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Drummond-Clarke RC, Kivell TL, Sarringhaus L, Stewart FA, Piel AK. Sex differences in positional behavior of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) living in the dry and open habitat of Issa Valley, Tanzania. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2024:e25007. [PMID: 39056239 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.25007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2024] [Revised: 06/20/2024] [Accepted: 07/09/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Many early fossil hominins are associated with savanna-mosaic paleohabitats, and high sexual dimorphism that may reflect differences in positional behavior between sexes. However, reconstructions of hominin behavior and the selective pressures they faced in an open habitat are limited by a lack of studies of extant apes living in contemporary, analogous habitats. Here, we describe adult chimpanzee positional behavior in the savanna-mosaic habitat of the Issa Valley, Tanzania, to test whether Issa chimpanzees show larger sex-differences in positional behavior than their forest-dwelling counterparts. MATERIALS AND METHODS We quantified and compared adult locomotor and postural behavior across sexes (6 females, 7 males) in the riparian forest (closed) and miombo woodland (open) vegetation types at Issa Valley (13,743 focal observations). We then compared our results to published data of chimpanzee communities living in more forested habitats. RESULTS Issa females and males both spent less time arboreally in open vegetation and showed similar locomotor and postural behavior on the same substrates, notably using a high level of suspensory locomotion when arboreal. Females were, however, more arboreal than males during locomotor behavior, as well as compared with females from other communities. Issa males behaved similarly to males from other communities. CONCLUSION Results suggest that open habitats do not elicit less arboreal behaviors in either sex, and may even select for suspensory locomotion to effectively navigate an open canopy. An open habitat may, however, increase sex differences in positional behavior by driving female arboreality. We suggest this is because of higher energetic demands and predator pressures associated with open vegetation, which are likely exaggerated for reproducing females. These results have implications for the interpretation of how sexual dimorphism may influence reconstructions of hominin positional behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tracy L Kivell
- Department of Human Origins, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Fiona A Stewart
- Department of Human Origins, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Alex K Piel
- Department of Human Origins, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, London, UK
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Schapker NM, Janisch J, Myers LC, Phelps T, Shapiro LJ, Young JW. From such great heights: The effects of substrate height and the perception of risk on lemur locomotor mechanics. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2024; 184:e24917. [PMID: 38411385 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24917] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Revised: 02/02/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES An accident during arboreal locomotion can lead to risky falls, but it remains unclear that the extent to which primates, as adept arborealists, change their locomotion in response to the perceived risk of moving on high supports in the tree canopy. By using more stable forms of locomotion on higher substrates, primates might avoid potentially fatal consequences. MATERIALS AND METHODS Using high-speed cameras, we recorded the quadrupedal locomotion of four wild lemur species-Eulemur rubriventer, Eulemur rufifrons, Hapalemur aureus, and Lemur catta (N = 113 total strides). We quantified the height, diameter, and angular orientation of locomotor supports using remote sensors and tested the influence of support parameters on gait kinematics, specifically predicting that in response to increasing substrate height, lemurs would decrease speed and stride frequency, but increase stride length and the mean number of supporting limbs. RESULTS Lemurs did not adjust stride frequency on substrates of varying height. Adjustments to speed, stride length, and the mean number of supporting limbs in response to varying height often ran counter to predictions. Only E. rubriventer decreased speed and increased the mean number of supporting limbs on higher substrates. DISCUSSION Results suggest that quadrupedal walking is a relatively safe form of locomotion for lemurs, requiring subtle changes in gait to increase stability on higher-that is, potentially riskier-substrates. Continued investigation of the impact of height on locomotion will be important to determine how animals assess risk in their environment and how they choose to use this information to move more safely.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole M Schapker
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Rootstown, Ohio, USA
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, USA
| | - Judith Janisch
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Rootstown, Ohio, USA
| | - Lydia C Myers
- Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA
| | - Taylor Phelps
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Rootstown, Ohio, USA
| | - Liza J Shapiro
- Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA
| | - Jesse W Young
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Rootstown, Ohio, USA
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, USA
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Vanhoof MJM, Galletta L, Matthews H, De Groote I, Vereecke EE. Ulnar shape of extant primates: Functional signals and covariation with triquetrum shape. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2024; 183:e24755. [PMID: 37171151 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES In this study, we investigated the shape differences of the distal ulna in a phylogenetic context among a broad range of primate taxa. Furthermore, we evaluated covariation between ulnar and triquetrum shape and a possible association between ulnar shape and locomotor behavior. MATERIALS AND METHODS We applied 3D geometric morphometrics on a large dataset comprising the distal ulna of 124 anthropoid primate specimens belonging to 12 different genera. For each species, a mean shape was calculated using 11 Procrustes-aligned surface landmarks on the distal ulna. These mean shapes are used in a bgPCA, pPCA, and PACA and 3D morphs were used to visualize more subtle differences between taxa. A p2B-PLS analysis was performed to test the covariance between distal ulnar and triquetrum shape. RESULTS The results show that more closely related species exhibit a similar distal ulnar shape. Overall, extant hominid ulnae show a shape shift compared to those of extant monkeys and hylobatids. This includes a shortening of the ulnar styloid process and dorspalmarly widening of the ulnar head, shape characteristics that are independent of phylogeny. Within the hominids, Pongo pygmaeus seem to possess the most plesiomorphic distal ulnar shape, while Gorilla and Homo sapiens display the most derived distal ulna. Cercopithecoids, hylobatids, and P. pygmaeus are characterized by a relatively deep ECU groove, which is a shape trait dependent of phylogeny. Although there was no significant covariation between distal ulnar shape