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Sabbi KH, Kurilla SE, Monroe IG, Zhang Y, Menante A, Cole MF, Otali E, Kobusingye M, Emery Thompson M, Muller MN, Wrangham RW, Machanda ZP. Ecological variation in adult social play reveals a hidden cost of motherhood for wild chimpanzees. Curr Biol 2024; 34:1364-1369.e2. [PMID: 38490201 PMCID: PMC11002997 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.025] [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: 01/10/2024] [Revised: 02/06/2024] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024]
Abstract
Though common among humans, social play by adults is an uncommon occurrence in most animals, even between parents and offspring.1,2,3 The most common explanation for why adult play is so rare is that its function and benefits are largely limited to development, so that social play has little value later in life.3,4,5,6 Here, we draw from 10 years of behavioral data collected by the Kibale Chimpanzee Project to consider an alternative hypothesis: that despite its benefits, adult play in non-humans is ecologically constrained by energy shortage or time limitations. We further hypothesized that, since they may be the only available partners for their young offspring, mother chimpanzees pay greater costs of play than other adults. Our analysis of nearly 4,000 adult play bouts revealed that adult chimpanzees played both among themselves and with immature partners. Social play was infrequent when diet quality was low but increased with the proportion of high-quality fruits in the diet. This suggests that adults engage in play facultatively when they have more energy and/or time to do so. However, when diet quality was low and most adult play fell to near zero, play persisted between mothers and offspring. Increased use of play by adult chimpanzees during periods of resource abundance suggests that play retains value as a social currency beyond development but that its costs constrain its use. At the same time, when ecological conditions constrain opportunities for young to play, play by mothers fills a critical role to promote healthy offspring development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kris H Sabbi
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, 11 Divinity Ave, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Department of Anthropology, Tufts University, 110 Braker Hall, 8 Upper Campus Rd, Medford, MA 02155, USA.
| | - Sophia E Kurilla
- Department of Anthropology, Tufts University, 110 Braker Hall, 8 Upper Campus Rd, Medford, MA 02155, USA
| | - Isabelle G Monroe
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Eat Hall 1004, 530 Church St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Yukun Zhang
- Department of Biology, Boston University, 5 Cummington Mall, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Ashley Menante
- Department of Anthropology, Tufts University, 110 Braker Hall, 8 Upper Campus Rd, Medford, MA 02155, USA
| | - Megan F Cole
- Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, MSC01-1040, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Emily Otali
- Kibale Chimpanzee Project, PO Box 409, Fort Portal, Uganda
| | | | - Melissa Emery Thompson
- Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, MSC01-1040, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; Kibale Chimpanzee Project, PO Box 409, Fort Portal, Uganda
| | - Martin N Muller
- Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, MSC01-1040, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; Kibale Chimpanzee Project, PO Box 409, Fort Portal, Uganda
| | - Richard W Wrangham
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, 11 Divinity Ave, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Kibale Chimpanzee Project, PO Box 409, Fort Portal, Uganda
| | - Zarin P Machanda
- Department of Anthropology, Tufts University, 110 Braker Hall, 8 Upper Campus Rd, Medford, MA 02155, USA; Kibale Chimpanzee Project, PO Box 409, Fort Portal, Uganda
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2
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Albrecht A, Behringer V, Zierau O, Hannig C. Dental findings in wild great apes from macerated skull analysis. Am J Primatol 2024; 86:e23581. [PMID: 38041590 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2023] [Revised: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 12/03/2023]
Abstract
Oral health is a crucial aspect of overall well-being in both humans and nonhuman primates. Understanding the oral pathologies and dental conditions in apes can provide valuable insights into their evolutionary history, dietary habits, and overall health. The present study evaluates dental findings in wild great apes from museum specimens to gain insights into the influence of natural nutrition on dental health. Complete macerated skulls of wild, adult great apes from the collection of the Museum of Natural History, Berlin, Germany, were examined. We analyzed skulls of 53 gorillas (Gorilla gorilla), 63 chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), and 41 orangutans (Pongo spp.). For each skull, we recorded wear of dental hard tissues (Lussi and Ganss index), carious lesions, and periodontal bone loss. Incisal and occlusal dental hard tissue defects were found in all skulls, as well as considerable external staining. In all species, incisors and canines showed the greatest loss of tissue, followed by molars. The wear of molars decreased from the first to the third molars, premolars showed the least pronounced defects. Some individuals had apical osteolytic defects along with severe dental hard tissue loss with pulp involvement or after dental trauma, respectively (n = 5). Our study did not observe any carious lesions among the examined great ape skulls. However, we did find evidence for localized or generalized periodontal bone loss in a subset of the specimens (n = 3 chimpanzees, n = 7 orangutans). The natural diet and foraging behavior of great apes induces abrasion and attrition of dental hard tissue but does not yield carious lesions. The occurrence of periodontitis in individual apes indicates that the natural circumstances can induce periodontal bone loss even in the wild, despite physiological nutrition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anja Albrecht
