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(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

Age-Related Variation in the Mechanical Properties of Foods Processed by Sapajus libidinosus

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Author(s):
Chalk, Janine [1, 2] ; Wright, Barth W. [3] ; Lucas, Peter W. [4] ; Schuhmacher, Katherine D. [5] ; Vogel, Erin R. [6] ; Fragaszy, Dorothy [7] ; Visalberghi, Elisabetta [8] ; Izar, Patricia [9] ; Richmond, Brian G. [10]
Total Authors: 9
Affiliation:
[1] Johns Hopkins Univ, Sch Med, Ctr Funct Anat & Evolut, Baltimore, MD - USA
[2] Mercer Univ, Sch Med, Div Basic Med Sci, Macon, GA 31207 - USA
[3] Kansas City Univ Med & Biosci, Dept Anat, Kansas City, MO - USA
[4] Kuwait Univ, Fac Dent, Dept Bioclin Sci, Safat - Kuwait
[5] Cornell Univ, Coll Vet Med, Ithaca, NY 14853 - USA
[6] Rutgers State Univ, Dept Anthropol, New Brunswick, NJ 08903 - USA
[7] Univ Georgia, Dept Psychol, Athens, GA 30602 - USA
[8] CNR, Inst Cognit Sci & Technol, Rome - Italy
[9] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Expt Psychol, BR-05508 Sao Paulo - Brazil
[10] Amer Museum Nat Hist, Anthropol Div, New York, NY 10024 - USA
Total Affiliations: 10
Document type: Journal article
Source: AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY; v. 159, n. 2, p. 199-209, FEB 2016.
Web of Science Citations: 9
Abstract

Objectives: The diet of tufted capuchins (Sapajus) is characterized by annual or seasonal incorporation of mechanically protected foods. Reliance on these foods raises questions about the dietary strategies of young individuals that lack strength and experience to access these resources. Previous research has demonstrated differences between the feeding competencies of adult and juvenile tufted capuchins. Here we test the hypothesis that, compared to adults, juveniles will process foods with lower toughness and elastic moduli. Materials and Methods: We present data on variation in the toughness and elastic modulus of food tissues processed by Sapajus libidinosus during the dry season at Fazenda Boa Vista, Brazil. Food mechanical property data were collected using a portable universal mechanical tester. Results: Results show that food tissues processed by the capuchins showed significant differences in toughness and stiffness. However, we found no relationship between an individual's age and mean or maximum food toughness or elastic modulus, indicating both juvenile and adult S. libidinosus are able to process foods of comparable properties. Discussion: Although it has been suggested that juveniles avoid mechanically protected foods, age-related differences in feeding competence are not solely due to variation in food toughness or stiffness. Other factors related to food type (e.g., learning complex behavioral sequences, achieving manual dexterity, obtaining physical strength to lift stone tools, or recognizing subtle cues about food state) combined with food mechanical properties better explain variation in juvenile feeding competency. (C) 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (AU)