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Zonato A, Gagliardo A, Bandoli F, Palagi E. Reaching versus catching: flexible hand preference in ring-tailed lemurs. ETHOL ECOL EVOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/03949370.2022.2098382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alberto Zonato
- Unit of Ethology, Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | - Anna Gagliardo
- Unit of Ethology, Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | | | - Elisabetta Palagi
- Unit of Ethology, Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
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Kuběnová B, Lhota S, Tomanová V, Blažek V, Konečná M. Lion-tailed macaques show a stable direction and reinforcement of hand preference in simple reaching tasks over several years. JOURNAL OF VERTEBRATE BIOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.25225/jvb.21076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Barbora Kuběnová
- Department of Ethology and Companion Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences, Praha, Czech Republic; e-mail:
| | - Stanislav Lhota
- Department of Animal Science and Food Processing, Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Praha, Czech Republic; e-mail:
| | - Veronika Tomanová
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, České Budějovice, Czech Republic; e-mail: ,
| | - Vladimír Blažek
- Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Philosophy and Arts, University of West Bohemia, Plzeň, Czech Republic; e-mail:
| | - Martina Konečná
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia, České Budějovice, Czech Republic; e-mail: ,
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Batist CH, Mayhew JA. Lateralization in seven lemur species when presented with a novel cognitive task. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2020; 172:270-279. [PMID: 32129499 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2019] [Revised: 01/21/2020] [Accepted: 02/19/2020] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Asymmetrical behavior patterns are observed in many animal species, but the potential adaptive significance of lateralization and the evolutionary forces driving it remain unclear. Most laterality studies have focused on a single species, which makes interspecies comparisons difficult. The aim of this study was to examine differences in the strength and direction of lateralization in multiple lemur species when engaged in a standardized, novel cognitive task. MATERIALS AND METHODS We assessed laterality in seven lemur species at the Duke Lemur Center when using a novel puzzle-box. We recorded which hand opened the apparatus door and which hand picked up the food reward. We also recorded whether the mouth was used for either action instead of the hands. We then calculated handedness indices (HI), z-scores, and mouth-use rates. RESULTS Overall, 62% of individuals were more lateralized than chance. However, within-genera, there were relatively equal numbers of individuals with a left- or right-hand bias, which resulted in ambipreference at the genus level. The hand a lemur used on its first success in the task predicted its overall HI value, and the strength of lateralization increased as the number of successes increased. Varecia had significantly higher mouth-use rates than all other genera. DISCUSSION We found evidence of an individual learning trajectory in which the hand used on a lemur's first success was canalized as the preferred (and lateralized) hand, in support of the "cognitive simplicity" hypothesis. Individual variability in hand preference was high, which is consistent with previous research. Between-genera differences in mouth use appear to reflect species-specific feeding postures and differences in manual dexterity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carly H Batist
- Primate Behavior and Ecology Program, Central Washington University, Ellensburg, Washington, USA
| | - Jessica A Mayhew
- Primate Behavior and Ecology Program, Central Washington University, Ellensburg, Washington, USA.,Department of Anthropology and Museum Studies, Central Washington University, Ellensburg, Washington, USA
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Spiezio C, Regaiolli B, Vallortigara G. Motor and postural asymmetries in marsupials: Forelimb preferences in the red-necked wallaby (Macropus rufogriseus). Behav Processes 2016; 128:119-25. [DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2016.04.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2016] [Accepted: 04/29/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Mangalam M, Desai N, Singh M. Division of labor in hand usage is associated with higher hand performance in free-ranging bonnet macaques, Macaca radiate [corrected]. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0119337. [PMID: 25806511 PMCID: PMC4373831 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0119337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2014] [Accepted: 01/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
