Primate Behavior

Question 1

3 disciplines to study primate behavior

Answer 1

• Ethology - naturalistic behavior; field work, lab; natural selection
• sociobiology - explains aspects of social behavior (in between CP and E)
• comparative psychology - underlying mechanisms; individual focus

Question 2

Why be social - 2 views

Answer 2

• Ultimate view (big picture)

- proximate view (psychological, individual)

Question 3

ultimate view of being social

Answer 3

• reproductive strategy
• predator defense
• raising offspring
• population dispersal

Question 4

proximate view of being social

Answer 4

• sex
• fear reduction
• social bonding
• finding food
• territoriality

Question 5

Solly Zuckerman

• study subject
• findings?

Answer 5

• “The Social Life of Monkey’s and Apes”
• study: watched baboons in the zoo
• determined that sexual attraction and dominance hierarchy were the driving forces of being social

Question 6

T.C. Schneirla

• phrase he coined
• 3 aspects of sociality

Answer 6

• “gregarious tendency” - monkeys are social because they are naturally so
• two aspects of sociality: Obligative and Facultative
• some animals have a predisposition to be social, others are solitary

Question 7

Obligative sociality

Answer 7

-genetic aspect of being social

Question 8

Facultative sociality

Answer 8

-learned aspect of being social

Question 9

Characteristics of social groups

Answer 9

• size
• number of adults
• type of dominance relations
• cohesiveness
• emigration patterns
• social structures

Question 10

main way to describe social groups

-what is not a good way to describe social groups?

Answer 10

• social structures
• they have found that group size is not a useful attribute (used to say that group size inc as primates evolved, but this isn’t necessarily true)

Question 11

types of social structures

Answer 11

• solitary forager
• monogamous pairs
• polygenous - 1 male, multiple females
• multi-male/multi-female - 3 types: sexually segregated, age-graded, fission/fusion

Question 12

Solitary social structure

• which primates (2)
• characteristics of females
• 2 types of males

Answer 12

• mouse lemur, galago
• females are more social than males
• vagabond males: males that emigrate from group
• territorial males: must have access to females and keep out other males; drive out sons
• females in one territory are usually related

Question 13

Robert Martin

Answer 13

-studied foraging patterns of mouse lemurs

Question 14

P. Charles Dominique

Answer 14

-studied foraging patterns of galagos

Question 15

Monogamous social structure

• which primates (5)
• sexual dimorphism
• who helps more?
• puberty
• what is special about siamangs?

Answer 15

• marmoset, tamarin, gibbon, mentawai langur, siamang
• each family is territorial
• less sexual dimorphism
• paternal care
• both male/female offspring leave or assist in rearing siblings
• don’t go through puberty until they leave the group
• siamangs - territorial calls; leave territory when old enough

Question 16

One male, multi-female social structure

• which primates (6)
• sexual dimorphism
• langurs - 2 things are special about them
• person that studied baboons

Answer 16

• howler monkeys, patas monkeys, guenons, langurs, hamadryas and gelata baboons
• high sexual dimorphism - males establish harem and fight with other males
• langurs - infanticide and bachelor bands (sons that emigrate take over other male-dominated groups)
• females are related; daughters stay in group
• Gelata and Hamadryas baboon - social unit within sleeping herd
• Jancita Beehner

Question 17

Jancita Beehner

Answer 17

• studied Gelata baboons in Sieme Mountains of Ethiopia
• baboons have periodic take over every 3-4 years
• if females are pregnant, new male will abort the baby

Question 18

multi-male/multi-female social structure

• sexual dimorphism
• which primates?
• characteristics of structure
• variations

Answer 18

• ground-living OW monkeys
• sexual dimorphism
• more females than males in group
• adult male dominance heirarchy
• male emigration (sometimes females too)
• there are 4 variations: age-graded, multiple harems, sexually segregated, integrated

Question 19

multiple harems

• structure
• which primates

Answer 19

• 1 male, several females
• at night for sleeping
• hamadryas and gelata baboon

Question 20

age-graded

• structure
• which primates

Answer 20

• multi-male

- silver-backed gorilla

Question 21

sexually segregated

• structure
• which primates

Answer 21

• males are antisocial, females stick together
• males satellite around females and come in to mate
• talapoin, lemur, squirrel monkey

Question 22

integrated

• structure
• which pirmates

Answer 22

• males and females live together

- baboons, rhesus monkeys, macaques, gorillas

Question 23

Robert Hinde

Answer 23

• British Ecologist
• studied what can be inherited that would determine the social group structure
• thought that over time, a pattern of interaction can be created
• predisposition influences relationships; larger category created

Question 24

Hinde’s development of social structures

Answer 24

genetic heritage–>individual predispositions–>interaction patterns over time–>social relationships–>social group structure

Question 25

types of females in multi-male/multi-female social groups

Answer 25

• possessed female - male hamadryas will chase female in group if she tries to leave
• free female - dispersed; common in olive/anubis baboon

Question 26

Hans Krummer

Answer 26

• studied hybrids of anubis baboons and hamadryas baboons - less accepting of posessiveness
• also put them in other opposite social male group; hamadryas didn’t accept anubis; hamadryas became freer in anubis group

Question 27

Squirrel monkey study

Answer 27

• different behaviors N and S of Amazon
• N: integrated; no avoidance; males dominant over females
• S: sexually segregated; female dominance over males; male avoidance
• mixed N males and S females; mostly incompatible, but one group did mate