Spider monkey reproduction and sexual behavior

Campbell, Christina J.; Gibson, K. Nicole

doi:10.1017/cbo9780511721915.010

Cited by 34 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Forty-three copulations is the highest number of copulations observed in any single study of spider monkeys to date [reviewed in Campbell & Gibson, 2008] and, in turn, provides the first opportunity to evaluate how female availability influences malemale competition. Male spider monkeys, in this study, exhibited scramble competition polygyny by avoiding direct competition with other males, but males also competed with each other directly when they monopolized and mate-guarded females.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…''consortships'' first defined by Carpenter, 1934;Campbell, 2000Campbell, , 2006Symington, 1987;van Roosmalen, 1985]. Overt female signals of reproductive cycling (e.g., sexual swellings and female solicitation) are absent in spider monkeys [Campbell & Gibson, 2008]. Spider monkey females are not considered seasonal breeders, although birth peaks and a period of ''non-conception'' have been recorded from various study sites across their range [reviewed in Campbell & Gibson, 2008].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Overt female signals of reproductive cycling (e.g., sexual swellings and female solicitation) are absent in spider monkeys [Campbell & Gibson, 2008]. Spider monkey females are not considered seasonal breeders, although birth peaks and a period of ''non-conception'' have been recorded from various study sites across their range [reviewed in Campbell & Gibson, 2008]. What we know about spider monkey breeding comes entirely from studies on female behavior, ecology, and birth records.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Male mating tactics in spider monkeys: sneaking to compete

Gibson

2010

American J Primatol

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I investigated the mating system and male mating tactics for a population of wild spider monkeys (Ateles belzebuth chamek), to identify the behaviors males used to achieve and maintain access to sexually receptive females, and to examine if some males used more tactics than other males and/or had differential access to females. Results show that the mating system mostly involved scramble competition polygyny and that males used a range of mating tactics and behaviors, previously unreported for spider monkeys. The most unusual feature of spider monkey mating behavior was the secretive nature of copulations-nearly all copulations were clandestine, but a few were in the presence of other group members. Fifteen sexually mature males were observed to copulate 43 times. These data provide the first opportunity to evaluate how female availability influences male-male competition. First, the operational sex ratio was highly skewed toward males because usually only one female was receptive in each community per month. Second, females only mated with a few males in their community in any one mating period, but some females mated over the course of multiple consecutive mating periods, eventually mating with most or all of the males in their community. Across all communities, 9 (21%) of the 43 copulations involved a single male-female partner, 20 (47%) involved four males mating with the same female, and males mated with from one to four different females. Fourteen of the 16 total adult males and 1 subadult male (10 total) copulated. One or two males in each community were successful in monopolizing access to receptive females, and these males did not usually have the highest rates of copulation. In this system, clandestine copulations are one behavioral solution to the complex problem of gaining mating exclusivity and, probably, exercising mate choice.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Male mating tactics in spider monkeys: sneaking to compete

Gibson

2010

American J Primatol

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“…During the study period, community size varied between 25 and 34 individuals (2–8 adult and subadult males, 15–18 adult and subadult females, 3 to 7 juveniles, and 2 to 9 infants) due to births, immigrations, and disappearances. Following other research on spider monkeys, a male was considered a subadult when it was typically older than 5 years and sexually mature (i.e., his testicles were no longer close to the body as is the case in younger males) but had not yet achieved full adult size (van Roosmalen and Klein, ; Campbell and Gibson, ; Shimooka et al, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Male philopatry in spider monkeys revisited

Aureli¹,

Fiore

Murillo‐Chacon

et al. 2013

American J Phys Anthropol

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Dispersal patterns are critical for understanding social systems as they influence social interactions and relationships. Spider monkeys (Ateles spp.) are typically described as being characterized by male philopatry and female dispersal, with these patterns reflected in stronger affiliative and cooperative relationships among males than among females. Recent findings, however, indicate that male-male relationships may not be as uniformly strong as previously thought, which suggests that male philopatry in spider monkeys may not be universal. Here, we report the first confirmed cases of male immigration and group takeover in spider monkeys. Data were collected on one community of Ateles geoffroyi in northwestern Costa Rica. Behavioral and demographic data were recorded during subgroup follows across 6.5 years, and fecal samples of community members were collected for genetic analysis of relatedness. We documented two separate cases of immigration involving multiple males, which resulted in take-over of the study community by extra-community males and the concomitant disappearance of the resident males. In the study community, males were no more closely related to one another, on average, than females were, contrary to what would be expected if males were the more philopatric sex. Comparison of corrected assignment indices for males and females also revealed no evidence of sex-biased dispersal. Our findings suggest that in spider monkeys male immigration may occur under certain demographic circumstances, contributing to a view of greater flexibility in their social system than previously appreciated. This discovery has implications for other species that are typically characterized by male philopatry.

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“…In the Ateles lineage females appear to have evolved ovarian synchronicity, sexual monomorphism, and resident male tolerance of others' copulations decreased signifi cantly or disappeared, resulting in some copulations occurring in seclusion (Campbell and Gibson 2008 ). In the common ancestral of Brachyteles and Lagothrix mating consortship disappeared, allowing males and females to engage in sexual interactions with multiple partners on the same day.…”

Section: A Model For the Evolution Of Sociosexual Behavior In Atelidsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Insights into Reproductive Strategies and Sexual Selection in Howler Monkeys

Belle

Bicca‐Marques

2014

Howler Monkeys

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The genus Alouatta is characterized by a fl exible social system in which the reproductive strategies of males and females show great variability both within and between species. Even though the mating system of some species is more frequently polygynous (e.g., A. arctoidea , A. seniculus, and A. pigra ) and that of other species more often polygynandrous (e.g., A. caraya and A. palliata ), females in all species whose reproductive behavior has been studied have been reported to copulate with multiple males within their group, with males in neighboring groups, and with solitary males, suggesting a "mixed mating strategy" characterized by periods of selective mating and periods of promiscuous mating. Central males, however, may be able to monopolize most breeding opportunities during the periovulatory period (POP) of the ovarian cycle when conception is most likely to occur by forming consortships with cycling females. Females do not avoid these consortships as they sexually solicit the central male frequently during their POPs. All howler monkey species are sexually dimorphic in body size, canine size, and hyoid apparatus, suggesting high male-male competition. In addition, four taxa present degrees of sexual dichromatism. Infanticide has been observed in various howler monkey species and might play an important role in shaping their social systems. We review the reproductive behavior of Alouatta , discuss male and female reproductive strategies that are associated with sexual selection via intrasexual selection, mate choice, or intersexual confl ict, and propose a model for the evolution of reproductive behavior in atelid primates.Resumen El género Alouatta se caracteriza por un sistema social fl exible en cual las estrategias reproductivas de los machos y las hembras muestran una gran vari-

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Spider monkey reproduction and sexual behavior

Cited by 34 publications

References 30 publications

Male mating tactics in spider monkeys: sneaking to compete

Male mating tactics in spider monkeys: sneaking to compete

Male philopatry in spider monkeys revisited

Insights into Reproductive Strategies and Sexual Selection in Howler Monkeys

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