and triquetrum shape, the shape differences of the distal ulna between the different primate taxa reveal a possible link with locomotor behavior. CONCLUSIONS The comparative analyses of this study reveal different shape trends in a phylogenetic context. Highly arboreal primates, such as hylobatids and Ateles fusciceps, show a distal ulnar morphology that appears to be adapted to tensile and torsional forces. In primates that use their wrist under more compressive conditions, such as quadrupedal cercopithecoids and great apes, the distal ulnar morphology seems to reflect increased compressive forces. In modern humans, the distal ulnar shape can be associated to enhanced manipulative skills and power grips. There was no significant covariation between distal ulnar shape and triquetrum shape, probably due to the variation in the amount of contact between the triquetrum and ulna. In combination with future research on wrist mobility in diverse primate taxa, the results of this study will allow us to establish form-function relationships of the primate wrist and contribute towards an evidence-based interpretation of fossil remains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie J M Vanhoof
- Department of Development & Regeneration, Biomedical Sciences Group, Kortrijk, Belgium
| | - Lorenzo Galletta
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Waurn Pounds, Victoria, Australia
| | - Harold Matthews
- Department of Human Genetics, Medical Imaging Center, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Isabelle De Groote
- Department of Archaeology, Ghent University, Belgium
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Paleoecology, Liverpool John Moores University, UK
| | - Evie E Vereecke
- Department of Development & Regeneration, Biomedical Sciences Group, Kortrijk, Belgium
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Kralick AE, Zemel BS, Nolan C, Lin P, Tocheri MW. Relative leg-to-arm skeletal strength proportions in orangutans by species and sex. J Hum Evol 2024; 188:103496. [PMID: 38412694 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2023] [Revised: 01/02/2024] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024]
Abstract
Among extant great apes, orangutans climb most frequently. However, Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) exhibit higher frequencies of terrestrial locomotion than do Sumatran orangutans (Pongo abelii). Variation in long bone cross-sectional geometry is known to reflect differential loading of the limbs. Thus, Bornean orangutans should show greater relative leg-to-arm strength than their Sumatran counterparts. Using skeletal specimens from museum collections, we measured two cross-sectional geometric measures of bone strength: the polar section modulus (Zpol) and the ratio of maximum to minimum area moments of inertia (Imax/Imin), at the midshaft of long bones in Bornean (n = 19) and Sumatran adult orangutans (n = 12) using medical CT and peripheral quantitative CT scans, and compared results to published data of other great apes. Relative leg-to-arm strength was quantified using ratios of femur and tibia over humerus, radius, and ulna, respectively. Differences between orangutan species and between sexes in median ratios were assessed using Wilcoxon rank sum tests. The tibia of Bornean orangutans was stronger relative to the humerus and the ulna than in Sumatran orangutans (p = 0.008 and 0.025, respectively), consistent with behavioral studies that indicate higher frequencies of terrestrial locomotion in the former. In three Zpol ratios, adult female orangutans showed greater leg-to-arm bone strength compared to flanged males, which may relate to females using their legs more during arboreal locomotion than in adult flanged males. A greater amount of habitat discontinuity on Borneo compared to Sumatra has been posited as a possible explanation for observed interspecific differences in locomotor behaviors, but recent camera trap studies has called this into question. Alternatively, greater frequencies of terrestriality in Pongo pygmaeus may be due to the absence of tigers on Borneo. The results of this study are consistent with the latter explanation given that habitat continuity was greater a century ago when our study sample was collected.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra E Kralick
- Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality, Harvard University, Cambridge, 02138, USA; Department of Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, USA.
| | - Babette S Zemel
- Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA; Department of Pediatrics, The University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Clara Nolan
- Fine Arts Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA; Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Phillip Lin
- Stockdale High School, Bakersfield, CA, 93311, USA
| | - Matthew W Tocheri
- Department of Anthropology, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario, P7B 5E1, Canada; Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 20013, USA; Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, NSW, 2522, Australia
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Mörchen J, Luhn F, Wassmer O, Kunz JA, Kulik L, van Noordwijk MA, Rianti P, Rahmaeti T, Utami Atmoko SS, Widdig A, Schuppli C. Orangutan males make increased use of social learning opportunities, when resource availability is high. iScience 2024; 27:108940. [PMID: 38333693 PMCID: PMC10850741 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.108940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2023] [Revised: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Humans' colonization of diverse habitats relied on our ancestors' abilities to innovate and share innovations with others. While ecological impacts on innovations are well studied, their effect on social learning remains poorly understood. We examined how food availability affects social learning in migrant orangutan unflanged males, who may learn from local orangutans through peering (i.e., observational social learning). We analyzed 1,384 dyadic associations, including 360 peering events, among 46 wild Sumatran orangutan and 25 Bornean orangutan males, collected over 18 years. Migrants' peering rates significantly increased with higher food availability and time spent in proximity to others. Furthermore, migrants in the more sociable Sumatran population exhibited significantly higher peering rates compared to the Borneans, suggesting intrinsic and/or developmental effects of food availability on social learning. These findings emphasize the importance of investigating ecological effects on social learning on the immediate, developmental, and intrinsic levels for our understanding of cultural evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Mörchen
- Development and Evolution of Cognition Research Group, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, 78467 Konstanz, Germany
- Behavioral Ecology Research Group, Institute of Biology, University of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Primate Behaviour and Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Frances Luhn
- Behavioral Ecology Research Group, Institute of Biology, University of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Olivia Wassmer
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Julia A. Kunz
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology of Montpellier (ISEM), University of Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, 34095 Montpellier, France
| | - Lars Kulik
