetation and other aspects of the environmental “footprints” that both long-term researchers and short-term visitors may leave. In addition, although precautions against potential health risks from routine exposure to human observers are now standard protocol, little is known about the other ways in which our long-term research presence can affect the primates' experiences or alter their perceptions of their social and ecological environments. Risk analysis, which weighs both the positive and negative impacts can provide useful perspectives for addressing the ethical considerations that can arise during long-term field studies. Am. J. Primatol. 72:772–778, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the evolution of primate behavioral diversity requires multilevel approaches that encompass individuals, populations, and the effects of individuals and populations on each other. At one level are analyses of individual behavior patterns under different ecological and demographic conditions. At another level are the effects of individual behavior on the demography and genetics of local populations, which in turn shape the behavior and biology of their individual members. Multilevel studies across populations and over time provide insights into the range of behavioral variation that particular species can express and are necessary for distinguishing the species-specific behavior patterns on which evolutionary comparisons are based. These studies therefore provide the insights necessary to incorporate intraspecific variation into comparative models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article illuminates the interplay of language with his growing sense of self and identity and points to a broader social semiotic, one in which form and style play key roles. Topics include freedom of expression and demand the standards of accuracy and accountability that ethnography demanded of the social world depicted in the poems; and explores the transformation of social anthropology across his career.

Advances in our understanding of primate life histories and dispersal patterns provide insights into the ways in which facultative responses to local ecological and demographic conditions are mediated by phylogenetic constraints. The long life spans characteristic of primates provide the necessary conditions for overlapping generations of related individuals to maintain extended kin bonds. Dispersal regimes dictate the opportunities for biological kin to interact with one another and define the range of potential reproductive and social partners within and beyond their natal groups. Dispersal patterns also affect variation in components of life histories such as female age at first reproduction reproductive rates, and trade-offs between investment in current vs. future offspring and extended kin. Understanding these dynamics has important implications for assessing the viability of small populations and the ability of different primates to adapt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the author discusses the topics include Annual Review of Anthropology (ARA); self-revelation; and complex social dynamics.

The 957-ha forest at the Estação Biológica de Caratinga/Reserva Particular do Patrimônio Natural-Felìciano Miguel Abdala, in Minas Gerais, Brazil, supports one of the largest known populations of the critically endangered northern muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus). We combine long-term data on one group that has been monitored since 1982 with new data obtained on the other three groups since 2002 and 2003 to describe the demographic structure of this population, evaluate its potential for future growth, and predict how dispersal and competitive regimes may change in response to current demographic conditions. As of January 2005, the 226 individuals in the population were divided into four mixed-sex groups with 37-77 members, and an all-male unit whose eight males maintained transient associations with two of the mixed-sex groups. Although 51.77% of the population was female, the sex ratio among adults and subadults was female-biased (0.75), while that among immatures was male-biased (1.47). Consistent with expectations from mean interbirth intervals, 64.18% of adult females gave birth in 2003 and 2004. However, by January 2005, only 52.31% of adult females were still carrying infants < 24 months of age due to unusually high infant mortality. First-year survivorship among the 25 infants born in the population in 2003 was only 76%, considerably lower than previously documented in the longest-studied group. High female fecundity is indicative of a healthy population, but the current male bias in births will result in a decline in the population growth rate within two decades, and may increase levels of male reproductive competition and alter dispersal patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The papers in this issue were inspired by a symposium we organized for the 27th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists, held in June 2004. The purpose of the symposium was to highlight some of the new ways in which noninvasive techniques for measuring steroids are being employed to investigate the relationships between hormones and behavior in wild primates. Endocrinological data from the field provide new insights and more precise interpretations of behavioral data on topics ranging from social and reproductive strategies to seasonality, reproductive suppression, concealed ovulation, and development. Advances in the development of methods for extracting steroids from urine and feces have increased the options available to field workers, who can now select the most appropriate methodology for their study subjects, field conditions, and specific research questions. Field-based studies of behavioral endocrinology have spread to include a wide diversity of primate species. As the scope of these studies continues to grow, we anticipate the emergence of a dynamic new field in which comparative models of primate behavioral endocrinology contribute new perspectives on primates. Am. J. Primatol. 