Individual Variation in Behavioural Reactions to Unfamiliar Conspecific Vocalisation and Hormonal Underpinnings in Male Chimpanzees

Kutsukake, Nobuyuki; Teramoto, Migaku; Homma, Seijiro; Mori, Yusuke; Matsudaira, Kazunari; Kobayashi, Hayato; Ishida, Takafumi; Okanoya, Kazuo; Hasegawa, Toshikazu

doi:10.1111/j.1439-0310.2011.02009.x

Cited by 9 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 65 publications

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“…Similarly, at Ngogo, males EL and HO had unusually high patrolling rates (Watts & Mitani 2001). Recent playback experiments in captivity showed ‘intra-individual consistency and inter-individual variation in behavioural reactions…to vocalisations by unfamiliar chimpanzees’ (Kutsukake et al 2012, page 269). Although Wilson et al (2001) found no difference among males at Kanyawara in the likelihood of responding to simulated calls of strangers (except when impact hunter MS stayed behind to mate-guard a female), low-ranking males were less likely to travel to the periphery of the community range (Wilson et al 2012).…”

Section: Hypotheses and Predictionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecology rather than psychology explains co-occurrence of predation and border patrols in male chimpanzees

2013

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The intense arousal and excitement shown by adult male chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, during territorial attacks on other chimpanzees and predation upon monkeys suggest that similar psychological mechanisms may be involved. Specifically, it has been proposed that hunting behaviour in chimpanzees evolved from intraspecies aggression. Over 32 years, chimpanzees at Gombe National Park, Tanzania were significantly more likely to engage in a territorial border patrol on days when they hunted red colobus monkeys (Procolobus spp.), and vice versa, even after statistically controlling for male chimpanzee party size. We test the hypothesis that this correlation arises because hunting and patrolling are components of a specieslevel aggressive behavioural syndrome; specifically that predation arose as a by-product of territorial aggression in this species. However, hunting was equally likely to occur after a patrol and/or an intergroup interaction as it was before, and the occurrence of an intergroup interaction in which the chimpanzees approached strangers did not increase subsequent hunting probability. We also reject the hypothesis that hunting and patrolling reflect an individual-level behavioural syndrome. We identified two ‘impact hunters’ whose presence increased hunting probability. Similarly, there were also three ‘impact patrollers’, who increased the likelihood that a visit to the periphery of the community range resulted in a patrol. While this discovery has important implications for our understanding of the proximate causes of cooperation, it does not explain the temporal correlation between patrolling and hunting, since no males had such an impact in both contexts. Instead, the data suggest that the correlation arose because patrols typically involved males travelling long distances, which increased the probability of encountering prey. Additionally, parties that travelled to the periphery were more likely to encounter colobus in woodland, where hunts are more likely to occur and to succeed. Therefore, we conclude that ecological, rather than psychological, factors promote the co-occurrence of hunting and territorial aggression in this species.

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Section: Hypotheses and Predictionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecology rather than psychology explains co-occurrence of predation and border patrols in male chimpanzees

2013

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“…Salivary, but not urinary or faecal samples reflect acute changes in plasma hormones. The short time lag between changes in plasma and salivary hormone concentrations enables investigation of the effect of social events on hormonal levels (see also Hohmann et al, ; Kutsukake et al, ; Wobber et al, ). As the use of saliva samples becomes more common, it may be possible to investigate the manner in which social events, in addition to the presence of females, affect individual hormonal concentrations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…All males were wild‐born and imported to Japan in 1982 and have been living in the current facility since 2000; the study group was formed in June 2003. For further information on our previous hormone and behavior studies conducted in this institute, see Kutsukake et al (, ) and Yamamoto et al ().…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Salivary steroid concentration reflects the concentration of plasma free‐fraction steroids that are not bound to carrier proteins and are thus biologically active (Gozansky, Lynn, Laudenslager, & Kohrt, ; Lac, ). Furthermore, researchers can investigate both sequential and immediate changes in internal endocrine physiology by repeatedly collecting saliva samples according to a predetermined schedule (e.g., Kutsukake et al, , ; Hohmann, Mundry, & Deschner, ). Such methods cannot easily be applied to urine and faeces because sample collection depends on irregular excretion.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We exposed males to females and assessed the relationship between dominance rank and salivary cortisol (C) and testosterone (T) levels in a captive, all‐male group of chimpanzees. Saliva steroid levels were measured using a liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) which has been validated as a measure of steroids in chimpanzee saliva (Kutsukake et al, , ). By combining behavioral experiments and hormonal data, we addressed the following two issues: First, how do the frequencies of competitive and affiliative behaviors vary according to dominance rank and female presence?…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The presence of females induces elevated cortisol levels in an alpha male: Experimental evidence in chimpanzees

Kutsukake

Teramoto

Honma

et al. 2018

American J Phys Anthropol

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Testing for personality consistency across naturally occurring behavioral contexts in sanctuary chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

Chotard

Bard

Micheletta

et al. 2022

American J Primatol

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Personality is both a reflection of the bio‐behavioral profile of individuals and a summary of how they typically interact with their physical and social world. Personality is usually defined as having distinct behavioral characteristics, which are assumed to be consistent over time and across contexts. Like other mammals, primates have individual differences in personality. Although temporal consistency is sometimes measured in primates, and contextual consistency is sometimes measured across experimental contexts, it is rare to measure both in the same individuals and outside of experimental settings. Here, we aim to measure both temporal and contextual consistency in chimpanzees, assessing their personality with behavioral observations from naturally occurring contexts (i.e., real‐life settings). We measured personality‐based behaviors in 22 sanctuary chimpanzees, in the contexts of feeding, affiliation, resting, and solitude, across two time periods, spanning 4 years. Of the 22 behaviors recorded, about 64% were consistent across two to four contexts and 50% were consistent over time. Ten behaviors loaded significantly onto three trait components: explorativeness, boldness‐sociability, and anxiety‐sociability, as revealed by factor analysis. Like others, we documented individual differences in the personality of chimpanzees based on reliably measured observations in real‐life contexts. Furthermore, we demonstrated relatively strong, but not absolute, temporal, and contextual consistency in personality‐based behaviors. We also found another aspect of individual differences in personality, specifically, the extent to which individual chimpanzees show consistency. Some individuals showed contextual and temporal consistency, whereas others show significant variation across behaviors, contexts, and/or time. We speculate that the relative degree of consistency in personality may vary within chimpanzees. It may be that different primate species vary in the extent to which individuals show consistency of personality traits. Our behavioral‐based assessment can be used with wild populations, increasing the validity of personality studies, facilitating comparative studies and potentially being applicable to conservation efforts.

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Individual Variation in Behavioural Reactions to Unfamiliar Conspecific Vocalisation and Hormonal Underpinnings in Male Chimpanzees

Cited by 9 publications

References 65 publications

Ecology rather than psychology explains co-occurrence of predation and border patrols in male chimpanzees

Ecology rather than psychology explains co-occurrence of predation and border patrols in male chimpanzees

The presence of females induces elevated cortisol levels in an alpha male: Experimental evidence in chimpanzees

Testing for personality consistency across naturally occurring behavioral contexts in sanctuary chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

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