- Behavioral Ecology Research Group, Institute of Biology, University of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Maria A. van Noordwijk
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Comparative Socioecology, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, 78467 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Puji Rianti
- Primate Research Center, Institute of Research and Community Service, IPB University, Bogor 16680, Indonesia
- Animal Biosystematics and Ecology Division, Department of Biology, IPB University, Bogor 16680, Indonesia
| | - Tri Rahmaeti
- Department of Biology, Graduate Program, Faculty of Biology and Agriculture, Universitas Nasional, Jakarta 12520, Indonesia
| | - Sri Suci Utami Atmoko
- Department of Biology, Graduate Program, Faculty of Biology and Agriculture, Universitas Nasional, Jakarta 12520, Indonesia
| | - Anja Widdig
- Behavioral Ecology Research Group, Institute of Biology, University of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Primate Behaviour and Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle-Jena-Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Caroline Schuppli
- Development and Evolution of Cognition Research Group, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, 78467 Konstanz, Germany
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
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Kralick AE, O'Connell CA, Bastian ML, Hoke MK, Zemel BS, Schurr TG, Tocheri MW. Beyond Dimorphism: Body Size Variation Among Adult Orangutans Is Not Dichotomous by Sex. Integr Comp Biol 2023; 63:907-921. [PMID: 37061788 PMCID: PMC10563650 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icad015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Revised: 03/23/2023] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 04/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Among extant great apes, orangutans are considered the most sexually dimorphic in body size. However, the expression of sexual dimorphism in orangutans is more complex than simply males being larger than females. At sexual maturity, some male orangutans develop cheek pads (flanges), while other males remain unflanged even after becoming reproductively capable. Sometimes flange development is delayed in otherwise sexually mature males for a few years. In other cases, flange development is delayed for many years or decades, with some males even spending their entire lifespan as unflanged adults. Thus, unflanged males of various chronological ages can be mistakenly identified as "subadults." Unflanged adult males are typically described as "female-sized," but this may simply reflect the fact that unflanged male body size has only ever been measured in peri-pubescent individuals. In this study, we measured the skeletons of 111 wild adult orangutans (Pongo spp.), including 20 unflanged males, 45 flanged males, and 46 females, resulting in the largest skeletal sample of unflanged males yet studied. We assessed long bone lengths (as a proxy for stature) for all 111 individuals and recorded weights-at-death, femoral head diameters, bi-iliac breadths, and long bone cross-sectional areas (CSA) (as proxies for mass) for 27 of these individuals, including seven flanged males, three adult confirmed-unflanged males, and three young adult likely-unflanged males. ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis tests with Tukey and Dunn post-hoc pairwise comparisons, respectively, showed that body sizes for young adult unflanged males are similar to those of the adult females in the sample (all P ≥ 0.09 except bi-iliac breadth), whereas body sizes for adult unflanged males ranged between those of adult flanged males and adult females for several measurements (all P < 0.001). Thus, sexually mature male orangutans exhibit body sizes that range from the female end of the spectrum to the flanged male end of the spectrum. These results exemplify that the term "sexual dimorphism" fails to capture the full range of variation in adult orangutan body size. By including adult unflanged males in analyses of body size and other aspects of morphology, not as aberrations but as an expected part of orangutan variation, we may begin to shift the way that we think about features typically considered dichotomous according to biological sex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra E Kralick
- Department of Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Caitlin A O'Connell
- Department of Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Anthropology, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
| | - Meredith L Bastian
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC 20001, USA
| | - Morgan K Hoke
- Department of Anthropology & Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Babette S Zemel
- Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- , Department of Pediatrics, The University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Theodore G Schurr
- Department of Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Matthew W Tocheri
- Department of Anthropology, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5E1, Canada
- Human Origins Program, Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20013, USA
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, University of Wollongong, Wollongong NSW 2522, Australia
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Cazenave M, Kivell TL. Challenges and perspectives on functional interpretations of australopith postcrania and the reconstruction of hominin locomotion. J Hum Evol 2023; 175:103304. [PMID: 36563461 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
In 1994, Hunt published the 'postural feeding hypothesis'-a seminal paper on the origins of hominin bipedalism-founded on the detailed study of chimpanzee positional behavior and the functional inferences derived from the upper and lower limb morphology of the Australopithecus afarensis A.L. 288-1 partial skeleton. Hunt proposed a model for understanding the potential selective pressures on hominins, made robust, testable predictions based on Au. afarensis functional morphology, and presented a hypothesis that aimed to explain the dual functional signals of the Au. afarensis and, more generally, early hominin postcranium. Here we synthesize what we have learned about Au. afarensis functional morphology and the dual functional signals of two new australopith discoveries with relatively complete skeletons (Australopithecus sediba and StW 573 'Australopithecus prometheus'). We follow this with a discussion of three research approaches that have been developed for the purpose of drawing behavioral inferences in early hominins: (1) developments in the study of extant apes as models for understanding hominin origins; (2) novel and continued developments to quantify bipedal gait and locomotor economy in extant primates to infer the locomotor costs from the anatomy of fossil taxa; and (3) novel developments in the study of internal bone structure to extract functional signals from fossil remains. In conclusion of this review, we discuss some of the inherent challenges of the approaches and methodologies adopted to reconstruct the locomotor modes and behavioral repertoires in extinct primate taxa, and notably the assessment of habitual terrestrial bipedalism in early hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marine Cazenave
- Division of Anthropology, American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA; Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK; Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, South Africa.