- Policlinic of Operative Dentistry, Periodontology, and Pediatric Dentistry Dresden, Faculty of Medicine 'Carl Gustav Carus', Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Verena Behringer
- Endocrinology Laboratory, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Oliver Zierau
- Environmental Monitoring & Endocrinology, Faculty of Biology, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Christian Hannig
- Policlinic of Operative Dentistry, Periodontology, and Pediatric Dentistry Dresden, Faculty of Medicine 'Carl Gustav Carus', Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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3
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Kraft TS, Venkataraman VV, Wallace IJ, Crittenden AN, Holowka NB, Stieglitz J, Harris J, Raichlen DA, Wood B, Gurven M, Pontzer H. The energetics of uniquely human subsistence strategies. Science 2021; 374:eabf0130. [PMID: 34941390 DOI: 10.1126/science.abf0130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
[Figure: see text].
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas S Kraft
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.,Department of Human Behavior, Ecology, and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Anthropology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Vivek V Venkataraman
- Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, Toulouse, France.,Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Ian J Wallace
- Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | | | | | | | - Jacob Harris
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.,Institute of Human Origins, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - David A Raichlen
- Human and Evolutionary Biology Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Brian Wood
- Department of Human Behavior, Ecology, and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Michael Gurven
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Herman Pontzer
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.,Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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4
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Uwimbabazi M, Raubenheimer D, Tweheyo M, Basuta GI, Conklin-Brittain NL, Wrangham RW, Rothman JM. Nutritional geometry of female chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Am J Primatol 2021; 83:e23269. [PMID: 34002861 PMCID: PMC8225573 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2020] [Revised: 04/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Primate foraging is influenced by the spatial and temporal distribution of foods, which may facilitate or constrain optimal nutrient intakes. Chimpanzees are frugivorous primates that mainly subsist on ripe fruit that is typically low in available protein (AP) and high in easily digestible carbohydrates. Because chimpanzees prefer ripe fruit and often eat it in large quantities compared with other foods, we hypothesized that protein intake would be tightly regulated while non-protein energy (NPE) would vary with fruit intake. To test this hypothesis, we conducted all-day follows on female chimpanzees, recorded all types of food consumed (i.e., drupes, figs, and non-fruit foods), estimated the nutritional contributions of these foods to daily NPE and AP intake and investigated how the ratio of NPE to AP varied due to changes in the types of foods consumed. Although the proportions of drupes, figs, and non-fruit foods varied in their diets, female chimpanzees maintained a relatively stable intake of AP while intake of NPE varied depending on the daily diet, demonstrating that like other frugivorous primates studied to date, chimpanzees prioritize protein. The mean daily ratio of NPE to AP was 7:1, which is similar to that of other frugivorous primates studied. Our results support the hypothesis that frugivorous animals may generally prioritize AP, while maximizing NPE intake within that constraint, and could shed light on aspects of human dietary evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moreen Uwimbabazi
- Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Makerere University
- National Forestry Resources Research Institute, Mukono, Uganda
| | - David Raubenheimer
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Mnason Tweheyo
- Department of Forestry, Biodiversity and Tourism, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Makerere University
| | - Gilbert I. Basuta
- Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Makerere University
| | | | | | - Jessica M. Rothman
- Department of Anthropology, Hunter College of the City University of New York
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5
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Factors Influencing Density and Distribution of Great Ape Nests in the Absence of Human Activities. INT J PRIMATOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10764-021-00229-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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6
