Food-associated calls in capuchin monkeys (Sapajus libidinosus): research on casual factors and function

• Grant number: 13/13226-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: November 01, 2013
• End date: August 31, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Animal Behavior
• Principal Investigator: Patrícia Izar Mauro
• Grantee: Luíza Gonzalez Ferreira
• Host Institution: Instituto de Psicologia (IP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Food-associated calls are those vocalizations typically uttered in food-related contexts by many mammals and birds. Usually this vocalization attracts conspecifics to a food source, although in many cases the caller can utter for reasons other than the attraction. The attraction of others can occur by an association made between the call and the feeding context. There are several hypotheses that explain functions of food-associated calls. The decreasing agression hypothesis is supported by data found in tufted capuchin monkeys (S. nigritus and Sapajus sp.). Subordinates who utter food-associated calls are less likely to become target of aggression from dominant individuals. Similarly, the function of avoiding conflicts can be adaptive for other species of tufted capuchin monkeys that have the same control access by dominant males too, like Sapajus libidinosus. However, the function of food-associated calls can diverge relatively fast in feeding contexts, and can vary depending on the species' unique social structure or environmental factors. Then, the function of decreased aggression may not be found in S. libidinosus. The aim of this study is to investigate the presence and functions of food associated calls and the factors that affect it. The study will be conducted on a transition area between Cerrado and Caatinga at Fazenda Boa Vista, Piauí. Data will be collected from the group Chicão that is habituated to human observers, using focal animal method and ad libitum sampling. The vocalizations will be recorded and analyzed with LMA program. Data will be analyzed in permutated discriminant function analysis. (AU)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

FERREIRA, Luíza Gonzalez. Food-associated calls in capuchin monkeys (Sapajus libidinosus): research on casual factors and function. 2016. Master's Dissertation - Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto de Psicologia (IP/SBD) São Paulo.