PSGB Spring Meeting 2001

10 April 2001

The Spring meeting of the Primate Society will be held on Tuesday 10th April 2001 at Bolton Institute, Bolton, Lancashire. This will be an open meeting, and talks and posters on any aspect of primatology are welcome. Submissions from postgraduate students are particularly encouraged.
Offering a Paper or Poster

Offers of spoken papers or posters should be sent to Dr Geoff Hosey, Biology & Environmental Studies, Bolton Institute, Deane Road, Bolton BL3 5AB, UK (e-mail gh2@bolton.ac.uk). Offers need not initially be accompanied by an abstract, but we would like abstracts of all talks and posters to be sent to the above address by March 23rd 2001, in either electronic or paper form. Please indicate when offering a paper whether it is a spoken paper or a poster, and what your audio-visual requirements are.

How to get here

Bolton is one of England’s largest towns, situated 20km north west of Manchester in the North West of England. It is close to the motorway network, with the M61 just to the west of the town, and the M60 just to the south and linked to Bolton town centre by the A666. It is also easily reached by rail, either directly or via Manchester or Wigan. For those coming from further afield, Manchester International Airport has direct bus and rail links to Bolton.

Bolton Institute

The meeting will be held at the Deane Campus of the Institute. This campus is just several hundred metres from Bolton railway station, and about a kilometre from the motorway access link road (A666). There will be a welcome/registration desk in the entrance foyer of the main tower building at Deane campus. Maps of Bolton and of the Institute campuses are available through the Institute web site (www.bolton.ac.uk), or can be sent on request.

Accommodation

This is just a one day meeting, which will start at 10.00 a.m., which should be late enough to permit most visitors to reach Bolton on the day. However, accommodation is available at one of our Halls of Residence, and a form to book this is enclosed with this information sheet. Those who wish to book accommodation should send the form directly to: Mrs Sara Burgess, Residential Services, Bolton Institute, Deane Road, Bolton BL3 5AB (Tel. 01204 903484; e-mail S.E.Burgess@bolton.ac.uk). In addition there is a range of hotels in Bolton and the surrounding area at a variety of prices. A list of these can be obtained from Residential Services at the above address.

Where to Eat

Meals are not included in the registration fee, and people should make their own arrangements for lunch. The Institute’s Eagle Restaurant and Eagle Bistro will be open at lunchtime, and there are also several fast-food outlets close to the Institute. Bolton town centre, a few minutes’ walk away, also has numerous eat-in and take-out cafes and restaurants. A buffet supper will be available on Monday evening (subject to sufficient numbers), and a booking slip for this is attached to the accommodation booking form.

Registration

There is no advance registration. Registration will be by payment at arrival at the meeting on Tuesday morning. The registration fee will be £3 for PSGB members (£5 for non-members), and £1 for student members (£2 for taught course student non-members).

Booking Forms

Booking forms are available online as either an RTF file that can be read by most word-processors or as an Acrobat file that can be viewed directly on many computers or can be obtained direct from the organisers.

Programme

10.00 – 10.15 Welcome (Geoff Hosey, Bolton Institute)

Opening Comments (Phyllis Lee, Cambridge)

Session 1: Chair Marie Jacques (Bolton Institute)

10.15 – 10.40 Gillian Brown (Cambridge): Food-sharing in family groups of common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus)

10.40 – 11.05 Lynda Birke (Chester Zoo): Effects of human visitors on the behaviour of captive Orang Utans

11.05 – 11.35 Tea/Coffee and Posters

11.35 – 12.00 Roland Plesker (Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Langen): Prima hedrons, puzzle feeders and television as environmental enrichment for captive African Green Monkeys

12.00 – 12.25 Vicky Melfi (Trinity College, Dublin): How does captive housing and husbandry affect feeding behaviour in Sulawesi Crested Black Macaque (Macaca nigra)

12.25 – 12.50 Rachel Day (Cambridge) & Kevin Laland: Innovation and social learning in callitrichid primates: applications for reintroduction techniques.