67:1–4, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We measured fecal androgen (T+DHT) and estradiol (E2) levels in female northern muriquis (Brachyteles hypoxanthus) at the Estação Biológica de Caratinga/RPPN Feliciano Miguel Abdala, Minas Gerais, Brazil, to evaluate the hormonal bases underlying individual variation in the resumption of cycling and conception. We found that androgen levels were significantly lower in females than in males, and that there were no consistent patterns in female androgen levels across precycling or cycling conditions. Females that resumed cycling earlier in the study (weeks 4–8) had higher precycling E2 levels and correspondingly lower precycling androgen/E2 ratios than females that resumed cycling later (weeks 12–16). There were no differences in female precycling androgen levels, but cycling females that conceived during or immediately after the study period had lower androgen levels and threefold higher E2 peaks than the one cycling female that failed to conceive. These results suggest that minimum E2 thresholds are necessary for both the resumption of ovarian cycling and conception. Individual variation in these components of fertility may be regulated by differences in E2 levels, which affect androgen/E2 ratios, rather than by androgen levels per se. Further research into the relative concentrations of T vs. DHT will be necessary to fully evaluate whether androgens affect cycling and conception in this species. Am. J. Primatol. 67:69–81, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated hormonal and behavioral changes in wild male and female northern muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides hypoxanthus ) at the Estação Biológica de Caratinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil, during a 6-mo period that encompassed the onset of the 1998–1999 mating and conception seasons. Individual females resumed mating with the resumption of ovarian cycling, which was not synchronized among them or related to their cortisol levels. Females experienced two to seven cycles prior to conceiving, and the first conception occurred 2 mo after the onset of the group's mating season. There were no differences in female cortisol levels across their premating, mating, and conception conditions. Cortisol levels were significantly higher in females than in males prior to the conception season, consistent with the prediction that energy reserves may be associated with breeding readiness in females, but not males, in this species. The sustained elevation in male cortisol occurred after the peak in their sexual activity, which resulted in the first conception of the year. Male cortisol levels were positively correlated between years that were similar in rainfall, but differed in the timing of sexual and reproductive events. The timing of cortisol elevations in males appears to be generally regulated by environmental cues, but is responsive to fine-tuning by social and behavioral cues related to the unpredictable timing of reproductive opportunities within their extended mating season. Am. J. Primatol. 61:85–99, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We collected systematic data on the home range and day ranges of one group of 57-63 muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides hypoxanthus) at the Estação Biológica de Caratinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil from September 1998-July 1999, and compared them with similar data collected 15 years ago when the 23-27 individuals in the group traveled together as a cohesive unit. Home range size increased from 168 ha to 309 ha, reflecting an expansion into areas of the forest that were previously unutilized and consistent with the positive relationship predicted between group size and home range size. By contrast, muriquis exhibited remarkable seasonal and interannual stability in their day ranges. Day ranges, which were calculated from 144 days with ≥8 h of observation, averaged 1,313 ± 573 m (median = 1,206 m). Day ranges did not vary with the size of subgroups, defined as independent individuals that traveled with one another out of contact with other group members. Subgroups were significantly larger during the rainy season (mean = 41.8 ± 12. 7, median = 46.0 individuals, n = 72) than the dry season (mean = 36.6 ± 13.25, median = 39.5 individuals, n = 72). Subgroups were also larger than the size of the entire group during the previous study, yet their day ranges are indistinguishable. The stability in muriqui day ranges is consistent with predictions for folivorous primates in which other indicators of intragroup feeding competition, such as female dominance relationships, are also absent. We attribute the transition from cohesive to fluid grouping patterns to limits on the number of individuals that can coordinate their movements when they spread out while foraging and suggest that seasonal differences in subgroup sizes without corresponding adjustments in day ranges reflect seasonal differences in the distribution of preferred foods coupled with the effects of reproductive seasonality on muriqui grouping patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonhuman primates occupy a special niche in anthropology because of the comparative insights into humans they provide. Initial anthropological interest in primates targeted the apes for their close phylogenetic relationships with humans, and the semiterrestrial Old World monkeys for their ecological similarities with hominids adapting to life on the ground. From the earliest anecdotal reports of tool use and hunting to more