| | - Tracy L Kivell
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK; Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
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Drummond-Clarke RC, Kivell TL, Sarringhaus L, Stewart FA, Humle T, Piel AK. Wild chimpanzee behavior suggests that a savanna-mosaic habitat did not support the emergence of hominin terrestrial bipedalism. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eadd9752. [PMID: 36516260 PMCID: PMC9750136 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.add9752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Bipedalism, a defining feature of the human lineage, is thought to have evolved as forests retreated in the late Miocene-Pliocene. Chimpanzees living in analogous habitats to early hominins offer a unique opportunity to investigate the ecological drivers of bipedalism that cannot be addressed via the fossil record alone. We investigated positional behavior and terrestriality in a savanna-mosaic community of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) in the Issa Valley, Tanzania as the first test in a living ape of the hypothesis that wooded, savanna habitats were a catalyst for terrestrial bipedalism. Contrary to widely accepted hypotheses of increased terrestriality selecting for habitual bipedalism, results indicate that trees remained an essential component of the hominin adaptive niche, with bipedalism evolving in an arboreal context, likely driven by foraging strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tracy L. Kivell
- School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
- Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Lauren Sarringhaus
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Fiona A. Stewart
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, London, UK
- School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
| | - Tatyana Humle
- School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
| | - Alex K. Piel
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, London, UK
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Prasetyo D, Lestari DA, Wahyuni T, Ismanto AD. The effectiveness of artificial canopy bridges for the diurnal primates within a hydroelectric project in North Sumatra-Indonesia. Folia Primatol (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.1163/14219980-20211106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Primates that live within fragmented and disturbed habitat are facing population declines and a higher probability of extinction due to gene flow inhibition. To address this problem, land managers, practitioners, and primatologists have applied several approaches to enhance primates’ habitat quality and connectivity through habitat restoration and canopy bridge installation. In some cases, artificial canopy bridges have shown to be effective to facilitate movement between fragmented habitats for several primates’ taxa. However, while several types of canopy bridge designs are available, there is no clear evidence on which is the best for primates. Here we evaluated the effectiveness of three artificial canopy bridge designs within a hydroelectric project in Sumatra, Indonesia from 2019 to 2021. The hydroelectric project was located at the edge of a forest block within the Batang Toru Ecosystem which could disconnect the primate’s population from this protected forest to the other forest blocks. During 595 days of camera trapping, we captured 988 independent crossing events from six diurnal primate species (Pongo tapanuliensis, Hylobates agilis, Symphalangus syndactylus, Presbytis sumatrana, Macaca nemestrina, and Macaca fascicularis). Our initial observation finds the ladder canopy bridge design was commonly used by primates and Presbytis sumatrana was the species that often crossed the canopy bridge. These findings are important to improve species management plans and primate conservation in Indonesia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Didik Prasetyo
- Fakultas Biologi, Universitas Nasional, Jl. Sawo Manila 14, Pasar Minggu, Jakarta Selatan, 12520, Indonesia
| | | | - Tri Wahyuni
- PT North Sumatera Hydro Energy, Jakarta, 12150, Indonesia
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Widyastuti K, Reuillon R, Chapron P, Abdussalam W, Nasir D, Harrison ME, Morrogh-Bernard H, Imron MA, Berger U. Assessing the impact of forest structure disturbances on the arboreal movement and energetics of orangutans—An agent-based modeling approach. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.983337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Agent-based models have been developed and widely employed to assess the impact of disturbances or conservation management on animal habitat use, population development, and viability. However, the direct impacts of canopy disturbance on the arboreal movement of individual primates have been less studied. Such impacts could shed light on the cascading effects of disturbances on animal health and fitness. Orangutans are an arboreal primate that commonly encounters habitat quality deterioration due to land-use changes and related disturbances such as forest fires. Forest disturbance may, therefore, create a complex stress scenario threatening orangutan populations. Due to forest disturbances, orangutans may adapt to employ more terrestrial, as opposed to arboreal, movements potentially prolonging the search for fruiting and nesting trees. In turn, this may lead to changes in daily activity patterns (i.e., time spent traveling, feeding, and resting) and available energy budget, potentially decreasing the orangutan's fitness. We developed the agent-based simulation model BORNEO (arBOReal aNimal movEment mOdel), which explicitly describes both orangutans' arboreal and terrestrial movement in a forest habitat, depending on distances between trees and canopy structures. Orangutans in the model perform activities with a motivation to balance energy intake and expenditure through locomotion. We tested the model using forest inventory data obtained in Sebangau National Park, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. This allowed us to construct virtual forests with real characteristics including tree connectivity, thus creating the potential to expand the environmental settings for simulation experiments. In order to parameterize the energy related processes of the orangutans described in the model, we applied a computationally intensive evolutionary algorithm and evaluated the simulation results against observed behavioral patterns of orangutans. Both the simulated variability and proportion of activity budgets including feeding, resting, and traveling time for female and male orangutans confirmed the suitability of the model for its purpose. We used the calibrated model to compare the activity patterns and energy budgets of orangutans in both natural and disturbed forests . The results confirm field observations that orangutans in the disturbed forest are more likely to experience deficit energy balance due to traveling to the detriment of feeding time. Such imbalance is more pronounced in males than in females. The finding of a threshold of forest disturbances that affects a significant change in activity and energy budgets suggests potential threats to the orangutan population. Our study introduces the first agent-based model describing the arboreal movement of primates that can serve as a tool to investigate the direct impact of forest changes and disturbances on the behavior of species such as orangutans. Moreover, it demonstrates the suitability of high-performance computing to optimize the calibration of complex agent-based models describing animal behavior at a fine spatio-temporal scale (1-m and 1-s granularity).
