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Bhattacharjee D, Guðjónsdóttir AR, Chova PE, Middelburg E, Jäckels J, de Groot NG, Wallner B, Massen JJ, Pflüger LS. Behavioral, physiological, and genetic drivers of coping in a non-human primate. iScience 2024; 27:108890. [PMID: 38318385 PMCID: PMC10838955 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.108890] [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: 09/19/2023] [Revised: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Animals experience stressful situations, from predation to social conflicts, but mostly deal with them successfully. This adaptive mechanism, coping, reduces the adverse effects of stressors, and its failure may result in reduced fitness. Substantial inter-individual variation in coping is observed, yet little is known about how behavioral, physiological and genetic drivers regulate coping holistically and contribute to such variations. We assessed behavioral coping styles (n=30), emotional arousal (n=12), and personalities (n=32) of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) and also investigated the association of coping with a valine/methionine polymorphism encoded by a critical human stress regulatory gene, catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) (n=26). Personality and the human equivalent COMT Val/Met polymorphism were associated with "nonaggression-based" and "aggression-based" coping styles. Compared to nonaggression-based, aggression-based copers maintained higher average facial temperatures, indicating potentially lower emotional arousal, as measured using infrared thermography. These findings demonstrate a complex interplay of various proximate mechanisms governing coping in a non-human primate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debottam Bhattacharjee
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Public Health, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, 31 To Yuen Street, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Centre for Animal Health and Welfare, Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, 31 To Yuen Street, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Aníta Rut Guðjónsdóttir
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Paula Escriche Chova
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Esmee Middelburg
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Jana Jäckels
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Natasja G. de Groot
- Department of Comparative Genetics & Refinement, Biomedical Primate Research Centre, 2288 GJ Rijswijk, the Netherlands
| | - Bernard Wallner
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
- Austrian Research Center for Primatology, Ossiach 16, 9570 Ossiach, Austria
| | - Jorg J.M. Massen
- Animal Behaviour and Cognition, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
- Austrian Research Center for Primatology, Ossiach 16, 9570 Ossiach, Austria
| | - Lena S. Pflüger
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
- Austrian Research Center for Primatology, Ossiach 16, 9570 Ossiach, Austria
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Rahalinarivo V, Rakotomanana HF, Randrianasy J, Ranaivoarisoa JF, Ramorasata B, Raharison JLF, Irwin M. Activity budget and seasonal activity shifts in sympatric lemurs: Increased lean season effort in a cathemeral frugivore contrasts with energy conservation in a diurnal folivore. Am J Primatol 2023; 85:e23556. [PMID: 37779335 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23556] [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: 04/13/2023] [Revised: 08/22/2023] [Accepted: 09/16/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023]
Abstract
One of the most fundamental aspects of a species' behavioral strategy is its activity budget; for primates this generally involves the allocation of available time among resting, feeding, traveling, and social behavior. Comparisons between species, populations, or individuals can reveal divergences in adaptive strategies and current stressors, and reflect responses to such diverse pressures as predation, thermoregulation, nutrition, and social needs. Further, variation across seasons is an important part of behavioral strategies to survive food scarcity; this can involve increasing or decreasing effort. We documented activity over the 24-h cycle for the cathemeral, frugivorous Eulemur fulvus and the diurnal, folivorous Propithecus diadema across 13-18 months at Tsinjoarivo, Madagascar. Their activity budgets were dominated by resting (E. fulvus: 74.1%; P. diadema: 85.2%), followed by feeding (15.8%, 12.4%), traveling (9.31%, 1.74%) and social activities (0.76%, 0.70%), respectively. The lower feeding and higher resting in P. diadema likely reflect slower gastrointestinal transit and higher reliance on microbial fermentation to extract energy from fibrous food. The two species showed opposite lean season strategies. E. fulvus increased activity, with more feeding but less travel time, consistent with a shift to less-profitable fruits, and some leaves and flowers, while increasing feeding effort to compensate ("energy maximizing"). P. diadema showed less variation across months, but the lean season still evoked reduced effort across the board (feeding, travel, and social behavior), consistent with a "time minimizing" strategy prioritizing energy conservation and microbe-assisted digestion. Understanding these divergent shifts is key to understanding natural behavior and the extent of behavioral flexibility under stressful conditions. Finally, the complex patterns of fruit availability (intra- and interannually) and the species' behavioral responses across months underscore the need to move beyond simplistic "lean/abundant season" and "fruit/leaf" dichotomies in understanding underlying energetic strategies, and species' vulnerability to habitat change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vololonirina Rahalinarivo
- Department of Anthropobiology and Sustainable Development, Faculty of Sciences, University of Antananarivo, Antananarivo, Madagascar
| | | | - Jeannot Randrianasy
- Department of Anthropobiology and Sustainable Development, Faculty of Sciences, University of Antananarivo, Antananarivo, Madagascar
| | - Jean Freddy Ranaivoarisoa
- Department of Anthropobiology and Sustainable Development, Faculty of Sciences, University of Antananarivo, Antananarivo, Madagascar
| | | | | | - Mitchell Irwin
- Department of Anthropology, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois, USA
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Chotard H, Bard KA, Micheletta J, Davila-Ross M. Testing for personality consistency across naturally occurring behavioral contexts in sanctuary chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Am J Primatol 2023; 85:e23451. [PMID: 36394276 PMCID: PMC10078319 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 09/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Personality is both a reflection of the bio-behavioral profile of individuals and a summary of how they typically interact with their physical and social world. Personality is usually defined as having distinct behavioral characteristics, which are assumed to be consistent over time and across contexts. Like other mammals, primates have individual differences in personality. Although temporal consistency is sometimes measured in primates, and contextual consistency is sometimes measured across experimental contexts, it is rare to measure both in the same individuals and outside of experimental settings. Here, we aim to measure both temporal and contextual consistency in chimpanzees, assessing their personality with behavioral observations from naturally occurring contexts (i.e., real-life settings). We measured personality-based behaviors in 22 sanctuary chimpanzees, in the contexts of feeding, affiliation, resting, and solitude, across two time periods, spanning 4 years. Of the 22 behaviors recorded, about 64% were consistent across two to four contexts and 50% were consistent over time. Ten behaviors loaded significantly onto three trait components: explorativeness, boldness-sociability, and anxiety-sociability, as revealed by factor analysis. Like others, we documented individual differences in the personality of chimpanzees based on reliably measured observations in real-life contexts. Furthermore, we demonstrated relatively strong, but not absolute, temporal, and contextual consistency in personality-based behaviors. We also found another aspect of individual differences in personality, specifically, the extent to which individual chimpanzees show consistency. Some individuals showed contextual and temporal consistency, whereas others show significant variation across behaviors, contexts, and/or time. We speculate that the relative degree of consistency in personality may vary within chimpanzees. It may be that different primate species vary in the extent to which individuals show consistency of personality traits. Our behavioral-based assessment can be used with wild populations, increasing the validity of personality studies, facilitating comparative studies and potentially being applicable to conservation efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hélène Chotard
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK
| | - Kim A Bard
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK
| | - Jérôme Micheletta
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK
| | - Marina Davila-Ross
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK
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