Food hardness and stone tool weight in wild primate nut-cracking

Haslam, Michael

doi:10.1101/267542

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Tool use among non-human primates has been related to six different activities: defence, hunting, social display, hygiene, food extraction and aggression (Sanz et al 2013;Shumaker et al 2011;van Schaik et al 1999). However, most observations of tool use in monkeys and apes are associated with foraging behaviour (Allritz et al 2013;Haslam 2018;Haslam et al 2017;Sanz et al 2013;Tan et al 2015;Whiten et al 1999). Fewer studies have investigated tool use in non-foraging contexts, and this work has largely been conducted on apes and capuchins (Falótico et al 2017;Meulman and Van Schaik 2013;Westergaard et al 1998;Whiten et al 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Object Manipulation and Tool Use in Nicobar Long-Tailed Macaques (Macaca fascicularis umbrosus)

Mazumder

Kaburu

2020

Int J Primatol

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Object manipulation and tool use by non-human primates have received considerable attention from primatologists and anthropologists, because of their broad implications for understanding the evolution of tool use in humans. To date, however, most of the studies on this topic have focused on apes, given their close evolutionary relationship with humans. In contrast, fewer studies on tool use and object manipulation have been conducted on monkeys. Documenting and studying object manipulation and tool use in species that are more distantly related to humans can provide a broader perspective on the evolutionary origins of this behaviour. We present a detailed description of toolaided behaviours and object manipulation by Nicobar long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis umbrosus) living along the coastlines of Great Nicobar Island. We made observations from December 2018 to March 2019, using ad libitum and focal sampling methods. We observed behaviours related to object manipulation and tool use in six different behavioural contexts (foraging, hygiene, communication, play, selfdirected and self-hygiene behaviour) involving eight different types of objects, namely resonance rod, play object, rolling platform, scraping tool, dental groom, pounding substrate, leaves as grip pads and wipers, and stimulation tool. We observed that males were involved in tool use and object manipulation more frequently than females. Our results add to existing records of object manipulation, tool-use behaviour and tool variants displayed by non-human primates, showing that Nicobar macaques perform multiple and diverse tool-aided behaviours.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Object Manipulation and Tool Use in Nicobar Long-Tailed Macaques (Macaca fascicularis umbrosus)

Mazumder

Kaburu

2020

Int J Primatol

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“…This is probably further facilitated by the material properties of the nuts themselves. Palm nuts are relatively soft and thus can be cracked with any of the available stone materials in spite of the gross differences in their mechanical properties [ 83 ]. In this light, nut cracking at ALP may not require the selection of stones according to specific mechanical properties.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emergent technological variation in archaeological landscapes: a primate perspective

Reeves

Proffitt

Malaivijitnond

et al. 2023

J. R. Soc. Interface.

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Archaeological evidence informs our understanding of the evolution of hominin behaviour. Such evidence is traditionally used to reconstruct hominin activities and intentions. In the Plio-Pleistocene, the presence or absence of specific tools and variation in artefact density is often used to infer foraging strategies, cognitive traits and functional activities. However, the Plio-Pleistocene archaeological record is known to be time-averaged and forms through the aggregation of repeated behavioural events over time. Thus, archaeological patterns do not reflect discrete episodes of activity, but rather the interaction of behaviour with environmental factors over time. However, little is known about how such interactions produce archaeological variation diversity. Primate archaeology can help address this research gap by providing the opportunity to observe how behaviour produces material patterns in a natural setting. This study, thus, examines how varying the material properties of stone and resource availability influence the artefactual signature of nut-cracking in a population of long-tailed macaques from Lobi Bay, Yao Noi island, Thailand. Results show that these interactions can produce a structured and diverse material signature in terms of artefact density and frequency of specific artefact types. These findings demonstrate how material patterns can emerge from long-term interactions between behaviour and environmental factors.

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Searching for the earliest archaeological record: insights from chimpanzee material landscapes

Reeves,

Proffitt,

Pacome

et al. 2024

J. R. Soc. Interface.

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The origin of tool use is a central question in human evolutionary studies. Plio-Pleistocene core and flake technologies represent the earliest evidence of tool use in the human lineage. Some suggest this form of tool use is probably pre-dated by a phase of percussive tool use. However, there is currently no evidence for such a record. The archaeological signature of solely percussive behaviours is not as well understood as that associated with cores and flakes. The durable nature of primate percussive stone tools and their by-products provide an opportunity to investigate what such a record looks like. Here, we present a landscape-scale study of the chimpanzee ( Pan troglodytes verus ) material culture from the Djouroutou Chimpanzee Project, Taï Forest, Cote d’Ivoire. This study explores the interplay between behavioural and environmental factors in shaping the stone record of nut cracking. Through a survey of nut-cracking sites, the available nut species, and raw materials, we show how resource availability influences the resulting material signature of nut cracking. These results also reveal the diversity of material signatures associated with a purely percussive material record. We gain insight into the range of signatures that may be associated with a pre-core and flake archaeological record, providing new expectations for an earlier record of tool use.

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Food hardness and stone tool weight in wild primate nut-cracking

Cited by 3 publications

References 42 publications

Object Manipulation and Tool Use in Nicobar Long-Tailed Macaques (Macaca fascicularis umbrosus)

Object Manipulation and Tool Use in Nicobar Long-Tailed Macaques (Macaca fascicularis umbrosus)

Emergent technological variation in archaeological landscapes: a primate perspective

Searching for the earliest archaeological record: insights from chimpanzee material landscapes

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