Samango Monkeys (Cercopithecus albogularis labiatus) Manage Risk in a Highly Seasonal, Human-Modified Landscape in Amathole Mountains, South Africa
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11279320 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Katarzyna Nowak (0000-0003-2031-3074, Durham University, corresponding author), Kirsten Wimberger (0000-0002-8420-0987, University of Cape Town), Shane A Richard (0000-0002-9638-5827, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation), Shane A Richards, R A Hill (0000-0002-7601-5802, Durham University), Aliza le Roux (0000-0002-9869-2580, University of the Free State) |
| Year | 2017 |
| Volume | 38 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 194-206 |
| Publication date | 2017-04-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Primatology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0164-0291 • E-ISSN: 1573-8604 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s10764-016-9913-1 |
| PMID | 28546650 |
| OpenAlex | W2511688740 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 6 |
| References cited | 29 |
Wild species use habitats that vary in risk across space and time. This risk can derive from natural predators and also from direct and indirect human pressures. A starving forager will often take risks that a less hungry forager would not. At a highly seasonal and human-modified site, we predicted that arboreal samango monkeys ( Cercopithecus albogularis labiatus ) would show highly flexible, responsive, risk-sensitive foraging. We first determined how monkeys use horizontal and vertical space across seasons to evaluate if high-risk decisions (use of gardens and ground) changed with season, a proxy for starvation risk. Then, during a subsequent winter, we offered equal feeding opportunities (in the form of high-value, raw peanuts) in both gardens and forest to see if this short-term change in food availability and starvation risk affected monkeys’ foraging decisions. We found that during the food-scarce winter, monkeys foraged outside indigenous forest and in gardens, where they fed on exotic species, especially fallen acorns ( Quercus spp.), despite potential threats from humans. Nevertheless, and as predicted, when given the choice of foraging on high-value foods in gardens vs. forest during our artificial foraging experiment, monkeys showed a preference for a safer forest habitat. Our experiment also indicated monkeys’ sensitivity to risk in the lower vertical strata of both habitats, despite their previous extensive use of the ground. Our findings support one of the central tenets of optimal foraging theory: that risk of starvation and sensitivity to the variation in food availability can be as important drivers of behavior as risk of predation
Animal ecology · Arboreal locomotion · Biology · Foraging · Geography · Habitat · Predation · Troglodytes · Animal Behavior and Reproduction · Primate Behavior and Ecology · Wildlife Ecology and Conservation · Ecology
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Wild Samango Monkeys, Cercopithecus mitis, Balance Risk and Opportunity to Interact with Novel Objects in Village Gardens
The Implications of Primate Behavioral Flexibility for Sustainable Human–Primate Coexistence in Anthropogenic Habitats
Impact of Electric Shock and Electrocution on Populations of Four Monkey Species in the Suburban Town of Diani, Kenya
Reliance on Exotic Plants by Two Groups of Threatened Samango Monkeys, Cercopithecus albogularis labiatus, at Their Southern Range Limit
| Unique citing works | 6 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,67 |
| Citation span | 2017 - 2021 (5) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 5 |