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Marchi D, Rimoldi A, García‐Martínez D, Bastir M. Morphological correlates of distal fibular morphology with locomotion in great apes, humans, and Australopithecus afarensis. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2022; 178:286-300. [PMID: 36790753 PMCID: PMC9314891 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2020] [Revised: 01/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Recent studies highlighted the importance of the fibula to further our understanding of locomotor adaptations in fossil hominins. In this study, we present a three-dimensional geometric morphometric (3D-GM) investigation of the distal fibula in extant hominids and Australopithecus afarensis with the aim of pointing out morphological correlations to arboreal behavior. METHODS Three-dimensional surface meshes of the distal fibula were obtained using computer tomography for 40 extant hominid specimens and laser scanner for five A. afarensis specimens. Distal fibula morphology was quantified positioning 11 fixed landmarks, 40 curve semilandmarks, and 20 surface landmarks on each specimen. A generalized Procrustes analysis (GPA) was carried out on all landmark coordinates followed by Procrustes ANOVA. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed on the GPA-aligned shape coordinates. Kruskal-Wallis tests and Mann-Whitney test were performed on scores along PCs. RESULTS Great apes are characterized by a shorter subcutaneous triangular surface (STS), more downward facing fibulotalar articular facets, more anteriorly facing lateral malleolus and wider/deeper malleolar fossa than humans. Within great apes, orangutans are characterized by more medially facing fibulotalar articular facets. Australopithecus afarensis shows a unique distal fibular morphology with several traits that are generally associated more to arboreality and less to bipedalism such as a short STS, a more anteriorly facing, laterally pointing malleolus and deeper and larger malleolar fossa. CONCLUSIONS The distal fibula morphology is indicative of locomotor patterns within extant hominids. The 3D-GM method presented here can be successfully used to further our understanding of arboreal adaptations in fossil hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Damiano Marchi
- Department of BiologyUniversity of PisaPisa
- Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human JourneyUniversity of the WitwatersrandWits
| | | | - Daniel García‐Martínez
- Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human JourneyUniversity of the WitwatersrandWits
- Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH)BurgosSpain
- Paleoanthropology GroupMuseo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN‐CSIC)MadridSpain
| | - Markus Bastir
- Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human JourneyUniversity of the WitwatersrandWits
- Paleoanthropology GroupMuseo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN‐CSIC)MadridSpain
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Bird EE, Kivell TL, Skinner MM. Patterns of internal bone structure and functional adaptation in the hominoid scaphoid, lunate, and triquetrum. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Emma E. Bird
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation University of Kent Canterbury UK
| | - Tracy L. Kivell
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation University of Kent Canterbury UK
- Department of Human Evolution Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology Leipzig Germany
| | - Matthew M. Skinner
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation University of Kent Canterbury UK
- Department of Human Evolution Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology Leipzig Germany
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13
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Hunt KD, Dunevant SE, Yohler RM, Carlson KJ. Femoral Bicondylar Angles among Dry-Habitat Chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) Resemble Those of Humans: Implications for Knee Function, Australopith Sexual Dimorphism, and the Evolution of Bipedalism. JOURNAL OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2021. [DOI: 10.1086/715398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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14
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Bird EE, Kivell TL, Skinner MM. Cortical and trabecular bone structure of the hominoid capitate. J Anat 2021; 239:351-373. [PMID: 33942895 PMCID: PMC8273598 DOI: 10.1111/joa.13437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2020] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Morphological variation in the hominoid capitate has been linked to differences in habitual locomotor activity due to its importance in movement and load transfer at the midcarpal joint proximally and carpometacarpal joints distally. Although the shape of bones and their articulations are linked to joint mobility, the internal structure of bones has been shown experimentally to reflect, at least in part, the loading direction and magnitude experienced by the bone. To date, it is uncertain whether locomotor differences among hominoids are reflected in the bone microarchitecture of the capitate. Here, we apply a whole‐bone methodology to quantify the cortical and trabecular architecture (separately and combined) of the capitate across bipedal (modern Homo sapiens), knuckle‐walking (Pan paniscus, Pan troglodytes, Gorilla sp.), and suspensory (Pongo sp.) hominoids (n = 69). It is hypothesized that variation in bone microarchitecture will differentiate these locomotor groups, reflecting differences in habitual postures and presumed loading force and direction. Additionally, it is hypothesized that trabecular and cortical architecture in the proximal and distal regions, as a result of being part of mechanically divergent joints proximally and distally, will differ across these portions of the capitate. Results indicate that the capitate of knuckle‐walking and suspensory hominoids is differentiated from bipedal Homo primarily by significantly thicker distal cortical bone. Knuckle‐walking taxa are further differentiated from suspensory and bipedal taxa by more isotropic trabeculae in the proximal capitate. An allometric analysis indicates that size is not a significant determinate of bone variation across hominoids, although sexual dimorphism may influence some parameters within Gorilla. Results suggest that internal trabecular and cortical bone is subjected to different forces and functional adaptation responses across the capitate (and possibly other short bones). Additionally, while separating trabecular and cortical bone is normal protocol of current whole‐bone methodologies, this study shows that when applied to carpals, removing or studying the cortical bone separately potentially obfuscates functionally relevant signals in bone structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma E Bird
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
| | - Tracy L Kivell
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK.,Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Matthew M Skinner
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK.,Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
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15
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Hu D, Xiong CH, Sun R. Working out the bipedal walking expenditure of energy based on foot morphology of different hominid genera: Implications for foot evolution. J Theor Biol 2021; 519:110646. [PMID: 33636203 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2021.110646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Revised: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 02/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Among the Hominidae family of primates, Homo is characterized by more economical bipedal walking. Over the course of evolution towards bipedalism, the foot becomes the only organ directly interacting with substrate and likely influence the bipedal walking economy. However, working out the energy expenditure in bipedal walking from the specific aspect of foot morphology is still challenging, which hinders the understanding of the evolution of both hominid feet and economical bipedal walking. Here we present a functional model to quantitatively assess bipedal walking expenditure of energy from hominid foot morphology. According to our results, the feet of Homo are most suited to economical bipedal walking among hominids. However, the genus whose feet possess second best ability for economical bipedal walking is not our closest relative Pan, but is Gorilla. Using phylogenetically informed morphometric analyses, we further infer the evolutionary changes of hominid foot morphology and investigate the corresponding variation of bipedal walking expenditure. Our results reveal the economical bipedal walking benefits from the morphological changes of human foot after descending from the last common ancestor of hominids. Conversely, the foot morphologies of great apes reflect selections for other locomotor modes, at cost of larger energy expenditure in bipedal walking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Di Hu
- Institute of Robotics Research, State Key Laboratory of Digital Manufacturing Equipment and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
| | - Cai-Hua Xiong
- Institute of Robotics Research, State Key Laboratory of Digital Manufacturing Equipment and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China.
