Infants as costly social tools in male Barbary macaque networks

Henkel, Stefanie; Heistermann, Michael; Fischer, Julia

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.02.005

Cited by 37 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Experimental manipulations, including the actual or simulated removal of individuals (Hanby 1980; Chapais et al 1995; Flack et al 2006; Williams and Lusseau 2006; Lehmann and Dunbar 2009), adjustments to sex ratios (Darden et al 2009; Jacoby et al 2010), and alterations in the amount of time individuals have been housed together (Corner et al 2003), have been found to result in changes to social structure topology. Similar changes in naturalistic settings have been demonstrated in relation to changes in ecological factors, such as food abundance (Henkel et al 2010; Foster et al 2012), to changes over time (Sade 1965; Ramos-Fernández et al 2009), as well as to changes in demographic factors, such as the birth of infants (Seyfarth 1977; Hanby 1980), or large changes in group size (Lehmann and Boesch 2009). Changes in social structure topology in relation to large changes in group size may not be surprising as this type of demographic shift considerably alters the number of possible dyadic partnerships, which is likely to be translated directly into changes in social structure topology.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 58%

Seasonal changes in the structure of rhesus macaque social networks

Brent

MacLarnon

Platt

et al. 2012

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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Social structure emerges from the patterning of interactions between individuals and plays a critical role in shaping some of the main characteristics of animal populations. The topological features of social structure, such as the extent to which individuals interact in clusters, can influence many biologically important factors, including the persistence of cooperation, and the rate of spread of disease. Yet the extent to which social structure topology fluctuates over relatively short periods of time in relation to social, demographic or environmental events remains unclear. Here, we use social network analysis to examine seasonal changes in the topology of social structures that emerge from socio-positive associations in adult female rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Behavioral data for two different association types (grooming, spatial proximity) were collected for females in two free-ranging groups during two seasons: the mating and birth seasons. Stronger dyadic bonds resulted in social structures that were more tightly connected (i.e. of greater density) in the mating season compared to the birth season. Social structures were also more centralized around a subset of individuals, and were more clustered in the mating season than the birth season, although the latter differences were mostly driven by differences in density alone. Our results suggest a degree of temporal variation in the topological features of social structure in this population. Such variation may feed back on interactions, hence affecting the behaviors of individuals, and may therefore be important to take into account in studies of animal behavior.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 58%

Seasonal changes in the structure of rhesus macaque social networks

Brent

MacLarnon

Platt

et al. 2012

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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“…Note that in this species, females maintain close bonds with both related and unrelated females [11], and males interact with infants remarkably frequently [12]. The close friend was defined as the female in the group with which a subject exchanged most affiliative interactions during group scans, whereas the non-friend was a female with whom no affiliative interactions were recorded.…”

Section: Social Interestmentioning

confidence: 99%

Motivational Shifts in Aging Monkeys and the Origins of Social Selectivity

et al. 2016

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As humans age, they become more selective regarding their personal goals [1] and social partners [2]. Whereas the selectivity in goals has been attributed to losses in resources (e.g., physical strength) [3], the increasing focus on emotionally meaningful partners is, according to socioemotional selectivity theory, driven by the awareness of one's decreasing future lifetime [2]. Similar to humans, aging monkeys show physical losses [4] and reductions in social activity [2, 5-7]. To disentangle a general resource loss and the awareness of decreasing time, we combined field experiments with behavioral observations in a large age-heterogeneous population of Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus) at La Forêt des Singes. Novel object tests revealed a loss of interest in the nonsocial environment in early adulthood, which was modulated by the availability of a food reward. Experiments using vocal and visual representations of social partners indicated that monkeys maintained an interest in social stimuli and a preferential interest in friends and socially important individuals into old age. Old females engaged in fewer social interactions, although other group members continued to invest in relationships with them. Consequently, reductions in sociality were not due to a decrease in social interest. In conclusion, some of the motivational shifts observed in aging humans, particularly the increasing focus on social over nonsocial stimuli, may occur in the absence of a limited time perspective and are most likely deeply rooted in primate evolution. Our findings highlight the value of nonhuman primates as valuable models for understanding human aging [8, 9].

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“…Similar to philopatric female baboons and male chimpanzees (38,40,41) macaque males of some species, including Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus), form strong social relationships with a few male partners (35,36,39,42) that are stable over consecutive years and characterized by equitability in exchanges of affiliation (37). The mechanisms guiding partner selection for the formation of social bonds in male macaques are currently unknown.…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

Responses to social and environmental stress are attenuated by strong male bonds in wild macaques

Young

Majolo

Heistermann

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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168

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In humans and obligatory social animals, individuals with weak social ties experience negative health and fitness consequences. The social buffering hypothesis conceptualises one possible mediating mechanism: during stressful situations the presence of close social partners buffers against the adverse effects of increased physiological stress levels. We tested this hypothesis using data on social (rate of aggression received) and environmental (low temperatures) stressors in wild male Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus) in Morocco. These males form strong, enduring, and equitable affiliative relationships similar to human friendships. We tested the effect of the strength of a male’s top three social bonds on his faecal glucocorticoid metabolite (fGCM) levels as a function of the stressors’ intensity. The attenuating effect of stronger social bonds on physiological stress increased both with increasing rates of aggression received and with decreasing minimum daily temperature. Ruling out thermoregulatory and immediate effects of social interactions on fGCM levels, our results indicate that male Barbary macaques employ a tend-and-befriend coping strategy in the face of increased environmental as well as social day-to-day stressors. This evidence of a stress-ameliorating effect of social bonding among males under natural conditions and beyond the mother-offspring, kin or pair bond broadens the generality of the social buffering hypothesis

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Infants as costly social tools in male Barbary macaque networks

Cited by 37 publications

References 38 publications

Seasonal changes in the structure of rhesus macaque social networks

Seasonal changes in the structure of rhesus macaque social networks

Motivational Shifts in Aging Monkeys and the Origins of Social Selectivity

Responses to social and environmental stress are attenuated by strong male bonds in wild macaques

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