A practical approach to understanding lateral asymmetries in body, brain, and cognition would be to examine the performance advantages/disadvantages associated with the corresponding functions and behavior. In the present study, we examined whether the division of labor in hand usage, marked by the preferential usage of the two hands across manual operations requiring maneuvering in three-dimensional space (e.g., reaching for food, grooming, and hitting an opponent) and those requiring physical strength (e.g., climbing), is associated with higher hand performance in free-ranging bonnet macaques, Macaca radiate [corrected]. We determined the extent to which the macaques exhibit laterality in hand usage in an experimental unimanual and a bimanual food-reaching task, and the extent to which manual laterality is associated with hand performance in an experimental hand-performance-differentiation task. We observed negative relationships between (a) the latency in food extraction by the preferred hand in the hand-performance-differentiation task (wherein, lower latency implies higher performance), the preferred hand determined using the bimanual food-reaching task, and the normalized difference between the performance of the two hands, and (b) the normalized difference between the performance of the two hands and the absolute difference between the laterality in hand usage in the unimanual and the bimanual food-reaching tasks (wherein, lesser difference implies higher manual specialization). Collectively, these observations demonstrate that the division of labor between the two hands is associated with higher hand performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madhur Mangalam
- Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Nisarg Desai
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune, Pune, India
| | - Mewa Singh
- Biopsychology Laboratory, and Institute of Excellence, University of Mysore, Mysore, India
- Evolutionary & Organismal Biology Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore, India
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Sfar N, Mangalam M, Kaumanns W, Singh M. A comparative assessment of hand preference in captive red howler monkeys, Alouatta seniculus and yellow-breasted capuchin monkeys, Sapajus xanthosternos. PLoS One 2014; 9:e107838. [PMID: 25271639 PMCID: PMC4182683 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0107838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2014] [Accepted: 08/22/2014] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
There are two major theories that attempt to explain hand preference in non-human primates-the 'task complexity' theory and the 'postural origins' theory. In the present study, we proposed a third hypothesis to explain the evolutionary origin of hand preference in non-human primates, stating that it could have evolved owing to structural and functional adaptations to feeding, which we refer to as the 'niche structure' hypothesis. We attempted to explore this hypothesis by comparing hand preference across species that differ in the feeding ecology and niche structure: red howler monkeys, Alouatta seniculus and yellow-breasted capuchin monkeys, Sapajus xanthosternos. The red howler monkeys used the mouth to obtain food more frequently than the yellow-breasted capuchin monkeys. The red howler monkeys almost never reached for food presented on the opposite side of a wire mesh or inside a portable container, whereas the yellow-breasted capuchin monkeys reached for food presented in all four spatial arrangements (scattered, on the opposite side of a wire mesh, inside a suspended container, and inside a portable container). In contrast to the red howler monkeys that almost never acquired bipedal and clinging posture, the yellow-breasted capuchin monkeys acquired all five body postures (sitting, bipedal, tripedal, clinging, and hanging). Although there was no difference between the proportion of the red howler monkeys and the yellow-breasted capuchin monkeys that preferentially used one hand, the yellow-breasted capuchin monkeys exhibited an overall weaker hand preference than the red howler monkeys. Differences in hand preference diminished with the increasing complexity of the reaching-for-food tasks, i.e., the relatively more complex tasks were perceived as equally complex by both the red howler monkeys and the yellow-breasted capuchin monkeys. These findings suggest that species-specific differences in feeding ecology and niche structure can influence the perception of the complexity of the task and, consequently, hand preference.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nasibah Sfar
- Department of Biology, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Madhur Mangalam
- Biopsychology Laboratory and Institution of Excellence, University of Mysore, Mysore, India
| | | | - Mewa Singh
- Biopsychology Laboratory and Institution of Excellence, University of Mysore, Mysore, India
- Evolutionary & Organismal Biology Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore, India
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Mangalam M, Desai N, Singh M. Division of labor in hand usage in free-ranging bonnet macaques,Macaca radiata. Am J Primatol 2013; 76:576-85. [PMID: 24375912 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2013] [Revised: 11/01/2013] [Accepted: 11/19/2013] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Madhur Mangalam
- Biopsychology Laboratory; University of Mysore; Mysore India
| | - Nisarg Desai
- Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune; Pune India
| | - Mewa Singh
- Biopsychology Laboratory; University of Mysore; Mysore India
- Evolutionary & Organismal Biology Unit; Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research; Bangalore India