12.50 – 2.00 pm Lunch

Session 2: Chair Sue Caless (Bolton Institute)

2.00 – 2.25 Andrew Smith (Stirling), Hannah Buchanan-Smith, Alison Surridge & Nick Mundy: Colour blindness: an advantage for prey capture in primates?

2.25 – 2.50 Marie Jacques (Bolton Institute): The development of play in captive Ring-tailed Lemurs

2.50 – 3.20 Tea/Coffee and Posters

3.20 – 3.45 Nicola Koyama (Liverpool John Moores): Patterns of coalition formation among high and low ranking Japanese Macaques (Macaca fuscata)

3.45 – 4.10 Russell Hill (Durham): Predation sensitive foraging in Chacma Baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus)

Paper Abstracts

Food-sharing in family groups of common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus).

GILLIAN R. BROWN
Sub-Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Cambridge, Madingley, Cambridge, CB3 8AA. U.K.
E-mail: grb1000@hermes.cam.ac.uk

The term food-sharing has been used to describe a number of behaviour patterns in primates, including the provisioning offspring by parents and helpers, and the exchange of food items between adults. Here, I describe an experiment that investigated the first category of behaviour, namely food sharing as provisioning of offspring by parents. The amount of begging by offspring, and the amount of sharing and refusing by parents, was recorded in captive family groups of common marmosets when either (1) familiar food, (2) palatable novel food, or (3) unpalatable novel food was available. The results indicate that infants preferentially beg for novel food, but that parents are less willing to hand over novel compared to familiar food items. However, once parents have tasted novel food, they are quick to pass on unpalatable items to their offspring. These results are discussed with reference to the various functional hypotheses that have been proposed for food-sharing in primates.

Effects of human visitors on the behaviour of captive Orang Utans.

LYNDA BIRKE
Chester Zoo, Upton, Chester. CH2 1LR. U.K.

Human visitors are a significant part of the environment of captive animals; humans may provide stimulation, but their presence may also be potentially stressful, as several other studies of zoo primates have indicated (eg Chamove et al., 1988). This paper reports on some effects of visitors on the behaviour of orang utans, living at Chester Zoo, UK. As part of a larger project on orang utan behaviour, I assessed behavioural changes following the arrival of large visitor groups. As soon as a large group arrived, adult animals made more use of available paper sacks (to put on their heads), and reduced the time they spent foraging. Infants tended to respond to visitor arrival by approaching and holding onto mothers. These are reactions to unfamiliarity shown also by wild orang utans (Mackinnon, 1974). A subsequent experiment, in which human behaviour was controlled (groups were asked to remain silent or to make noise), determined whether the effects were due to noise or to the mere presence of large groups. The experiment showed much greater effects on infant behaviour when human groups were noisy. There are several implications of these findings for the management and welfare of captive primates, which I will discuss.

Prima hedrons, puzzle feeders and television as environmental enrichment for captive African Green Monkeys.

ROLAND PLESKER, K. H_HLE & A. HERZOG
Paul-Ehrlich-Institute, Central animal unit, Paul-Ehrlich-Str. 51-59, D-63225 Langen. Germany.
E-mail: plero@pei.de

In this investigation, two groups of African Green Monkeys (Chlorocebus aethiops) were used to evaluate the benefits of prima hedrons, puzzle feeders and the offer of television as environmental enrichment. The groups consisted of six individuals: one male, one/two adult females and three/four offspring, respectively. They were housed in an experimental indoor monkey facility at the Paul-Ehrlich-Institute in Langen. The cage was made of steel with dimensions of 300 cm x 125 cm x 225 cm. Data collection was performed for two hours each day with two weeks for each object within two blocks of eight weeks. Before and after each observation block, a control week was included. Frequency data were collected. The prima hedrons had no significant effect on any of the behaviours investigated. These were infrequently used as objects for playing, resting or observation. In contrast, the puzzle feeders were frequently used by the youngsters and avoided by the adult males. The access to television (mainly nature films) enhanced the observation behaviour of the whole group for a short time. Again, the adult males, but also the youngest offspring did not appear to be interested. Stereotype movements in one adult male increased during the offer of objects.