contemporary quantitative analyses of local "cultural" traditions, nonhuman primates have challenged deep-rooted concepts of human uniqueness and redefined the boundaries between us and other animals. Yet, despite the long-standing influence of primate studies in anthropology, approaches to studying primates began diverging from those of earlier ethnographers. Advances in primatology, particularly during the 1990s, have included a much deeper understanding of how ecology, phylogeny, and demography affect behavior. Insights into intraspecific, population-level variation represent an important area of convergence between primatology, other areas of anthropology, and conservation biology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growth of primate field studies has occurred along multiple dimensions representing expansion in the number of species studied, comparative studies of different populations of the same species, and populations and groups studied over time. The accumulation of data on a broader taxonomic diversity of primates has contributed to advances in the use of comparative methods for gaining insights into interspecific variation in behavior patterns, but the incorporation of intraspecific variation into comparative models of behavior has lagged behind. This delay can be attributed, in part, to the slow rate at which the interacting effects of life history and demography on behavior emerge in slow-growing, long-lived primates. It may also reflect the anthropocentric foundation of field primatology, which historically focused on interspecific comparisons with humans instead of interpopulation variation among primates. Conservation concerns have stimulated new thinking about the importance of populations and the range of behavioral variation that populations maintain. The integration of intra- and interspecific behavioral variation will distinguish the next generation of comparative models in primatology, and set a new agenda as field primatology comes of age. Yrbk Phys Anthropol 46:2-13, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growth of primate field studies has occurred along multiple dimensions representing expansion in the number of species studied, comparative studies of different populations of the same species, and populations and groups studied over time. The accumulation of data on a broader taxonomic diversity of primates has contributed to advances in the use of comparative methods for gaining insights into interspecific variation in behavior patterns, but the incorporation of intraspecific variation into comparative models of behavior has lagged behind. This delay can be attributed, in part, to the slow rate at which the interacting effects of life history and demography on behavior emerge in slow-growing, longlived primates. It may also reflect the anthropocentric foundation of field primatology, which historically focused on interspecific comparisons with humans instead of interpopulation variation among primates. Conservation concerns have stimulated new thinking about the importance of populations and the range of behavioral variation that populations maintain. The integration of intra- and interspecific behavioral variation will distinguish the next generation of comparative models in primatology, and set a new agenda as field primatology comes of age. Yrbk Phys Anthropol 46:2-13, 2003. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study which investigated patterns of sociality among wild male northern muriquis to explore some of the possible ways in which within-group scramble competition might shape their social and mating strategies. Variation in the type and strength of affiliative relationships among same-sexed primates; Patterns of sociality and affiliation; Dyadic associations and affiliations.

We monitored the birth patterns of sympatric brown howler monkeys (Alouatta fusca clamitans ) and northern muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides hypoxanthus ) during a 4-yr period from October 1996 to August 2000 at the Estação Biológica de Caratinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Brown howler monkey births (n = 34) occurred throughout the year, and birth frequencies did not differ between rainy and dry season months. The aseasonal birth patterns of the howler monkeys differed significantly from the dry season concentration and dry month peak in muriqui births (n = 23). We found no effects of infant sex or the number of females on interbirth intervals (IBIs) in our 10 howler monkey study troops. IBIs of brown howler monkeys averaged 21.2 ± 2.5 mo (n = 8, median = 21.0 mo), and were significantly shorter following dry season births than rainy season births. Their IBIs and yearling survivorship (74%) were similar to those reported for other species of howler monkeys, but yearling survivorship was much lower than that of muriquis (94%), whose IBIs were more than 12 mo longer than those of the howler monkeys. Our study extends comparative knowledge of birth patterns in Alouatta to a poorly known species, and provides insights into the different ways in which diet and life history may affect the timing of births in large-bodied platyrrhines under the same seasonal ecological conditions. Am. J. Primatol. 55:87–100, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the disciplines of physical anthropology. Concerns on human evolution and variation in the context of biological anthropology; Description of the comparative behavior and ecology of primates; Effects of revolutionary relatedness among species; Comparison of populations under different ecological and demographic conditions.

Determines the timing of dispersal relative to puberty and ovarian cycling in wild female muriqui monkeys. Temporal distribution of intergroup transfers; Characteristics of natal emigrants; Characteristics of nonnatal immigrants.