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Schnoell AV, Huebner F, Kappeler PM, Fichtel C. Manual lateralization in wild redfronted lemurs (Eulemur rufifrons) during spontaneous actions and in an experimental task. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2013; 153:61-7. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.22403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2013] [Revised: 09/09/2013] [Accepted: 10/02/2013] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anna V. Schnoell
- Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Unit,German Primate Center; Kellnerweg 4 37077 Göttingen Germany
- Courant Research Center “Evolution of Social Behavior”; University of Göttingen; Germany
| | - Franziska Huebner
- Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Unit,German Primate Center; Kellnerweg 4 37077 Göttingen Germany
| | - Peter M. Kappeler
- Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Unit,German Primate Center; Kellnerweg 4 37077 Göttingen Germany
- Courant Research Center “Evolution of Social Behavior”; University of Göttingen; Germany
| | - Claudia Fichtel
- Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Unit,German Primate Center; Kellnerweg 4 37077 Göttingen Germany
- Courant Research Center “Evolution of Social Behavior”; University of Göttingen; Germany
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Meguerditchian A, Vauclair J, Hopkins WD. On the origins of human handedness and language: A comparative review of hand preferences for bimanual coordinated actions and gestural communication in nonhuman primates. Dev Psychobiol 2013; 55:637-50. [DOI: 10.1002/dev.21150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2013] [Accepted: 06/14/2013] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Jacques Vauclair
- Research Center in Psychology of Cognition, Language & Emotion; Aix-Marseille University; 13621; Aix-en-Provence; France
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Hashimoto T, Yamazaki Y, Iriki A. Hand preference depends on posture in common marmosets. Behav Brain Res 2013; 248:144-50. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2013.04.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2013] [Revised: 03/28/2013] [Accepted: 04/02/2013] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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Giljov A, Karenina K, Malashichev Y. Forelimb preferences in quadrupedal marsupials and their implications for laterality evolution in mammals. BMC Evol Biol 2013; 13:61. [PMID: 23497116 PMCID: PMC3599622 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2148-13-61] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2012] [Accepted: 01/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Acquisition of upright posture in evolution has been argued to facilitate manual laterality in primates. Owing to the high variety of postural habits marsupials can serve as a suitable model to test whether the species-typical body posture shapes forelimb preferences in non-primates or this phenomenon emerged only in the course of primate evolution. In the present study we aimed to explore manual laterality in marsupial quadrupeds and compare them with the results in the previously studied bipedal species. Forelimb preferences were assessed in captive grey short-tailed opossum (Monodelphis domestica) and sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) in four different types of unimanual behaviour per species, which was not artificially evoked. We examined the possible effects of sex, age and task, because these factors have been reported to affect motor laterality in placental mammals. RESULTS In both species the direction of forelimb preferences was strongly sex-related. Male grey short-tailed opossums showed right-forelimb preference in most of the observed unimanual behaviours, while male sugar gliders displayed only a slight, not significant rightward tendency. In contrast, females in both species exhibited consistent group-level preference of the left forelimb. We failed to reveal significant differences in manual preferences between tasks of potentially differing complexity: reaching a stable food item and catching live insects, as well as between the body support and food manipulation. No influence of subjects' age on limb preferences was found. CONCLUSIONS The direction of sex-related differences in the manual preferences found in quadrupedal marsupials seems to be not typical for placental mammals. We suggest that the alternative way of interhemispheric connection in absence of corpus callosum may result in a fundamentally distinct mechanism of sex effect on limb preferences in marsupials compared to placentals. Our data confirm the idea that non-primate mammals differ from primates in sensitivity to task complexity. Comparison of marsupial species studied to date indicate that the vertical body orientation and the bipedalism favor the expression of individual- and population-level forelimb preferences in marsupials much like it does in primates. Our findings give the first evidence for the effect of species-typical posture on the manual laterality in non-primate mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrey Giljov
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Saint Petersburg State University, Saint Petersburg, Russia
| | - Karina Karenina
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Saint Petersburg State University, Saint Petersburg, Russia
| | - Yegor Malashichev
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Saint Petersburg State University, Saint Petersburg, Russia
- Department of Embryology, Saint Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