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Houle A, Wrangham RW. Contest competition for fruit and space among wild chimpanzees in relation to the vertical stratification of metabolizable energy. Anim Behav 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2021.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
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7
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Thompson ME, Muller MN, Machanda ZP, Otali E, Wrangham RW. The Kibale Chimpanzee Project: Over thirty years of research, conservation, and change. BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION 2020; 252:108857. [PMID: 33281197 PMCID: PMC7709955 DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108857] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Long-term primate field research programs contribute to the protection of endangered primate species and their vanishing habitats by informing and fostering local and international conservation programs. The Kibale Chimpanzee Project (KCP) has studied the Kanyawara community of wild chimpanzees continuously since 1987, investigating a wide range of behavioral, ecological, and physiological questions. The study area includes the northwest boundary of Kibale National Park, Uganda, and has experienced habitat change driven by multiple causes, including forest regeneration, an increasingly warmer and wetter climate, and impacts from the neighboring human population. Here, we review the history of research on Kanyawara chimpanzees and examine how their demography, diet, and social behavior have changed over the last 30+ years. While Kanyawara chimpanzees were protected from the major threats of poaching and habitat loss, respiratory diseases of human origin were a major source of mortality. Many individuals were also injured by wire hunting snares. Nevertheless, the study community has grown modestly in size, individuals have become increasingly gregarious, and birth rates have increased. These results are likely attributable to improved habitat productivity that can be traced to decades-long efforts by wildlife authorities and the associated research and conservation programs in Kibale. Overall, research has contributed both to understanding interactions among nutritional ecology, social behavior, physiology, and health of an endangered species, and also to conservation activities in the Kibale community through direct interventions, positive economic impacts, and conservation education programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa Emery Thompson
- Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM USA
- Kibale Chimpanzee Project, Makerere University Biological Field Station, Fort Portal, Uganda
| | - Martin N. Muller
- Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM USA
- Kibale Chimpanzee Project, Makerere University Biological Field Station, Fort Portal, Uganda
| | - Zarin P. Machanda
- Kibale Chimpanzee Project, Makerere University Biological Field Station, Fort Portal, Uganda
- Department of Anthropology, Tufts University, Boston, MA USA
| | - Emily Otali
- Kibale Chimpanzee Project, Makerere University Biological Field Station, Fort Portal, Uganda
| | - Richard W. Wrangham
- Kibale Chimpanzee Project, Makerere University Biological Field Station, Fort Portal, Uganda
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Boston NM USA
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8
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O'Bryan LR, Lambeth SP, Schapiro SJ, Wilson ML. Unpacking chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) patch use: Do individuals respond to food patches as predicted by the marginal value theorem? Am J Primatol 2020; 82:e23208. [PMID: 33118192 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2020] [Revised: 09/30/2020] [Accepted: 10/03/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
The marginal value theorem is an optimal foraging model that predicts how efficient foragers should respond to both their ecological and social environments when foraging in food patches, and it has strongly influenced hypotheses for primate behavior. Nevertheless, experimental tests of the marginal value theorem have been rare in primates and observational studies have provided conflicting support. As a step towards filling this gap, we test whether the foraging decisions of captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) adhere to the assumptions and qualitative predictions of the marginal value theorem. We presented 12 adult chimpanzees with a two-patch foraging environment consisting of both low-quality (i.e., low-food density) and high-quality (i.e., high-food density) patches and examined the effect of patch quality on their search behavior, foraging duration, marginal capture rate, and its proxy measures: giving-up density and giving-up time. Chimpanzees foraged longer in high-quality patches, as predicted. In contrast to predictions, they did not depress high-quality patches as thoroughly as low-quality patches. Furthermore, since chimpanzees searched in a manner that fell between systematic and random, their intake rates did not decline at a steady rate over time, especially in high-quality patches, violating an assumption of the marginal value theorem. Our study provides evidence that chimpanzees are sensitive to their rate of energy intake and that their foraging durations correlate with patch quality, supporting many assumptions underlying primate foraging and social behavior. However, our results question whether the marginal value theorem is a constructive model of chimpanzee foraging behavior, and we suggest a Bayesian foraging framework (i.e., combining past foraging experiences with current patch sampling information) as a potential alternative. More work is needed to build an understanding of the proximate mechanisms underlying primate foraging decisions, especially in more complex socioecological environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa R O'Bryan
