Chapter 5 Flashcards
Comparative Primatology
the study of our closest living relatives, the primates, for the purpose of understanding aspects of our own behavior
Strepsirrhini
Primate suborder that includes the Lemurs, Lorises, and Galapagos (the prosimians)
Haplorrhini
Primate suborder that includes the Tarsiers, monkeys, apes, and humans
Ceboidea
Primate superfamily that includes all monkeys found in the Americas
Cercopithecoidea
Primate superfamily that includes all monkeys found in Africa and Asia
Anthropoids
all monkeys, apes, and humans
Hominoid
Member of the super-family Hominoidea
Hominin
the division in Hominoidea that includes humans and our recent ancestors
Behavorial Ecology
The study of behavior from ecological and evolutionary perspectives
Foraging
the act of seeking and processing food
Five Areas of Socioecological Pressure
Foraging/Nutrition, Predation, Intraspecific competition, Interspecific competition, Habitat locomotion
Strategy
Set of behavior patterns that has become prominent in a population as a result of natural selection
Kin Selection
Behavorial favoring of one’s close genetic relatives
Altruism
Selflessness in one’s behavior
Potential
The spectrum of possible expression created by morphology, evolutionary history, and other aspects of a genotype
Performance
the actual expression of a trait or behavior; the actual influence on a phenotype a trait has
Phylogenetic Contraints
limits on current behavior or traits due to patterns and trends in an organism’s evolutionary past
Infant Dependency Period
Period during which the infant is wholly reliant on others for nutrition, movement, thermoregulation, and protection
Spandrels
The by-products of structural change
Home Range
Area used by a primate group or community; often overlap between individuals
Affiliative
Bond enhancing or prosocial
Agonistic
Aggressive or combative
Philopatric
Staying in one’s natal group; the habitually to stay or return to a particular area
Estrus
Behavorial and physiological sexual receptivity
Sociosocial Behavior
Nonreproductive sexual behavior that serves to resolve conflicts and/or reinforce alliances and coalitions
Primate-wide Features
- Five digits on hand and feet and free mobility of limbs
- flexible, grasping digits, with sensitive friction pads and nails rather than claws
- Erect posture in many groups
Two Major Groups of Haplorhines:
Tarsiers and Anthropoids (New World and Old Monkeys)
Platyrrhines
New World monkeys with outward facing nostrils
Catarrhines
Old World Monkeys and Hominoids (Apes and Humans)
Terrestrial Primates
Primates that live predominantly or entirely on land
- generally live in larger groups than arboreal species
- face greater danger from predators
- have large group size that provides some protection against predation
Fruigivores
Fruit-eaters
- live in larger groups than folivores (leaf-eaters)
- large group size is an advantage in between group competition
Diurnal Species
Animals active during the day
-live in larger groups than do nocturnal groups (why?)
Dominance Hierarchies
Dominant individuals and their kin/allies gain:
- preferential access to food resources
- preferential access to mates
- defense against predators
Somewhat reflected in sexual dimorphism
Owl Monkeys
- New World Monkeys
- Nocturnal and form monagamous mating pairs
- little sexual dimorphism
- “floating” individuals that have left their birth group
Capuchin
- New World Monkeys
- Diurnal and aboreal
- adept tool-users
- demonstrate altruism and an understanding of the concept of using a medium for exchange
Macaque Species
- Old World Monkeys
- Wide geographic distribution over a diversity of habitats
- Have cultural traditions that are learned through observation (support groups of female kin)
Orangutans
- Mostly solitary
- highly sexual dimorphic
- Aboreal
- Use of tools has been documented in some groups
Gorillas
Small group size, eat foods with low nutritive value=>Spend most of day eating (not very social)
-Displayed use of tools
Fusion-fission Societies
Societies in which the size and composition of the social group change as time passes and animals move throughout the environment; animals merge (fusion)—e.g. sleeping in one place—or split (fission)—e.g. foraging in small groups during the day.
Common Chimpanzees (Pan troglydytes)
•Multimale/multifemale communities characterized by fusion-fission social pattern
• Male dominant species w/ frequent intraspecific competition
• female dominance hierarchy is less clear but usually older females dominate younger females
-Hunting is mainly a male activity
-Tool use and passing of learned social tradidiotn within different communities
Bonobos (Pan piniscus)
• bonded female coalitions dominate males and limit male access to preferred feeding sites
• high ranking females can influence their adult sons’ rank among males
• adult males tend not to form strong alliances
Tool use and passing of learned social traditions within different communities
Mother & Grandmother Hypotheses
individuals who survive long after their reproductive life (from a natural selection standpoint) is b/c those individuals carry knowledge and information that can be passed on and contribute to survival
Humans (homo sapiens)
Distinct in that:
• exceptionally high EQ
• exceptionally long post-reproductive life for females
• exceptional reliance on culture as niche construction
• exceptional ability in language as communication / symbol
All Chimpanzee Species
- cooperative behaviors
- meat-eating, tool use and manufacture
- social traditions
- ability to use at least rudimentary symbolic communication
Scramble Competition
Dispered food, difficult to monopolize
-favors small groups
Contest Competition
Clumped and defendable food sources
-Favors large groups
