The characteristics and availability of the sleeping sites used by a group of 27 tufted capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella nigritus) were studied during 17 months at the Iguazú National Park, Argentina. We tested different hypotheses regarding possible ultimate causes of sleeping‐site selection. Most sleeping sites were located in areas of tall, mature forest. Of the 34 sleeping sites the monkeys used during 203 nights, five were more frequently used than the others (more than 20 times each, constituting 67% of the nights). Four species of tree (Peltophorum dubium, Parapiptadenia rigida, Copaifera langsdorfii and Cordia trichotoma) were the most frequently used. They constituted 82% of all the trees used, though they represent only 12% of the trees within the monkeys' home range which had a diameter at breast height (DBH) > 48.16 cm (1 SD below the mean DBH of sleeping trees). The sleeping trees share a set of characteristics not found in other trees: they are tall emergent (mean height ± SD = 31.1± 5.2 m) with large DBH (78.5 ± 30.3 cm), they have large crown diameter (14± 5.5 m), and they have many horizontal branches and forks. Adult females usually slept with their kin and infants, while peripheral adult males sometimes slept alone in nearby trees. We reject parasite avoidance as an adaptive explanation for the pattern of sleeping site use. Our results and those from other studies suggest that predation avoidance is a predominant factor driving sleeping site preferences. The patterns of aggregation at night and the preference for trees with low probability of shedding branches suggest that social preferences and safety from falling during windy nights may also affect sleeping tree selection. The importance of other factors, such as seeking comfort and maintaining group cohesion, was not supported by our results. Other capuchin populations show different sleeping habits which can be explained by differences in forest structure and by demographic differences. Am. J. Primatol. 50:257–274, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

The characteristics and availability of the sleeping sites used by a group of 27 tufted capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella nigritus) were studied during 17 months at the Iguazu National Park, Argentina. We tested different hypotheses regarding possible ultimate causes of sleeping-site selection. Most sleeping sites were located in areas of tall, mature forest. Of the 34 sleeping sites the monkeys used during 203 nights, five were more frequently used than the others (more than 20 times each, constituting 67% of the nights). Four species of tree (Peltophorum dubium, Parapiptadenia rigida, Copaifera langsdorfii and Cordia trichotoma) were the most frequently used. They constituted 82% of all the trees used, though they represent only 12% of the trees within the monkeys' home range which had a diameter at breast height (DBH) > 48.16 cm (1 SD below the mean DBH of sleeping trees). The sleeping trees share a set of characteristics not found in other trees: they are tall emergent (mean height +/- SD = 31.1+/-5.2 m) with large DBH (78.5+/-30.3 cm), they have large crown diameter (14+/-5.5 m), and they have many horizontal branches and forks. Adult females usually slept with their kin and infants, while peripheral adult males sometimes slept alone in nearby trees. We reject parasite avoidance as an adaptive explanation for the pattern of sleeping site use. Our results and those from other studies suggest that predation avoidance is a predominant factor driving sleeping site preferences. The patterns of aggregation at night and the preference for trees with low probability of shedding branches suggest that social preferences and safety from falling during windy nights may also affect sleeping tree selection. The importance of other factors, such as seeking comfort and maintaining group cohesion, was not supported by our results. Other capuchin populations show different sleeping habits which can be explained by differences in forest structure and by demographic differences.

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Loss of livestock is one of the greatest sources of conflict between humans and large felids worldwide. The puma Puma concolor is the most widespread apex predator in the Americas, and conflicts between this felid and humans are common throughout its geographical range. In response to predation on livestock, humans persecute and hunt pumas. We identified the main environmental and anthropogenic variables that define puma–livestock conflict areas in the Americas as 12 conflict predictor variables, and explored the techniques proposed to mitigate conflicts between the puma and livestock producers. We conducted a systematic search and subsequent review of the scientific literature and found 92 publications on puma–livestock conflicts. Through single‐variable analyses and generalised linear models (GLM), we identified which of the 12 conflict predictors were most predictive of the occurrence of predation. The single‐variable analyses showed that high livestock density (goat, sheep, and cattle), low latitudes, low habitat steepness, low co‐predator richness, high distance to habitat (shrub), and high distance to roads characterised areas with conflict. The binomial GLM indicated that areas with conflicts were primarily located in the temperate southern hemisphere and characterised by densities of livestock. The most frequently cited conflict mitigation techniques were ‘improving livestock management’, ‘predator control’, and the ‘use of fencing’. Although our knowledge about the puma and its relationships with human communities has improved, there are wide geographical gaps, and many facets of puma–livestock conflicts are still little understood. Scientists should work with local stakeholders to generate reliable information regarding the ecological and societal consequences of puma–livestock conflicts, and to develop conflict mitigation techniques that could facilitate the coexistence of pumas and humans.

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