Predation Attacks on Wild Spider Monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)

Busia, Laura; Smith‐Aguilar, Sandra E.; Aureli, Filippo; Schaffner, Colleen M.; Ramos‐Fernández, Gabriel

doi:10.1159/000492055

Cited by 10 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…This result could be because vigilance may not need to be shared with specific partners in spider monkeys. Although predation events were observed in the study area as part of a long-term project (Busia et al 2018), spider monkeys experience an overall low predation rate (Di Fiore 2002). It is then plausible that anti-predator behavior does not require specific individuals (e.g., highly compatible and valuable partners) with whom to share vigilance.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…During the study period, community size varied between 34 and 37 individuals, due to birth, immigration and emigration events. The study community is part of a continuous long-term project since 1997 (Ramos-Fernandez et al 2018) and all community monkeys are fully habituated to human presence (i.e. researchers are completely ignored).…”

Section: Field Site and Study Subjectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Watch out! Insecure relationships affect vigilance in wild spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)

Busia

Schaffner

Aureli

2019

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Field Site and Study Subjectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Watch out! Insecure relationships affect vigilance in wild spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)

Busia

Schaffner

Aureli

2019

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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“…By contrast, the view of the canopy from the ground at one of the sleeping trees at site B was restricted by undergrowth and understory trees. Aerial predators are lacking in the area [30].…”

Section: Study Area and Subjectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thermal Infrared Imaging from Drones Offers a Major Advance for Spider Monkey Surveys

Spaan

Burke

McAree

et al. 2019

Drones

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Accurate and precise population estimates form the basis of conservation action but are lacking for many arboreal species due to the high costs and difficulty in surveying these species. Recently, researchers have started to use drones to obtain data on animal distribution and density. In this study, we compared ground and drone counts for spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) at their sleeping sites using a custom-built drone fitted with a thermal infrared (TIR) camera. We demonstrated that a drone with a TIR camera can be successfully employed to determine the presence and count the number of spider monkeys in a forested area. Using a concordance analysis, we found high agreement between ground and drone counts for small monkey subgroups (<10 individuals), indicating that the methods do not differ when surveying small subgroups. However, we found low agreement between methods for larger subgroups (>10 individuals), with drone counts being higher than the corresponding ground counts in 83% of surveys. We could identify additional individuals from TIR drone footage due to a greater area covered compared to ground surveys. We recommend using TIR drones for surveys of spider monkey sleeping sites and discuss current challenges to implementation.

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“…Prediction P-1 was supported by our findings: being isolated from conspecifics seems to increase scratching rates in spider monkeys, possibly highlighting the antipredator function of group living. Indeed, there is evidence that the spider monkeys at the study site can fall prey to terrestrial predators (i.e., puma, Puma concolor; Busia et al, 2018). Antipredatory vigilance can be shared most effectively with close-by individuals, so that having no group member within 5 m could result in a higher perception of predation risk and thus in higher scratching rates.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Anxiety in Geoffroy's spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi): Can scratching be used as an indicator?

Dell'Anna

Schino

Aureli

2022

American J Primatol

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Self-directed behavior, such as self-scratching (hereafter, scratching), occurs in several taxa across the animal kingdom, including nonhuman primates. There is substantial evidence that scratching is an indicator of anxiety-like emotions in a variety of nonhuman primate species. Despite its importance as a window into emotional states, few studies have investigated scratching in Platyrrhines. We investigated scratching patterns of 24 Geoffroy's spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) belonging to a group living in the Otoch Ma'ax Yetel Kooh protected area in the Yucatàn peninsula (Mexico). We assessed whether scratching could be used as an indicator of anxiety levels in this species by testing predictions based on contexts and behaviors associated with risk and uncertainty. We found no effect of the subject's sex and age, subgroup size, male presence, and the occurrence of fusions between subgroups on scratching rates. Similarly, we found no effect of infant proximity on their mother's scratching rates. Supporting our prediction, we found evidence that isolation from conspecifics affected scratching rates as individuals scratched more frequently the more time they spent isolated. Being in proximity with a partner with a relationship characterized by uncertainty affected scratching rates as individuals scratched more frequently when in proximity with a partner with whom they engaged in embraces (an indicator of uncertainty) than when in proximity with a partner with whom they did not exchange embraces. Our study provides insight into the factors affecting scratching in Geoffroy's spider monkeys, suggesting that scratching may indicate anxiety in this species at least in some contexts and thus opening a window into the emotional experience of another Platyrrhine monkey species.

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Predation Attacks on Wild Spider Monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)

Cited by 10 publications

References 23 publications

Watch out! Insecure relationships affect vigilance in wild spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)

Watch out! Insecure relationships affect vigilance in wild spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)

Thermal Infrared Imaging from Drones Offers a Major Advance for Spider Monkey Surveys

Anxiety in Geoffroy's spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi): Can scratching be used as an indicator?

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