Sexual Swellings of Female Gibbons

Cheyne, Susan M.; Chivers, David J.

doi:10.1159/000093699

Cited by 15 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The results provided here suggest that female reproductive parameters in the Javan gibbon are consistent with other members of the family Hylobatidae [Geissmann, 1991;Nadler et al, 1992;Bartlett, 2003;Cheyne and Chivers, 2005;Barelli et al, 2007]. The average age of menarche was 6.2 years, which closely corresponded to the age when sexual swelling was first observed at 6.5 years.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…Studies on white-handed gibbons have shown a cycle length of 19-22 days using urinary hormone analyses [Nadler et al, 1992], and 21 days using fecal hormone analyses [Barelli et al, 2007]. An average cycle length of 24 days was seen in Bornean white-bearded and Mu¨ller gibbons by measuring ISI [Cheyne and Chivers, 2005].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many menstrual cycles were not included due to large amounts of [Thierry et al, 1996]. In one study on sexual swellings in gibbons, menstrual bleeding was only recorded in 1% of observations [Cheyne and Chivers, 2005]. Although sexual swelling is not as conspicuous in gibbons as in many other primate species, there is a visible change in color and size of the vulva during the ovarian cycle.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although sexual swelling is not as conspicuous in gibbons as in many other primate species, there is a visible change in color and size of the vulva during the ovarian cycle. Sexual swellings increase following menstruation to a mid-cycle peak, and then decline before the subsequent menstruation [Nadler et al, 1992;Cheyne and Chivers, 2005]. This is a simple noninvasive method for animal care staff to monitor whether female gibbons are approaching reproductive maturity and if they are experiencing regular cycles.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Historical records for each individual were used to calculate the interswelling interval (ISI), intermenstrual interval (IMI), and the occurrence of sexual swelling during pregnancy. ISI was defined as the number of days between onset of subsequent swellings, while IMI was defined as the number of days between onset of subsequent menstrual bleeding [Cheyne and Chivers, 2005;Paoli et al, 2006;Vervaecke et al, 1999]. The presence or absence of swelling was used rather than having a scale, as it was not possible to get close enough to the animals to measure accurately the swelling on a daily basis.…”

Section: Data Acquisitionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Female reproductive parameters in the Javan gibbon (Hylobates moloch)

et al. 2010

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Javan gibbons (Hylobates moloch) are one of the most endangered gibbon species in the world. Data on the reproductive biology of the species are almost nonexistent, and a general understanding of the female reproductive biology of this species is important for both ex situ and in situ conservation. Using 18 years of data from 11 captive individuals, we provide new information on the reproductive biology of Javan gibbons based on sexual swelling and menstrual bleeding, including reproductive development, interbirth intervals, and ovarian cycle lengths. Menarche and the onset of sexual swelling occurred at 6.2 and 6.5 years respectively, followed by a period of adolescent sterility of about 1.5 years. Average age at first birth was 8.8 years, and interbirth intervals were about 2.3 years, decreasing to 1.0 year during cases of infant mortality at or shortly after birth. Ovarian cyclicity was measured through periods between menstrual bleeding and sexual swelling. Menstrual bleeding indicates the start of a new ovarian cycle, while sexual swelling normally occurs near the time of ovulation. Menstrual bleeding intervals gave a cycle length of 25.6 days, while sexual swelling intervals gave a cycle length of 27.3 days. These both correspond closely to cycle lengths in other gibbon species, as well as hormonal studies in Javan gibbons. In particular, observing the presence/absence of swellings was found to be a useful and easy method to monitor female ovarian cycles, and could be a practical noninvasive technique for caretakers and researchers.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Data Acquisitionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Female reproductive parameters in the Javan gibbon (Hylobates moloch)

et al. 2010

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Effects of meteorology, astronomical variables, location and human disturbance on the singing apes: Hylobates albibarbis

Cheyne¹

2007

American J Primatol

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Gibbons are characterized by their species-specific calls. The frequency of singing is known to be affected by rainfall, with singing occurring less in the wet season. I investigate the hypothesis that gibbon singing is also affected by the natural light-dark cycle, and by the changing light intensity and air quality resulting from the smoke haze which blankets the Indonesian island of Borneo on a yearly basis. I compare three singing variables-onset of singing, average duration of singing bout and number of female great calls produced during the dry season of 2006 when there was no smoke haze (June-August) and when there was smoke haze present (September-November). I present evidence which indicates that the changes in singing behavior are affected by changes in rainfall and smoke intensity but not by other meteorological factors (i.e. wind and light intensity) or changing astronomical cues (light intensity, month, time of sunrise, time of moonrise, nocturnal illumination index, day length and night length). The possible long-term effects of this on gibbon behavior and territoriality are discussed. The need to carry out more research on the long-term effects of the smoke haze on wildlife behavior and possible solutions to the problem are discussed.

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The varied path to adulthood: Plasticity in developmental timing in hylobatids

Burns

Judge

2015

American J Primatol

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Maturation includes physical, reproductive, and social aspects that develop asynchronously. Intra- and inter-individual variation in the relative timing of each aspect reflects context-dependent plasticity. Plasticity in developmental timing may be important for the family-living small apes (family Hylobatidae), where reproductive opportunities are monopolized by territorial breeding pairs. Data on development in hylobatids are so far limited due to their elusive arboreal niche and long lifespans. Herein, we provide the first quantitative analysis of behavioral development in 14 captive individuals of three species (Hylobates moloch, Nomascus leucogenys, and Symphalangus syndactylus), with some individuals being observed over 8 years. To establish a baseline for behavioral development, we compare the behavior of infants (0-2 years), juveniles (2-4 years), adolescents (4-6 years), and subadults (6-9 years) in their natal groups from data obtained over 250 focal observation hours. We then relate changes in behavior to measures of somatic and physiological development, and to wild populations, to identify the degree of intra- and inter-individual variation in developmental timing. We found greater concordance between behavioral and physiological markers of weaning than between different markers of later development, and the timing of later milestones varied more among individuals. Behavioral estimates from both captive and wild individuals in their natal groups indicate that puberty begins close to age 5, but physiological maturation can occur 0.5-3 years earlier in captive individuals than in wild individuals. Ages at onset of puberty, sexual, and social maturation vary in both captive and wild populations. The available evidence indicates that the social environment during development (e.g., presence of breeding female and appropriate mating partner), as well as nutrition, play a role in the timing of life history transitions in hylobatids. Am. J. Primatol. 78:610-625, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Sexual Swellings of Female Gibbons

Cited by 15 publications

References 16 publications

Female reproductive parameters in the Javan gibbon (Hylobates moloch)

Female reproductive parameters in the Javan gibbon (Hylobates moloch)

Effects of meteorology, astronomical variables, location and human disturbance on the singing apes: Hylobates albibarbis

The varied path to adulthood: Plasticity in developmental timing in hylobatids

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