| | - Ronglei Sun
- Institute of Robotics Research, State Key Laboratory of Digital Manufacturing Equipment and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
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16
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Dunmore CJ, Bardo A, Skinner MM, Kivell TL. Trabecular variation in the first metacarpal and manipulation in hominids. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2019; 171:219-241. [PMID: 31762017 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23974] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2018] [Revised: 10/27/2019] [Accepted: 10/29/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The dexterity of fossil hominins is often inferred by assessing the comparative manual anatomy and behaviors of extant hominids, with a focus on the thumb. The aim of this study is to test whether trabecular structure is consistent with what is currently known about habitually loaded thumb postures across extant hominids. MATERIALS AND METHODS We analyze first metacarpal (Mc1) subarticular trabecular architecture in humans (Homo sapiens, n = 10), bonobos (Pan paniscus, n = 10), chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes, n = 11), as well as for the first time, gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla, n = 10) and orangutans (Pongo sp., n = 1, Pongo abelii, n = 3 and Pongo pygmaeus, n = 5). Using a combination of subarticular and whole-epiphysis approaches, we test for significant differences in relative trabecular bone volume (RBV/TV) and degree of anisotropy (DA) between species. RESULTS Humans have significantly greater RBV/TV on the radiopalmar aspects of both the proximal and distal Mc1 subarticular surfaces and greater DA throughout the Mc1 head than other hominids. Nonhuman great apes have greatest RBV/TV on the ulnar aspect of the Mc1 head and the palmar aspect of the Mc1 base. Gorillas possessed significantly lower DA in the Mc1 head than any other taxon in our sample. DISCUSSION These results are consistent with abduction of the thumb during forceful "pad-to-pad" precision grips in humans and, in nonhuman great apes, a habitually adducted thumb that is typically used in precision and power grips. This comparative context will help infer habitual manipulative and locomotor grips in fossil hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J Dunmore
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
| | - Ameline Bardo
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
| | - Matthew M Skinner
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK.,Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Tracy L Kivell
- Skeletal Biology Research Centre, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK.,Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
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Dunmore CJ, Kivell TL, Bardo A, Skinner MM. Metacarpal trabecular bone varies with distinct hand-positions used in hominid locomotion. J Anat 2019; 235:45-66. [PMID: 31099419 PMCID: PMC6580057 DOI: 10.1111/joa.12966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Trabecular bone remodels during life in response to loading and thus should, at least in part, reflect potential variation in the magnitude, frequency and direction of joint loading across different hominid species. Here we analyse the trabecular structure across all non-pollical metacarpal distal heads (Mc2-5) in extant great apes, expanding on previous volume of interest and whole-epiphysis analyses that have largely focused on only the first or third metacarpal. Specifically, we employ both a univariate statistical mapping and a multivariate approach to test for both inter-ray and interspecific differences in relative trabecular bone volume fraction (RBV/TV) and degree of anisotropy (DA) in Mc2-5 subchondral trabecular bone. Results demonstrate that whereas DA values only separate Pongo from African apes (Pan troglodytes, Pan paniscus, Gorilla gorilla), RBV/TV distribution varies with the predicted loading of the metacarpophalangeal (McP) joints during locomotor behaviours in each species. Gorilla exhibits a relatively dorsal distribution of RBV/TV consistent with habitual hyper-extension of the McP joints during knuckle-walking, whereas Pongo has a palmar distribution consistent with flexed McP joints used to grasp arboreal substrates. Both Pan species possess a disto-dorsal distribution of RBV/TV, compatible with multiple hand postures associated with a more varied locomotor regime. Further inter-ray comparisons reveal RBV/TV patterns consistent with varied knuckle-walking postures in Pan species in contrast to higher RBV/TV values toward the midline of the hand in Mc2 and Mc5 of Gorilla, consistent with habitual palm-back knuckle-walking. These patterns of trabecular bone distribution and structure reflect different behavioural signals that could be useful for determining the behaviours of fossil hominins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J. Dunmore
- Skeletal Biology Research CentreSchool of Anthropology and ConservationUniversity of KentCanterburyUK
| | - Tracy L. Kivell
- Skeletal Biology Research CentreSchool of Anthropology and ConservationUniversity of KentCanterburyUK
- Department of Human EvolutionMax Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyLeipzigGermany
| | - Ameline Bardo
- Skeletal Biology Research CentreSchool of Anthropology and ConservationUniversity of KentCanterburyUK
| | - Matthew M. Skinner
- Skeletal Biology Research CentreSchool of Anthropology and ConservationUniversity of KentCanterburyUK
- Department of Human EvolutionMax Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyLeipzigGermany
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Gesture Use in Communication between Mothers and Offspring in Wild Orang-Utans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) from the Sabangau Peat-Swamp Forest, Borneo. INT J PRIMATOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s10764-019-00095-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
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19
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Shapiro LJ, Kemp AD. Functional and developmental influences on intraspecific variation in catarrhine vertebrae. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2018; 168:131-144. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2018] [Revised: 09/13/2018] [Accepted: 09/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Liza J. Shapiro
- Department of Anthropology University of Texas at Austin Austin Texas
| | - Addison D. Kemp
- Department of Anthropology University of Texas at Austin Austin Texas
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20
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Larson SG. Nonhuman Primate Locomotion. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2018; 165:705-725. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2017] [Revised: 11/09/2017] [Accepted: 11/10/2017] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Susan G. Larson
- Department of Anatomical Sciences; Stony Brook University School of Medicine; Stony Brook New York 11794-8081
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21
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Abstract
