Adult male replacement in socially monogamous equatorial saki monkeys (Pithecia aequatorialis)

DI FIORE, A.; FERNANDEZ-DUQUE, E. & HURST, D.

FOLIA PRIMATOLOGICA

Año: 2007 vol. 78 p. 88 - 98

0015-5713

Sakis (genus Pithecia) commonly live in socially monogamous groups, but data from wild populations on group dynamics and on the turnover of reproductive-aged animals are rare.  Here we describe the replacement of the adult male in one group of sakis in the Ecuadorian Amazon following the death of the initial resident.  We use 354 hours of focal behavioral data to describe differences in the spatial relationships among group members before and after the replacement and to examine changes in the rate of male-to-female grooming, aggression, scent marking, and vocalization.  Interactions with extragroup individuals within the group’s home range were more frequent during and after the replacement than before.  The presence of such additional animals during periods of reproductive turnover may explain at least some reported observations of saki groups with more than one reproductive-aged male or female.