Hormonal correlates of energetic condition in mantled howler monkeys

Dias, Pedro Américo D.; Coyohua-Fuentes, Alejandro; Canales‐Espinosa, Domingo; Chavira-Ramírez, Roberto; Rangel‐Negrín, Ariadna

doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.06.003

Cited by 41 publications

(80 citation statements)

References 89 publications

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“…Thyroid hormones regulate energy metabolism and provide an index of basal metabolic rate (Chastel et al , Hulbert and Else ). Researchers of howler monkeys (Wasser et al ) and capuchins ( Sapajus xanthosternos ; Schaebs et al ) reported that fecal T3 levels are indicative of recent changes in food consumption, and in howler monkeys, concentrations are positively correlated with fruit intake and activity levels and are negatively correlated with leaf intake (Dias et al ). Lower concentrations in poorer‐conditioned foxes provide support that fecal T3 measures may be a suitable method for monitoring the nutritional status of island foxes.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors Affecting Glucocorticoid and Thyroid Hormone Production of Island Foxes

et al. 2019

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The island fox (Urocyon littoralis) is native to 6 of the 8 Channel Islands of California, USA. The species experienced a population decline in the 1990s but recovered after predatory golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) were relocated and feral pigs (Sus scrofa), a main food source for the eagles, were removed. As part of an ongoing conservation program, the National Park Service conducts yearly health surveys on foxes residing on Santa Rosa and San Miguel islands. In this study, we document non‐invasive measures of stress and nutritional status from fecal samples collected during surveys from 2009 to 2015. We collected samples defecated in traps overnight or during handling and measured concentrations of glucocorticoid (GC) and triiodothyronine (T3) metabolites using validated assays. We used generalized linear mixed models to assess the relationships between hormones, season, island, age class, sex, body condition, reproductive status, and ectoparasite presence. Overall, males had marginally lower fecal T3 concentrations than females. Concentrations of both hormones positively correlated with body condition. Fecal GC production varied seasonally; concentrations were highest from December to February and declined through the summer and fall. During summer, younger females and those with signs of recent reproduction had higher fecal GC concentrations than older females or those without evidence of reproduction. Fecal T3 concentrations did not vary in relation to season, age, or reproductive status, but on San Miguel Island were positively correlated with ectoparasite presence. There were no other significant differences between islands. Our results provide hormone data for island foxes and demonstrate that production varies in relation to seasonal and biological factors. These reference data will serve as a comparison for future health surveys and allow managers to identify factors associated with increased stress or reduced nutritional state. © 2019 The Wildlife Society.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors Affecting Glucocorticoid and Thyroid Hormone Production of Island Foxes

et al. 2019

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“…The energetics of female reproduction seem to be an important factor in determining female leadership in group movements (Conradt, Krause, Couzin, & Roper, 2009; Sueur, Deneubourg, Petit, & Couzin, 2010), and may result from the relatively high motivation of reproductive females to find food resources, as they normally require more energy than males for reproduction (Emery Thompson, 2013; Erhart & Overdorff, 1999; Richard, Dewar, Schwartz, & Ratsirarson, 2000), a pattern also observed in non‐primate species (e.g., Equus burchelli : Fischhoff et al, 2007, Mungos mungo : Furrer, Kunc, & Manser, 2012; Suricata suricatta : Turbé, 2006). Higher motivation to reach food resources could explain why gestating and lactating females of this species tend to have higher physical condition than cycling females (Cano‐Huertes et al, 2017; Dias et al, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Their diet varies from frugivorous to folivorous depending on seasonality in food item availability (Dias & Rangel‐Negrín, 2015). During gestation and lactation mantled howler monkey females increase the consumption of fats, proteins, and energy (Serio‐Silva, Hernández‐Salazar, & Rico‐Gray, 1999), and have higher glucocorticoid hormone concentrations (independently of psychosocial activation of the stress axis: Dias, Coyohua‐Fuentes, Canales‐Espinosa, Chavira‐Ramírez, & Rangel‐Negrín, 2017) than cycling females. Female energetic condition (assessed via urinary C‐peptide concentrations) does not vary significantly among reproductive stages, although gestating females tend to have higher physical condition than other females (Cano‐Huertes et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex differences in leadership during group movement in mantled howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata)

