Kinship and dispersal patterns in Alouatta caraya inhabiting continuous and fragmented habitats of Argentina.

OKLANDER LI,; CORACH D.

Primates in Fragments: Complexity and Resilience

Springer Science+Business Media

Lugar: New York; Año: 2013; p. 399 - 412

Black and gold howler monkeys (Alouatta caraya) still inhabit degraded and fragmentedforests in southern South America. This fact raises questions regarding thereal capacity of the howler?s long term survival under such conditions. A detailedmolecular study was carried out with the aim of evaluating how the continuousprocesses of habitat reduction and fragmentation affect the genetic structure ofhowler monkey populations. Two populations exposed to differences in forestcontinuity were compared using molecular markers: one inhabiting an undisturbedand continuous forest (CF) and the other, a fragmented forest (FF). FF and CFshowed differences in kinship relations and dispersal patterns. The groups in theFF were genetically differentiated; in contrast, there was no differentiationbetween groups in the CF. Moreover, both males and females disperse in the CF;accordingly, most groups are composed of adult individuals that are not closely related,whereas in the FF, males disperse more than females and groups are composedof closely related adult females. These results suggest that habitat fragmentationmodifies the dispersal patterns of black and gold howler monkeys and mightreflect a trend towards a reduction in their ability to disperse. This study underscoresthe use of molecular genetic data as a tool of utmost importance for a betterunderstanding of the social organization and behavioral patterns as well as forconservation purposes.