Primates, Provisioning and Plants: Impacts of Human Cultural Behaviours on Primate Ecological Functions

Abstract

Human provisioning of wildlife with food is a widespread global practice that occurs in multiple socio-cultural circumstances. Provisioning may indirectly alter ecosystem functioning through changes in the eco-ethology of animals, but few studies have quantified this aspect. Provisioning of primates by humans is known to impact their activity budgets, diets and ranging patterns. Primates are also keystone species in tropical forests through their role as seed dispersers; yet there is no information on how provisioning might affect primate ecological functions. The rhesus macaque is a major human-commensal species but is also an important seed disperser in the wild. In this study, we investigated the potential impacts of provisioning on the role of rhesus macaques as seed dispersers in the Buxa Tiger Reserve, India. We studied a troop of macaques which were provisioned for a part of the year and were dependent on natural resources for the rest. We observed feeding behaviour, seed handling techniques and ranging patterns of the macaques and monitored availability of wild fruits. Irrespective of fruit availability, frugivory and seed dispersal activities decreased when the macaques were provisioned. Provisioned macaques also had shortened daily ranges implying shorter dispersal distances. Finally, during provisioning periods, seeds were deposited on tarmac roads that were unconducive for germination. Provisioning promotes human-primate conflict, as commensal primates are often involved in aggressive encounters with humans over resources, leading to negative consequences for both parties involved. Preventing or curbing provisioning is not an easy task as feeding wild animals is a socio-cultural tradition across much of South and South-East Asia, including India. We recommend the initiation of literacy programmes that educate lay citizens about the ill-effects of provisioning and strongly caution them against the practice.

Reliability of macaques as seed dispersers

“…Even Least Concern species such as M. radiata and M. fascicularis have already suffered massive declines in their populations (Eudey, 2008; Sengupta & Radhakrishna, 2013; Singh, Erinjery, Kavana, Roy, & Singh, 2011a). In addition, studies have shown that seed dispersal by macaques can be negatively impacted when humans provide food subsidies to them (Sengupta, McConkey, & Radhakrishna, 2015). It is thus essential to maintain viable populations of macaques across their range and keep human interventions at a minimum to ensure that they continue to reliably disperse the seeds of a wide gamut of plant species in the Anthropocene.…”

Impact of anthropogenic factors on affiliative behaviors among bonnet macaques

“…Given the globally increasing significance of human-wildlife interactions and coexistence (Barua, Bhagwat, & Jadhav, 2013;Dickman, 2010;Nyhus, 2016), and the shared ecology and evolutionary history of humans and primates (Fuentes, 2006;Fuentes & Hockings, 2010), research at human-primate interfaces has become especially significant over the past decade (Fuentes, 2006;Paterson & Wallis, 2005;Radhakrishna & Sinha, 2011;Riley, 2018). Human-primate interactions are highly diverse in form and frequency, from being neutral and/or involving little or no antagonism (e.g., mutual tolerance, provisioning, religious symbols: Radhakrishna & Sinha, 2011;Sengupta, McConkey, & Radhakrishna, 2015;reviewed in Paterson & Wallis, 2005), to visibly destructive or antagonistic (e.g., destruction of habitat, culling, mutual aggression: Borgerson, 2015;Plumptre et al, 2016;Southwick, Siddioi, Farooqui, & Pal, 1976).…”

The Effects of Food Waste on Wildlife and Humans

“…Increasing food waste availability can have a similar effect; for instance, overfishing and increasing waste in landfills have changed the resource base of coastal food webs, and generalist seabirds like western gulls (Larus occidentalis) have responded by shifting their diet to human trash, but at the same time, they increased predation pressure on a threatened species of fish (steelhead, Oncorhynchus mykiss) [27]. More broadly, food provisioning by humans can alter ecosystem functions provided by opportunistic herbivores who act as seed dispersers, as in the case of human food provisioning of macaques (Macaca mulatta) which caused shorter seed dispersal ranges and dispersal into human-modified areas that were not conducive to seed germination [28].…”