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Giljov A, Karenina K, Malashichev Y. Does bipedality predict the group-level manual laterality in mammals? PLoS One 2012; 7:e51583. [PMID: 23251583 PMCID: PMC3520930 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0051583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2012] [Accepted: 11/05/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Factors determining patterns of laterality manifestation in mammals remain unclear. In primates, the upright posture favours the expression of manual laterality across species, but may have little influence within a species. Whether the bipedalism acts the same in non-primate mammals is unknown. Our recent findings in bipedal and quadrupedal marsupials suggested that differences in laterality pattern, as well as emergence of manual specialization in evolution might depend on species-specific body posture. Here, we evaluated the hypothesis that the postural characteristics are the key variable shaping the manual laterality expression across mammalian species. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We studied forelimb preferences in a most bipedal marsupial, brush-tailed bettong, Bettongia penicillata in four different types of unimanual behavior. The significant left-forelimb preference at the group level was found in all behaviours studied. In unimanual feeding on non-living food, catching live prey and nest-material collecting, all or most subjects were lateralized, and among lateralized bettongs a significant majority displayed left-forelimb bias. Only in unimanual supporting of the body in the tripedal stance the distribution of lateralized and non-lateralized individuals did not differ from chance. Individual preferences were consistent across all types of behaviour. The direction or the strength of forelimb preferences were not affected by the animals' sex. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE Our findings support the hypothesis that the expression of manual laterality depends on the species-typical postural habit. The interspecies comparison illustrates that in marsupials the increase of bipedality corresponds with the increase of the degree of group-level forelimb preference in a species. Thus, bipedalism can predict pronounced manual laterality at both intra- and interspecific levels in mammals. We also conclude that quadrupedal position in biped species can slightly hinder the expression of manual laterality, but the evoked biped position in quadrupedal species does not necessarily lead to the enhanced manifestation of manual laterality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrey Giljov
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Saint-Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Karina Karenina
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Saint-Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Yegor Malashichev
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Saint-Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
- Department of Embryology, Saint-Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia
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Joly M, Scheumann M, Zimmermann E. Posture does not matter! Paw usage and grasping paw preference in a small-bodied rooting quadrupedal mammal. PLoS One 2012; 7:e38228. [PMID: 22666494 PMCID: PMC3364208 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0038228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2012] [Accepted: 05/05/2012] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recent results in birds, marsupials, rodents and nonhuman primates suggest that phylogeny and ecological factors such as body size, diet and postural habit of a species influence limb usage and the direction and strength of limb laterality. To examine to which extent these findings can be generalised to small-bodied rooting quadrupedal mammals, we studied trees shrews (Tupaia belangeri). METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We established a behavioural test battery for examining paw usage comparable to small-bodied primates and tested 36 Tupaia belangeri. We studied paw usage in a natural foraging situation (simple food grasping task) and measured the influence of varying postural demands (triped, biped, cling, sit) on paw preferences by applying a forced-food grasping task similar to other small-bodied primates. Our findings suggest that rooting tree shrews prefer mouth over paw usage to catch food in a natural foraging situation. Moreover, we demonstrated that despite differences in postural demand, tree shrews show a strong and consistent individual paw preference for grasping across different tasks, but no paw preference at a population level. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE Tree shrews showed less paw usage than small-bodied quadrupedal and arboreal primates, but the same paw preference. Our results confirm that individual paw preferences remain constant irrespective of postural demand in some small-bodied quadrupedal non primate and primate mammals which do not require fine motoric control for manipulating food items. Our findings suggest that the lack of paw/hand preference for grasping food at a population level is a universal pattern among those species and that the influence of postural demand on manual lateralisation in quadrupeds may have evolved in large-bodied species specialised in fine manipulations of food items.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marine Joly
- Institute of Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Hannover, Germany.
