Abstract We investigated the social relationships among adult females in two multimale-multifemale groups of black howler monkeys Alouatta pigra during a 14-month study in Palenque National Park, Mexico. Based on over...Abstract We investigated the social relationships among adult females in two multimale-multifemale groups of black howler monkeys Alouatta pigra during a 14-month study in Palenque National Park, Mexico. Based on over 900 focal hours and over 5400 scan samples recording neighboring group members, we found that females very rarely engaged in agonistic interactions and no dominance hierarchy could be discerned. Relationships among resident females were primarily affiliative, but females of one study group spent a higher proportion of time in close proximity and engaged in affiliative interactions with one another at higher rates than females in the other study group. The strength of female relationships increased with the birth of an infant. Al- though no females immigrated during the study period, the temporary association of three extragroup females with our study groups implies that the social system of black howler monkeys is more dynamic than previously suggested. These findings sug- gest that female black howler monkeys behave more similarly to female red howler monkeys A. seniculus than to female mantled howler monkeys A. palliata展开更多
基金Acknowledgement We thank the Mexican government （CONANP） for research permission to work at Palenque National Park granted to AE. Our research was supported by grants from the National Science Foundation （DDIG 0622386）, the L.S.B. Leakey Foundation, the Department of Zoology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the Pittsburgh Zoo Conservation Fund. All animal care regulations and applicable national laws were followed. M. Marroquin, R. MacDonald, G. Campbell, J.M. Jose Dominguez, C. Hauglustaine, E Gimmie, and A. Herbert provided support in the field. C. Snowdon, T. Ziegler, J. Lambert, and two anonymous reviewers provided helpful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript.
文摘Abstract We investigated the social relationships among adult females in two multimale-multifemale groups of black howler monkeys Alouatta pigra during a 14-month study in Palenque National Park, Mexico. Based on over 900 focal hours and over 5400 scan samples recording neighboring group members, we found that females very rarely engaged in agonistic interactions and no dominance hierarchy could be discerned. Relationships among resident females were primarily affiliative, but females of one study group spent a higher proportion of time in close proximity and engaged in affiliative interactions with one another at higher rates than females in the other study group. The strength of female relationships increased with the birth of an infant. Al- though no females immigrated during the study period, the temporary association of three extragroup females with our study groups implies that the social system of black howler monkeys is more dynamic than previously suggested. These findings sug- gest that female black howler monkeys behave more similarly to female red howler monkeys A. seniculus than to female mantled howler monkeys A. palliata