Positional behavior (posture and locomotion) studies are a category of primatological and anthropological field research that attempts to describe movement capabilities and expressed behavior within an evolutionary, ecological, and/or morphological context. This area of research is appealing because it allows the integration of morphological data (capabilities) with expressed behaviors and provides a basis for understanding fossil reconstruction. Because positional behavior acts as a mediator between the biology and the environment, it offers information about virtually all aspects of a primate's life. We are currently undergoing an increase in the number of field projects focusing on the development of positional behaviors in immature primates, and results suggest that in many species positional competence develops relatively early. In this review, I present information on recent positional behavior studies with a focus on how positional behavior develops in young primates. Research on immature primates suggests that natural selection operates at all life stages to influence survival and that the adult positional repertoire likely reflects the challenges confronted by younger individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Bezanson
- Department of Anthropology, Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, California 95053
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22
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Nowak MG, Reichard UH. The Torso-Orthograde Positional Behavior of Wild White-Handed Gibbons (Hylobates lar). ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-5614-2_10] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/11/2023]
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23
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Hammond AS, Plavcan JM, Ward CV. A validated method for modeling anthropoid hip abduction
in silico. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2016; 160:529-48. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.22990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2015] [Revised: 03/19/2016] [Accepted: 03/21/2016] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Ashley S. Hammond
- Center for Advanced Study of Human PaleobiologyDepartment of AnthropologyGeorge Washington UniversityWashington DC20052
- Department of AnatomyHoward University College of Medicine, Washington DC20059
- Department of Pathology and Anatomical SciencesUniversity of Missouri School of MedicineColumbia MO65212
| | | | - Carol V. Ward
- Department of Pathology and Anatomical SciencesUniversity of Missouri School of MedicineColumbia MO65212
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24
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Hunt KD. Why are there apes? Evidence for the co-evolution of ape and monkey ecomorphology. J Anat 2016; 228:630-85. [PMID: 27004976 PMCID: PMC4804131 DOI: 10.1111/joa.12454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Apes, members of the superfamily Hominoidea, possess a distinctive suite of anatomical and behavioral characters which appear to have evolved relatively late and relatively independently. The timing of paleontological events, extant cercopithecine and hominoid ecomorphology and other evidence suggests that many distinctive ape features evolved to facilitate harvesting ripe fruits among compliant terminal branches in tree edges. Precarious, unpredictably oriented, compliant supports in the canopy periphery require apes to maneuver using suspensory and non-sterotypical postures (i.e. postures with eccentric limb orientations or extreme joint excursions). Diet differences among extant species, extant species numbers and evidence of cercopithecoid diversification and expansion, in concert with a reciprocal decrease in hominoid species, suggest intense competition between monkeys and apes over the last 20 Ma. It may be that larger body masses allow great apes to succeed in contest competitions for highly desired food items, while the ability of monkeys to digest antifeedant-rich unripe fruits allows them to win scramble competitions. Evolutionary trends in morphology and inferred ecology suggest that as monkeys evolved to harvest fruit ever earlier in the fruiting cycle they broadened their niche to encompass first more fibrous, tannin- and toxin-rich unripe fruits and later, for some lineages, mature leaves. Early depletion of unripe fruit in the central core of the tree canopy by monkeys leaves a hollow sphere of ripening fruits, displacing antifeedant-intolerant, later-arriving apes to small-diameter, compliant terminal branches. Hylobatids, orangutans, Pan species, gorillas and the New World atelines may have each evolved suspensory behavior independently in response to local competition from an expanding population of monkeys. Genetic evidence of rapid evolution among chimpanzees suggests that adaptations to suspensory behavior, vertical climbing, knuckle-walking, consumption of terrestrial piths and intercommunity violence had not yet evolved or were still being refined when panins (chimpanzees and bonobos) and hominins diverged.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin D Hunt
- Department of Anthropology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
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25
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Nowak MG, Reichard UH. Locomotion and Posture in Ancestral Hominoids Prior to the Split of Hylobatids. DEVELOPMENTS IN PRIMATOLOGY: PROGRESS AND PROSPECTS 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-5614-2_3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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26
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Ashbury AM, Posa MRC, Dunkel LP, Spillmann B, Atmoko SSU, van Schaik CP, van Noordwijk MA. Why do orangutans leave the trees? Terrestrial behavior among wild Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii) at Tuanan, Central Kalimantan. Am J Primatol 2015; 77:1216-29. [PMID: 26317698 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2015] [Revised: 08/04/2015] [Accepted: 08/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Orangutans (genus Pongo) are the largest arboreal mammals, but Bornean orangutans (P. pygmaeus spp.) also spend time on the ground. Here, we investigate ground use among orangutans using 32,000 hr of direct focal animal observations from a well-habituated wild population of Bornean orangutans (P. p. wurmbii) living in a closed-canopy swamp forest at Tuanan, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Ground use did not change with increasing observation time of well-habituated individuals, suggesting it was not an artifact of observer presence. Flanged males spent the most time on the ground (ca. 5% of active time), weaned immatures the least (around 1%). Females and immatures descended mainly to feed, especially on termites, whereas flanged males traveled more while on the ground. Flanged males may travel more inconspicuously, and perhaps also faster, when moving on the ground. In addition, orangutans engaged in ground-specific behavior, including drinking from and bathing in swamp pools. Supplementary records from 20 ground-level camera traps, totaling 3986 trap days, confirmed the observed age-sex biases in ground use at Tuanan. We conclude that ground use is a natural part of the Bornean orangutan behavioral repertoire, however it remains unclear to what extent food scarcity and canopy structure explain population differences in ground use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison M Ashbury
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Mary Rose C Posa
- Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Lynda P Dunkel
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Brigitte Spillmann
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Carel P van Schaik