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Giljov A, Karenina K, Malashichev Y. Limb preferences in a marsupial, Macropus rufogriseus: evidence for postural effect. Anim Behav 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.11.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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Scheumann M, Joly-Radko M, Leliveld L, Zimmermann E. Does body posture influence hand preference in an ancestral primate model? BMC Evol Biol 2011; 11:52. [PMID: 21356048 PMCID: PMC3056780 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2148-11-52] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2010] [Accepted: 02/28/2011] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The origin of human handedness and its evolution in primates is presently under debate. Current hypotheses suggest that body posture (postural origin hypothesis and bipedalism hypothesis) have an important impact on the evolution of handedness in primates. To gain insight into the origin of manual lateralization in primates, we studied gray mouse lemurs, suggested to represent the most ancestral primate condition. First, we investigated hand preference in a simple food grasping task to explore the importance of hand usage in a natural foraging situation. Second, we explored the influence of body posture by applying a forced food grasping task with varying postural demands (sit, biped, cling, triped). RESULTS The tested mouse lemur population did not prefer to use their hands alone to grasp for food items. Instead, they preferred to pick them up using a mouth-hand combination or the mouth alone. If mouth usage was inhibited, they showed an individual but no population level handedness for all four postural forced food grasping tasks. Additionally, we found no influence of body posture on hand preference in gray mouse lemurs. CONCLUSION Our results do not support the current theories of primate handedness. Rather, they propose that ecological adaptation indicated by postural habit and body size of a given species has an important impact on hand preference in primates. Our findings suggest that small-bodied, quadrupedal primates, adapted to the fine branch niche of dense forests, prefer mouth retrieval of food and are less manually lateralized than large-bodied species which consume food in a more upright, and less stable body posture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Scheumann
- Institute of Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Bünteweg 17, D-30559 Hannover, Germany.
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Hanbury DB, Edens KD, Bunch DA, Legg CE, Watson SL. Multiple measures of laterality in Garnett's bushbaby (Otolemur garnettii). Am J Primatol 2010; 72:206-16. [PMID: 19960526 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.20769] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Behavioral laterality, a common measure of hemispheric specialization of the brain, has been examined in multiple tasks across several species of prosimian primates; however, there is inconsistency among findings between and within species that leaves many questions about laterality unanswered. Most studies have employed few measures of laterality, most commonly handedness. This study examined multiple measures of laterality within subjects in 17 captive-born Garnett's bushbabies (Otolemur garnettii) to assess the consistency of lateralized behaviors and to examine possible influences such as age, posture, novelty, and arousal to elucidate the relations between direction and strength of laterality. We measured reaching, turning bias, scent marking, tail wrapping, leading foot, side-of-mouth preference, and hand use in prey capture. Because autonomic arousal has been invoked as a determinant of strength of lateralization, we included multiple tasks that would allow us to test this hypothesis. All subjects were significantly lateralized on simple reaching tasks (P<0.01) and tail wrapping (P<0.01). Moreover, the number of animals lateralized on turning (P<0.01), leading limb (P<0.05), mouth use (P<0.01), and prey capture (P<0.01) was greater than would be expected by chance alone. There was consistency in the strength and direction of hand biases across different postures. Tasks requiring hand use were more strongly lateralized than tasks not involving hand use (P<0.001). The data do not support the assumption that arousal (as subjectively categorized) or novelty strengthens lateralized responding. The results of this study are discussed in terms of the effects of arousal, posture, and age on lateralized behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- David B Hanbury
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, 39406, USA
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Lhota S, Jůnek T, Bartoš L. Patterns and laterality of hand use in free-ranging aye-ayes (Daubentonia madagascariensis) and a comparison with captive studies. J ETHOL 2008. [DOI: 10.1007/s10164-008-0136-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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