Can Marmoset Mothers Count to Three? Effect of Litter Size on Mother–Infant Interactions

Tardif, Suzette D.; Layne, Donna G.; Smucny, Darlene

doi:10.1046/j.1439-0310.2002.00815.x

Cited by 18 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Less is known about animals adopting strategies in which specific numbers are innately salient and responded to spontaneously (see Tardif et al 2002). Yet, the distinction between relative number judgment and choosing a specific number becomes important when specifying categories of numerical competence (Gelman and Gallistel 1978;Dehaene 1992;Gallistel and Gelman 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of numerical competence in a specialized predatory strategy of an araneophagic spider

Nelson

Jackson

2012

Anim Cogn

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Although a wide range of vertebrates have been considered in research on numerical competence, little is known about the role of number-related decisions in the predatory strategies of invertebrates. Here, we investigate how numerical competence is expressed in a highly specialized predatory strategy adopted by the small juveniles of Portia africana when practicing communal predation, with the prey being another spider, Oecobius amboseli. Two or more P. africana juveniles sometimes settle by the same oecobiid nest and then share the meal after one individual captures the oecobiid. Experiments were designed to clarify how these predators use number-related cues in conjunction with non-numerical cues when deciding whether to settle at a nest. We used lures (dead spiders positioned in lifelike posture) arranged in a series of 24 different scenes defined by the type, configuration and especially number of lures. On the whole, our findings suggest that P. africana juveniles base settling decisions on the specific number of already settled conspecific juveniles at the nest and express a preference for settling when the number is one instead of zero, two or three. By varying the size of the already settled juveniles and their positions around the nest, we show that factors related to continuous variables and stimulus configuration are unlikely explanations for our findings.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of numerical competence in a specialized predatory strategy of an araneophagic spider

Nelson

Jackson

2012

Anim Cogn

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“…There may be an advantage to faster growth and earlier age at maturity that may be enabled by reduction in litter size. It has been suggested that C. jacchus mothers would invest more in singleton infants if given the opportunity (Tardif et al 2002a); C. goeldii have this opportunity and transport and nurse their infants longer than do C. jacchus. Our results suggest litter size reduction may have happened recently in the evolutionary history of C. goeldii, and consequently, mothers increase their behavioral effort in infants but continue to maintain the basic physiology of a twinning callitrichid.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal care and infant development in Callimico goeldii and Callithrix jacchus

et al. 2010

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Callimico goeldii gives birth to single offspring, whereas other callitrichids, including Callithrix jacchus, twin. This study compares maternal effort and infant development in C. goeldii and C. jacchus; it is the first study to look at nursing frequency. Infants were observed from birth for 7 weeks in two captive groups each of C. goeldii and C. jacchus. C. goeldii mothers physiologically invested the same or less than C. jacchus mothers. C. goeldii mothers gained the same amount of weight during pregnancy in absolute terms as did the smaller C. jacchus. This results in a smaller gain in proportion to maternal weight but an equivalent proportional gain on a per fetus basis. C. goeldii mothers nursed their infants less based on duration of nursing bouts compared with C. jacchus mothers. C. goeldii mothers transported their infants exclusively through the first 2 weeks of life, which is longer than C. jacchus mothers, who exclusively transported infants only during the first week of life. As maternal infant carriage declined, other group members transported offspring in both species. C. goeldii infants engaged in independent locomotive sequences later in development and tasted solid foods less frequently than C. jacchus infants when compared at equivalent ages. A single, opportunistic milk sample obtained from a C. goeldii mother when her infant was 48 days old indicates that C. goeldii milk contains gross energy from crude protein within the range of variation observed in Callithrix milk. Despite the similarities in milk quality and prenatal effort in individual fetuses, C. goeldii infants gain weight faster from 0 to 18 months than do C. jacchus infants. A reduction in litter size allows C. goeldii mothers to spend more time carrying their infant and to delay weaning, thereby allowing accelerated infant and juvenile growth rates compared with C. jacchus.

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“…Previous studies suggest that common marmoset infants recognize their mother or father within a few days or a few weeks after birth (Tardif et al 2002;Zahed et al 2008). In our study, however, 4-week-old infants did not show a clear preference for their parents over nonparent animals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nonmother members of groups are highly motivated to carry infants (Schradin and Anzenberger 2003;Zahed et al 2008). Infant transfers are controlled by not only caretakers but also infants themselves: they spontaneously transfer from one caretaker to another (Tardif et al 2002). Infants therefore have passive and active contact with individuals other than the mother relatively soon after birth.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of infant common marmosets’ (Callithrix jacchus) preference for their parents over adults from another group

2010

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Parent-offspring attachment is important for animals which have offspring that require parental care for their development. Infant attachment to the mother has been examined in macaques, but it remains poorly understood in common marmosets. Here, we examined the abilities of 14 common marmoset infants to show preference for their parents over adults from another group at the ages of 4, 10, and 15 weeks. Each infant was exposed to its parent and an adult from another group in an I-shaped maze. Although 4-week-old infants did not show a significant difference between approach behaviors toward their parents and other adults, 10- and 15-week-old infants approached and stayed longer near their parents than adults from another group. These results suggest selective approach behavior develops in marmosets by the age of 10 weeks.

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Can Marmoset Mothers Count to Three? Effect of Litter Size on Mother–Infant Interactions

Cited by 18 publications

References 36 publications

The role of numerical competence in a specialized predatory strategy of an araneophagic spider

The role of numerical competence in a specialized predatory strategy of an araneophagic spider

Maternal care and infant development in Callimico goeldii and Callithrix jacchus

Development of infant common marmosets’ (Callithrix jacchus) preference for their parents over adults from another group

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