Ceccarelli

Rangel‐Negrín

Coyohua-Fuentes

et al. 2020

American J Primatol

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Benefits of group life depend in large part on whether animals remain cohesive, which often requires collective decisions about where and when to move. During a group movement, the leader may be considered as the individual occupying the vanguard position of the group progression, when its movement evokes following by other group members. In nondespotic societies, individuals with greater incentives to move frequently are leaders. During 15 months of observations (1,712 contact hours), we investigated two mantled howler monkey (Alouatta palliata) groups at La Flor de Catemaco (Los Tuxtlas, Mexico) to examine whether sex and female reproductive state influenced leadership likelihood in two contexts: movements toward feeding trees; movements associated with loud calls, a group‐defense behavior used by males of this genus. Females led and occupied forward positions during group movements toward feeding trees more often than adult males. Adult females led these movements more frequently when they were gestating than when they were lactating or cycling. There were no differences between sexes in the leadership of group movements associated with loud calls. Leadership by gestating females is perhaps the result of their higher nutritional/energetic needs when compared with cycling females, and of their greater mobility when compared with lactating females carrying dependent offspring. Female leadership during movements toward feeding trees may be a mechanism to optimize access to food resources in mantled howler monkeys.

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“…Such variation could imply less net energy available under a more folivorous diet, as leaves, although rich in proteins and minerals [Ganzhorn et al, 2017], tend to have lower energy content than fruits, and howler monkeys would obtain less energy [Silver et al, 2000]. This, coupled with increased travelling time, implies higher energy expenditure [Dunn et al, 2013;Dias et al, 2017]. Previous studies of black howler monkeys in Campeche have found evidence that, similarly to what has been reported in other primates [Mbora et al, 2009;Puig-Lagunes et al, 2016; but see Umapathy et al, 2011], several population parameters (e.g., group size, population growth, infant survival) are negatively affected by a decrease in fragment size and an increase in habitat disturbance , and subpopulations are predicted to be unviable (i.e., are losing individuals and will probably become extinct in the short term ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Infant mortality and physiological stress increase as fragments become smaller, and population growth decreases . Howler monkeys prefer consuming fruits whenever these are available [Silver et al, 1998;Stevenson et al, 2000;Palma et al, 2011], and there is evidence that physical condition is poorer in individuals that consume more leaves [Espinosa-Gómez et al, 2013;Dias et al, 2017]. Therefore, it is possible that the documented relationship between anthropogenic disturbance and both physiological stress and population parameters is mediated by the effect of leaf consumption on time budgets (i.e., individuals not meeting their energetic requirements under a strictly folivorous diet).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Influence of Leaf Consumption on Time Allocation in Black Howler Monkeys (Alouatta pigra)

Rangel‐Negrín¹,

Coyohua-Fuentes²,

Canales‐Espinosa³

et al. 2018

IJFP

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The analysis of factors that determine variation in time budgets is important to understand the interactions between environment, behaviour and fitness. We tested the hypothesis that changes in the dietary patterns of black howler monkeys (Alouatta pigra) caused by a decrease in the availability of preferred foods are a main determinant of variation in time budgets. We predicted that individuals would trade off travel time for resting time (i.e., minimize energy expenditure) as the diet included more leaves. We conducted our study in the Mexican state of Campeche between 2005 and 2008, where we studied the behaviour of 28 adult males and 32 adult females belonging to 14 different groups for a total of 3,747.2 focal sampling hours. Study groups lived in forest fragments with variation in habitat quality. Individuals showed different rest:travel trade-offs in response to leaf consumption according to the quality of the forest fragments they lived in. Individuals that lived in high-quality fragments increased resting time under more folivorous regimes, whereas those living in low-quality fragments increased travel time. Our results suggest that howler monkeys living in low-quality fragments spend more time foraging to compensate for the low quality of the available resources.

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Hormonal correlates of energetic condition in mantled howler monkeys

Cited by 41 publications

References 89 publications

Factors Affecting Glucocorticoid and Thyroid Hormone Production of Island Foxes

Factors Affecting Glucocorticoid and Thyroid Hormone Production of Island Foxes

Sex differences in leadership during group movement in mantled howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata)

The Influence of Leaf Consumption on Time Allocation in Black Howler Monkeys (Alouatta pigra)

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