Food Transfer in Sichuan Snubnosed Monkeys Emph

Authors: Ming Xue Yanjie Su

Publish Date: 2010/12/18

Volume: 32, Issue: 2, Pages: 445-455

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Abstract

Food transfer behavior provides a way to distribute food resources among individuals It is not confined to kin but also occurs among genetically unrelated individuals Food transfer among nonkin may result from byproduct mutualism reciprocal altruism RA or tolerated scrounging TS Sichuan snubnosed monkeys Rhinopithecus roxellana exhibit a high level of social tolerance and researchers have observed food transfer behavior in the wild However little is known about how tolerant social relations influence food transfer in this species We recorded foodrelated interactions and social behavior in a group of captive Sichuan snubnosed monkeys Our findings suggest that the monkeys develop partner preference in food transfer behaviors Moreover individuals rely primarily on nonharassed approaches to claim food suggesting that the TS model alone cannot explain their food transfer Food transfer in this species may be a form of mutualism in which an individual benefits on an immediate basis by fostering a preferred and tolerant relationship However we cannot rule out the possibility of reciprocal altruism Future studies should record the temporal delay of social exchange to distinguish between mutualism and reciprocal altruismWe thank Shanghai Wild Animal Park for their logistic support We also thank Professor Joan Silk and Professor Joseph Manson at UCLA for their valuable suggestions on this article and help with language revision In addition we thank 2 anonymous reviewers for their careful review and helpful comments in improving our manuscript This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China grant no 30770728 30970907

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