Black‐and‐white snub‐nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus bieti) rely on behavioral and dietary flexibility to survive in temperate latitudes at high‐elevation habitats characterized by climate and resource seasonality. However, little is known about how elevation influences their behavioral and dietary flexibility at monthly or seasonal scales. We studied an isolated R. bieti population at Mt. Lasha in the Yunling Provincial Nature Reserve, Yunnan, China, between May 2008 and August 2016 to assess the impacts of elevation on feeding behavior and diet. Across our sample, R. bieti occupied elevations between 3031 and 3637 m above mean sea level (amsl), with a 315.1 m amsl range across months and a 247.3 m amsl range across seasons. Contrary to expectations, individuals spent less time feeding when ranging across higher elevations. Lichen consumption correlated with elevation use across months and seasons, with individuals spending more time feeding on this important resource at higher elevations. Leaf consumption only correlated with elevation use during the spring. Our results suggest that R. bieti do not maximize their food intake at higher elevations and that monthly and seasonal changes in lichen and leaf consumption largely explain variation in elevation use. These findings shed light on the responses of R. bieti to environmental change and offer insight into strategies for conserving their habitats in the face of anthropogenic disturbance. Research Highlights: Black‐and‐white snub‐nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus bieti) spend less time feeding in months and seasons when occupying higher‐elevation habitats.Leaves only comprise a higher percentage of the R. bieti diet when occupying higher‐elevation habitats in the spring.Lichen comprise a higher percentage of the R. bieti diet in months and seasons when occupying higher‐elevation habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We documented four adolescent female transfers—two emigrations, two immigrations—during a 12-month study from August 1994 to July 1995 on one group of muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides) at Estação Biológica de Caratinga in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Intergroup transfers occurred throughout the year independent of season. A total of 613 focal samples of 10-min duration conducted on six adolescent females (5–9 years of age) revealed significant differences in the behavior of migrant versus natal resident females. During the seasons encompassing their respective group transfers, both emigrants and immigrants devoted more of their time to resting than resident females belonging to the same age cohorts did. Time spent feeding on mature fruit was higher for one emigrant and lower for both immigrants compared to the two resident females. Emigrant females had fewer neighbors within a 1-m radius than resident females did, whereas immigrant females were within a 1-m radius of adult females and within a 5-m radius of adult males more often than resident adolescent females were. Adolescent females were displaced on 26 occasions. Displacements occurred mainly during the dry seasons (n = 21) and mainly at food sources (n = 21). Using the number of focal samples conducted on each female as an estimate of observation time, immigrant females were displaced at twice the rate of residents. However, like other behavioral differences detected between resident and migrant adolescent females, differences in individual displacement rates were evident only during the season in which each of the immigrants joined the group. Collectively, our findings imply that female intergroup transfer in this population involves relatively mild, short-term costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the myth of the typical primate within the context of research paradigms. Origin of the myth; Primate societies; Evaluation of some ecological models of primate social systems.

Fecal samples were collected systematically during a 6-week period, from 13 September-24 October, 1990, from four nonlactating female muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides) inhabiting an 800 ha forest at Fazenda Montes Claros in Minas Gerais, Brazil. All four females were experienced mothers; one had most recently given birth in June 1988; the other three had most recently given birth in August 1988. Fecal assays measuring progesterone, estradiol, and estrone indicated consistently low levels in the one female who had given birth in June 1988 and in two of the three females who had given birth in August 1988. Elevated steroid levels did, however, appear in fecal samples from the fourth female on day 15 of the collection period. Steroid levels subsequently dropped and then began to rise again during what appeared to be a second cycle. The cycling female was the only one of the four females examined observed to copulate during the collection period. These preliminary data indicate that nonlactating female muriquis do not cycle year-round, resumption of cycling is not tightly synchronized among females even when their prior parturitions were tightly synchronized, and resumed sexual activity appears to be associated with resumed cycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data on feeding behavior in one group of muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides) were collected during a 14 month study at Fazenda Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Muriquis devoted an average of 51% of their annual feeding time to leaves, 32% to fruits, and 11% to flowers. The high proportion of leaves in their diet is consistent with predictions from the energetics of body size. However, they devoted a greater proportion of their feeding time to patchy fruit and flower resources than was expected from comparisons with smaller, sympatric howler monkeys. Muriqui diet varied with the availability of preferred food types across sample months. Fruit and flower consumption corresponded to the availability and abundance of these food resources in the forest. Leaves contributed substantially to muriqui diet throughout the year but appeared to be eaten primarily to provide necessary protein and/or necessary bulk. Male and female diets differed only in the greater proportion of feeding time females devoted to flowers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One group of woolly spider monkeys, or muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides), was observed from June 1983 through July 1984 at Fazenda Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The study subjects spent an average of 49% of their daylight time resting, 29% traveling, and 19% feeding. They shifted their diurnal schedule of activities in response to seasonal changes in temperature and rainfall. The activity budgets of adult males and females were similar. However, a comparison of three adult females in different reproductive conditions revealed that the lactating female spent a greater proportion of time feeding than did both the pregnant and nonreproductive females. Intraspecific differences in group size and diet appear to be important to understanding differences in the activity budgets of Brachyteles. Differences between locomotion patterns of woolly spider monkeys and sympatric howler monkeys may explain activity budget differences based on group size and diet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropological interest in nonhuman primates as models for human behavioral evolution has tended to focus on a relatively small number of species. This emphasis, coupled with a search for unifying principles that explain behavior, has led to a widespread perception of the semi-terrestrial cercopithecines as 'typical,' and therefore characteristic of most other primates. The prevalence of male-biased dispersal and female philopatry, the use of aggression to establish and maintain hierarchical relationships, and the occurrence of sex for exclusively reproductive purposes have been challenged repeatedly, but the cercopithecine model of primate behavior has nonetheless persisted in much of the anthropological literature. This review incorporates accumulating data on a diversity of primates to examine the myth of the typical primate. The roles of kinship, aggression, and sex in mediating primate social relationships are far less uniform across primates than the myth has implied, raising questions about the generality of models of primate social systems derived from 'typical' primates. Acknowledging existing diversity and encompassing it in more accurate portrayals of primate behavioral ecology requires consideration of the interacting effects of phylogenetic, demographic, ontogenetic, and physiological variables. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports on the demography and behavioral patterns of muriquis or Brachyteles arachnoides. Nine-year monitoring at Fazenda Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Group size and composition; Home range; Grouping patterns; Implications for muriqui social structure; Future perspectives for the Matao group.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports published within the issue which includes human-animal interaction, the human influence on biogeography of New World primates, and the exploration of the contemporary literature.

Conservation funding is currently limited; cost‐effective conservation solutions are essential. We suggest that the thousands of field stations worldwide can play key roles at the frontline of biodiversity conservation and have high intrinsic value. We assessed field stations' conservation return on investment and explored the impact of COVID‐19. We surveyed leaders of field stations across tropical regions that host primate research; 157 field stations in 56 countries responded. Respondents reported improved habitat quality and reduced hunting rates at over 80% of field stations and lower operational costs per km2 than protected areas, yet half of those surveyed have less funding now than in 2019. Spatial analyses support field station presence as reducing deforestation. These "earth observatories" provide a high return on investment; we advocate for increased support of field station programs and for governments to support their vital conservation efforts by investing accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study reports for the first time the infestation of Cebidicola armatus in Brachyteles hypoxanthus. In total, 14 lice were recovered of an individual in Minas Gerais, Brazil. These were subjected to a microscopic analysis and the identification of C. armatus was carried out through its very characteristic morphology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The northern muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus) is a critically endangered species endemic to the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil. Long‐term observational studies of wild muriquis have provided many insights into the behavioral ecology and life history of this species. However, nearly everything that is currently known about the northern muriqui's behavioral endocrinology has come from combining our respective expertise in noninvasive field and laboratory research. Here, we reflect on the history of our collaboration, focusing on major challenges, key scientific findings, and factors that contributed to its success. Challenges included insuring the reliable collection of frequent fecal samples from a large enough number of known individuals over extended periods of time, preserving the steroids in the field and transporting them, developing and validating the fecal steroid assays, and interpreting the hormonal profiles within the behavioral and ecological contexts of the study subjects. Major findings included our thorough description of the fecal progesterone and estradiol profiles associated with muriqui ovarian cycling and gestation, the seasonal resumption of cycling, its onset during puberty of dispersing females, and the differences between fertile and infertile cycles. We also documented the relationship between fecal cortisol and testosterone in sexually active males across breeding and nonbreeding seasons, and sex differences in cortisol levels across the mating and conception seasons. We attribute the success of our collaboration to a number of factors including our mutual appreciation for one another's high standards for ethics, data quality, and data interpretation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses articles in the issue on topics including food, ethics and social sciences.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusess topics within the issue including evaluation of Anthropocene for analyzing environmentally reactive character of the human genome; ontological and agentive dimensions of being human; and human–animal interaction.