How does captive housing and husbandry effect feeding behaviour in Sulawesi crested black macaque (Macaca nigra).

V.A. MELFI
Department of Zoology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland.
E-mail: vmelfi@dublinzoo.ie

Sulawesi crested black macaques are endangered in the wild, mainly due to anthropocentric factors which may take some time to alleviate. In the mean time ex-situ conservation programmes are necessary to maintain animals, until re-introduction into the wild is feasible. When holding primates in captivity we should attempt to meet their physical and psychological needs. It has been established that management regimes and enclosure design should be species-specific and this certainly holds true for a species that is part of as behaviourally diverse a genus as Macaca.

The populations of macaques on the island of Sulawesi are steadily declining and so they rely heavily on captive-breeding programmes for survival. However, there is little known about their captive behaviour, which may be vital for optimising their health and welfare and possibly increasing their chances of successful reintroduction. In this paper I present results from a study investigating the effect of environmental factors on the behaviour of captive Sulawesi crested black macaques. Eight troops of M. nigra were studied in the UK and Ireland. Activity budgets were generated and using multi-variant analysis, the major environmental factors (independent variables) that affect behaviour (dependent variable) were identified.

Multiple regression incorporated three environmental variables into a model that significantly predicted feeding behaviour (R2 = 0.45, F (3/85) = 23.22, p<0.001), which were the use of bark as an inside flooring substrate, troop size and area per individual. Due to intercorrelation between the environmental variables and a small sample size (N=89) group size all three variables should be considered as a set which act together to predict behaviour.

Innovation and social learning in callitrichid primates: applications for reintroduction techniques.

RACHEL DAY & KEVIN N. LALAND
Sub-Dept Animal Behaviour, University of Cambridge, Madingley, CB3 8AA, U.K.

The study investigates how knowledge of innovatory tendencies, social learning mechanisms and dynamics could be utilised to enhance primate reintroduction attempts. This involves the introduction of novel objects and foraging tasks into captive groups of callitrichidae species. The innovatory tendencies of different classes of individual (age, sex, social rank) are described highlighting which individuals in each species are most likely to solve new survival tasks. The data also indicate how different aspects of the task, enclosure, population composition, social structure and species affect the diffusion dynamics of socially learned information, providing recommendations for pre-release training and the composition of groups to be reintroduced.

Colour blindness: an advantage for prey capture in primates?

ANDREW C. SMITH (1), HANNAH BUCHANAN-SMITH (1), ALISON SURRIDGE (2) & NICK MUNDY (2)
1 Scottish Primate Research Group, University of Stirling.
2 Institute of Biological Anthropology, University of Oxford.

An advantage of trichromacy may be improved detection and identification of food, particularly ripe fruits amongst the dappled light of leaves. However dichromacy may be an advantage in some situations. Human dichromats can detect a perceptual organisation based on texture while the target is masked for normal trichromats by a rival organisation based on hue. Applying this to dichromatic monkeys in their natural habitat, they may detect camouflage prey missed by their trichromatic conspecifics. We test this hypothesis in Saguinus spp. In Peru, comparing capture rates and prey defence strategies, between di- and trichromats.

The state of play: development of play in captive ring-tailed lemurs.

MARIE JACQUES & GEOFF HOSEY
Bolton Primate Research Team, Bolton Institute, Deane Road, Bolton. BL3 5AB.

As with many other aspects of developmental behaviour it is impossible to experimentally isolate play as a single variable without introducing gross deficits in the development of the subject. One solution is to take a phylogenetic approach and the lemurs of Madagascar may provide us with a rich source of information. Ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) are like old world monkeys in that they are highly social but strikingly different in that they show female dominance. Thus they provide the opportunity to test a number of hypotheses relating to the way in which adult sexually differentiated behaviours may develop through play. So far this study has found no sex differences in ontogeny, frequency or duration of social play in infant ring-tails. A detailed description of discrete play actions has been developed and further work will be directed to analysing age and sex related differences across infant, juvenile and sub-adult animals.