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA.,Department of Psychological Sciences, Rice University, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Susan P Lambeth
- Department of Comparative Medicine, Michale E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, Texas, USA
| | - Steven J Schapiro
- Department of Comparative Medicine, Michale E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, Texas, USA
| | - Michael L Wilson
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA.,Department of Anthropology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
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Meat eating by nonhuman primates: A review and synthesis. J Hum Evol 2020; 149:102882. [PMID: 33137551 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2020.102882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2020] [Revised: 08/20/2020] [Accepted: 08/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Most nonhuman primates prey on vertebrates. Meat-eating, defined as ingestion of vertebrate tissue, occurs in 12 families, ≥39 genera, and ≥89 species. It is most common in capuchins (Cebus and Sapajus spp.), baboons (Papio spp.), bonobos (Pan paniscus), and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and modestly common in blue monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis), callitrichids (Callithrix spp. and Saguinus spp.), and squirrel monkeys (Saimiri spp.). It is uncommon in other cercopithecines, rare in other haplorhines and in lemurs, and virtually absent in colobines. Birds are the prey class eaten by the most species (≥53), followed by reptiles (≥48), amphibians (≥38), mammals (≥35), and fish (≥7). Major hypotheses for the importance of meat eating are that it is (1) mainly an energy source, especially (1a) when plant-source foods (PSFs) with high energy return rates are scarce (energy shortfall hypothesis); (2) mainly a protein source; and (3) mainly a source of micronutrients scarce in PSFs. Meat eating bouts sometimes provide substantial energy and protein, and some chimpanzees gain substantial protein from meat monthly or annually. However, meat typically accounts for only small proportions of feeding time and of total energy and protein intake, and quantitative data are inconsistent with the energy shortfall hypothesis. PSFs and/or invertebrates are presumably the main protein sources, even for chimpanzees. Support is strongest for the micronutrient hypothesis. Most chimpanzees eat far less meat than recorded for hunter-gatherers, but the highest chimpanzee estimates approach the lowest for African hunter-gatherers. In fundamental contrast to the human predatory pattern, other primates only eat vertebrates much smaller than they are, tool-assisted predation is rare except in some capuchins and chimpanzees, and tool use in carcass processing is virtually absent. However, harvesting of small prey deserves more attention with reference to the archaeological and ethnographic record.
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10
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Food preference and nutrient composition in captive bonobos (Pan paniscus). Primates 2020; 61:661-671. [PMID: 32246408 DOI: 10.1007/s10329-020-00813-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2020] [Accepted: 03/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Food preference has been studied in a range of Hominoidea in the wild and in captivity, allowing for interspecific comparisons. Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) prefer low-fibre, high-sugar foods, suggesting that frugivory and their dietary overlap are a result of their shared preference for the same nutrients. Comparable tests of the nutritional preference of bonobos do not exist. In this study we examined food preferences of five captive bonobos for 23 familiar and ten novel food items. We performed paired-choice food tests, resulting in a clear rank order in food preference, with minor individual differences. Fruits were more preferred than vegetables. We correlated nutritional composition of the food items with the bonobos' preference. We found that preferences for familiar food items were positively correlated with total energy and carbohydrate content and negatively correlated with water and micronutrient (sodium, calcium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, manganese, selenium) content. Food preference for the novel food items also showed a significant positive correlation with total energy and carbohydrate content. Our study supports the idea that food preference among bonobos follows the pattern of the other great apes and that the shared frugivorous diets may be the result of a common preference for the same nutrients. In the wild, these preferences may be less clear due to the interference of preferred nutrients with secondary compounds. Combining food preference data and nutritional information can help in providing a healthy diet with a balanced nutrient composition in captivity. Individual food preferences can help in optimizing food choice for positive reinforcement training and food-related tasks in future research.
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