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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Chappell J, Phillips AC, van Noordwijk MA, Mitra Setia T, Thorpe SKS. The Ontogeny of Gap Crossing Behaviour in Bornean Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus wurmbii). PLoS One 2015; 10:e0130291. [PMID: 26154061 PMCID: PMC4495978 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0130291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2015] [Accepted: 05/19/2015] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
For orangutans, the largest predominantly arboreal primates, discontinuous canopy presents a particular challenge. The shortest gaps between trees lie between thin peripheral branches, which offer the least stability to large animals. The affordances of the forest canopy experienced by orangutans of different ages however, must vary substantially as adult males are an order of magnitude larger in size than infants during the early stages of locomotor independence. Orangutans have developed a diverse range of locomotor behaviour to cross gaps between trees, which vary in their physical and cognitive demands. The aims of this study were to examine the ontogeny of orangutan gap crossing behaviours and to determine which factors influence the distance orangutans crossed. A non-invasive photographic technique was used to quantify forearm length as a measure of body size. We also recorded locomotor behaviour, support use and the distance crossed between trees. Our results suggest that gap crossing varies with both physical and cognitive development. More complex locomotor behaviours, which utilized compliant trunks and lianas, were used to cross the largest gaps, but these peaked in frequency much earlier than expected, between the ages of 4 and 5 years old, which probably reflects play behaviour to perfect locomotor techniques. Smaller individuals also crossed disproportionately large gaps relative to their size, by using support deformation. Our results suggest that orangutans acquire the full repertoire of gap crossing techniques, including the more cognitively demanding ones, before weaning, but adjust the frequency of the use of these techniques to their increasing body size.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jackie Chappell
- School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
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Lumbar vertebral morphology of flying, gliding, and suspensory mammals: Implications for the locomotor behavior of the subfossil lemurs Palaeopropithecus and Babakotia. J Hum Evol 2014; 75:40-52. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2014.06.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2013] [Revised: 03/23/2014] [Accepted: 06/11/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Morrogh-Bernard HC, Husson SJ, Harsanto FA, Chivers DJ. Fine-Scale Habitat Use by Orang-Utans in a Disturbed Peat Swamp Forest, Central Kalimantan, and Implications for Conservation Management. Folia Primatol (Basel) 2014; 85:135-53. [DOI: 10.1159/000358251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2013] [Accepted: 12/24/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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Sarringhaus L, MacLatchy L, Mitani J. Locomotor and postural development of wild chimpanzees. J Hum Evol 2014; 66:29-38. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2013.09.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2011] [Revised: 09/13/2013] [Accepted: 09/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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31
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Holliday TW, Friedl L. Hominoid humeral morphology: 3D morphometric analysis. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2013; 152:506-15. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.22385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2012] [Revised: 09/10/2013] [Accepted: 09/13/2013] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Lukáš Friedl
- Department of Anthropology; Tulane University; New Orleans LA 70118
- Department of Anthropology; University of West Bohemia; 30614 Plzeň Czech Republic
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Loken B, Spehar S, Rayadin Y. Terrestriality in the bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus morio) and implications for their ecology and conservation. Am J Primatol 2013; 75:1129-38. [DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2013] [Revised: 04/22/2013] [Accepted: 05/25/2013] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Brent Loken
- School of Resource and Environmental Management; Simon Fraser University; Burnaby British Columbia Canada
- Integrated Conservation; Gig Harbor; Washington
| | - Stephanie Spehar
- Integrated Conservation; Gig Harbor; Washington
- Anthropology Program; University of Wisconsin Oshkosh; Oshkosh Wisconsin
| | - Yaya Rayadin
- Forestry Faculty; Mulawarman University; Samarinda East Kalimantan Indonesia
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MANDUELL KIRSTENL, HARRISON MARKE, THORPE SUSANNAHKS. Forest Structure and Support Availability Influence Orangutan Locomotion in Sumatra and Borneo. Am J Primatol 2012; 74:1128-42. [DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2012] [Revised: 07/16/2012] [Accepted: 07/18/2012] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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34
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Levri EP, Dubensky AN, Mears AS, Opiela CA. Interpopulation variation in predator avoidance behavior of a freshwater snail to the same predator. CAN J ZOOL 2012. [DOI: 10.1139/z2012-027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The New Zealand mud snail ( Potamopyrgus antipodarum (J.E. Grey, 1843)) responds to the presence of predatory fish by moving to a safer environment. These experiments attempted to determine if predator detection by the snail results in specific responses to light and (or) gravity by the snail and if snails respond more or less to fish from their native lake compared with fish from a foreign lake. Snails and fish (Gobiomorphus cotidianus McDowall, 1975) were collected from lakes Alexandrina and Peorua from the South Island of New Zealand. Snails were placed in behavioral chambers and tested for their responses to the direction of light, vertical orientation with respect to gravity, and rate of movement in light and dark conditions. Snails from each lake were exposed to one of three treatments: plain water, water from fish from Lake Alexandrina, and water from fish from Lake Peorua. Results showed no effect of direction of light on behavior. Snails from Lake Alexandrina were not found to alter their up or down movements in response to the detection of fish. However, snails from Lake Peorua moved down more in response to fish from their own lake than fish from Lake Alexandrina or no fish. Both snail populations increase their speed in the light more when detecting Alexandrina fish compared with Peorua fish and no fish. Both snail populations show some evidence of enhanced response to local predator populations. Interestingly, different behavioral mechanisms appear to be responsible for the avoidance behaviors in each population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward P. Levri
- Department of Biology, Penn State – Altoona, 3000 Ivyside Park, Altoona, PA 16601, USA
| | - Andrea N. Dubensky
- Department of Biology, Penn State – Altoona, 3000 Ivyside Park, Altoona, PA 16601, USA
| | - Ashley S. Mears
- Department of Biology, Penn State – Altoona, 3000 Ivyside Park, Altoona, PA 16601, USA
| | - Carol A. Opiela
- Department of Biology, Penn State – Altoona, 3000 Ivyside Park, Altoona, PA 16601, USA
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