Patterns of coalition formation among high and low ranking Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata).

NICOLA KOYAMA
School of Biological & Earth Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool. L3 3AF

Coalitions play a key role in the acquisition and maintenance of female rank in many cercopithecine species and can act to stabilise, and in rare cases, destabilise the hierarchy. Differences in cohesiveness and stability across high and low ranking matrilines may be attributable to differences in patterns of coalition formation. In this study, patterns of coalitionary support by high and low ranking adult females were compared across dyads of differing degrees of relatedness. Stability was found to decrease down the hierarchy. High ranking females frequently supported both close (r = 0.5 – 0.25) and distant kin (r < 0.125) whereas low ranking females aided only distant kin (r = 0.125 – 0.0625). The pattern of support among low ranking females may contribute to the increased instability in the lower half of the hierarchy.

Predation sensitive foraging in chacma baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus).

RUSSELL HILL
University of Durham, Durham DH1 3HN

Food availability is traditionally considered to be the primary factor determining primate foraging behaviour and patterns of habitat choice. However, predation risk is also thought to be a significant constraint, although few studies have sought to examine it explicitly. This is almost certainly due to difficulties in quantifying the precise factors that primates perceive as important in determining their risk of predation, but means that much of the current evidence is therefore anecdotal. This study presents a detailed examination of the trade-off between food availability and predation risk in patterns of habitat selection by two troops of chacma baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus) at De Hoop Nature Reserve, South Africa. While both troops selected habitats primarily on the basis of food availability, habitat-specific predation risk was also an important factor. The degree of response to predation risk was influenced by group size, with the smallest study group avoiding high-risk habitats, even if they contained high levels of food. Although the larger group exploited high-risk habitats more frequently, these habitats were not used indiscriminately, and behaviour patterns were still consistent with a risk-minimisation strategy. Foraging strategies and patterns of habitat choice in baboons thus represent a complex trade-off between group size, food availability and the perceived risk of predation.

Poster Abstracts

Conflict behaviours in two species of primate.

SUSAN CALESS
Bolton Primate Research Team, Bolton Institute, Deane Road, Bolton. BL3 5AB.
E-mail: sc2res@bolton.ac.uk

Observations of captive and wild Lemur catta and Eulemur fulvus rufus were undertaken to test hypotheses on intersexual and interspecific aggression. Previous research indicates that L.catta show female dominance and E.f.rufus do not. This research reports the levels and types of aggression displayed by these two lemur species. Findings indicate frequency of aggression varies seasonally, with the patterns reflecting the underlying, metabolically stressful periods of reproduction in the female. However, only L.catta show any seasonal variation of aggressive intensity, with the highest intensity behaviours displayed during the non-reproductive period. These findings are discussed with reference to the social structures and hierarchies seen in these species.

Affiliation and conflict in Verreaux’s sifaka (Propithecus verreauxi verreauxi)

LESLEY CARLILE
Bolton Primate Research Team, Bolton Institute, Deane Road, Bolton. BL3 5AB.
E-mail: lesleycarlile@hotmail.com

Verreaux's sifakas (Propithecus verreauxi verreauxi) live in small stable groups comprising of natal and non-natal individuals, though little quantitative data of their social behaviour is available. Studies on other primate species have emphasised the importance of associations that are cultivated and maintained between group members. These social relationships also appear influential in reducing negative consequences of intra-group aggression. A pilot study observed affiliative and agonistic interactions in a group of wild Verreaux's sifakas at Berenty, Madagascar. The levels of observed affiliative contact between group members (following and in the absence of aggression), were generally low. However, a preliminary analysis suggests that distance maintained between individuals may be an important factor in social relationships in Verreaux's sifakas.

Coping with Short-term Space Restriction in Chimpanzees.

CLARE CAWS & FILIPO AURELI
School of Biological & Earth Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool. L3 3AF

The influence of crowding on the behaviour of non-human primates has been studied since the 1960`s. Initially it was thought that high-density conditions would increase aggression based mainly on studies of rodents. However, recent studies that controlled for unfamiliarity with the physical and social environment have shown that primates are capable of modifying their behaviour to reduce the likelihood of conflict. Chimpanzees especially appear to cope effectively with adverse conditions. The chimpanzees at Chester Zoological Gardens were confined to the indoor yard of their enclosure for four weeks during March 2000. Data on agonistic and affiliative behaviour were collected on 21 sexually mature individuals during the ‘indoor period’ and compared with a ‘control period’ in which the chimpanzees also had access to their outdoor enclosure. During the indoor period the chimpanzees showed no increase in aggression, grooming, and submissive greeting, nor changed their proximity to adult males. However, the percentage of aggressive events that involved more than 2 individuals was significantly lower during the indoor period. In addition, 36 dyads were identified as “highly aggressive” during the control period; aggression was reduced in these dyads during the indoor period. These results confirm previous evidence that chimpanzees do not increase aggression during space restriction. Furthermore, they seem to inhibit aggression by not joining ongoing conflicts and by selectively decreasing the targeting of common ‘victims’.

Psychological wellbeing of common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) females living in same-sex pairs.

BONAVENTURA MAJOLO (1), (2) & HANNAH BUCHANAN-SMITH (1)
1 Scottish Primate Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, Scotland.
2 Present address: School of Biological and Earth Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, L3 3AF, England.
E-mail: BESBMAJO@livjm.ac.uk

Primates housed in unnatural social conditions usually show a decrease in social behaviour and an increase in stress-related behaviours, such as stereotypies and scratching. Common marmosets are often housed in same-sex pairs in laboratories for practical reasons although family groups are the most stable social grouping in the wild and in captivity. This study aims to determine if common marmoset females living in same-sex pairs show differences in daily activity budgets, social interactions, and stress-related behaviours in comparison to females living in family groups.

We found that females in same-sex pairs spent more time watching out of their cages than those in family groups, but we found no other significant differences in activity budgets and social behaviours. Stress-related behaviours occurred very rarely. Therefore, at this gross behavioural level, the behaviour of female pairs of common marmosets resembles that of females living in family groups suggesting that this method of housing does not compromise their welfare. However, without data on their physiology, and more fine-tuned welfare measures (such as vocalisations), this conclusion should be treated with caution.

The Role of Research in Prosimian Conservation: A Comparative Ecological Study of Pottos (Perodicticus potto) and Alllen’s Bushbabies (Galago alleni).

E. PIMLEY (1), L. KNAPP (2), S. BEARDER (3) and A. DIXSON (4)
1 Sub-Department of Animal Behaviour, University of Cambridge, Madingley, Cambridge CB3 8AA
E-mail: lpimley@hotmail.com
2 Department of Biological Anthropology, University of Cambridge, Penbroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3DZ.
3 Nocturnal Primate Research Group, School of Social Sciences and Law, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP.
4 Center for Reproduction in Endangered Species, Zoological Society of San Diego, PO BOX 120551 , San Diego, California CA92112-0551 , USA.

Detailed field-studies enable researchers to understand the ways in which animals react to their environment , which is crucial to the preservation of viable populations in fragmented and/or altered habitats. The potto (Perodicticus potto) and Allen’s bushbaby (Galago alleni) occur sympatrically in the rainforests of western Africa. The only previous study of the behavioural ecology of these nocturnal prosimians was conducted in Gabon, in lowland rainforest (Charles-Dominique, 1977). Recently, radio-telemetry was used to study pottos (n=11) and Allen’s bushbabies (n=8) living in the rainforests of Mt. Kupe in western Cameroon. Observations of these animals, conducted over a 22-month period, provide valuable ecology data on the ways in which lorisine and galagine species cope with anthropogenic pressures, such as farming and hunting. The types of habitat utilized by the two species can be compared and related to species-typical behaviours. Currently, work is in progress to determine the health and gentic diversity of the population through parasitological and immunogenetics studies of the major histocompatability complex (MHC), which plays a critical role in cellular immune response. The data will be used by WWF-Cameroon for future conservation plans in the Mt Kupe Forest reserve.