Dissertation Research: Influences of Micro-ecology on Behavioral Responses to Perceived Risk of Predation in Sympatric Vervet and Patas Monkeys

捕食被认为是对灵长类动物行为的许多方面的一种强大的选择压力。 该项目旨在通过调查肯尼亚莱基皮亚同域分布的长尾猴（Cercopithecus aethiops）和红头猴（Erythrocebus patas）的栖息地结构和反捕食行为之间的关系，扩大我们对捕食作为灵长类动物行为模式的选择压力的理解。 尽管有密切的关系，相似的身体大小，并共享相同的社区的捕食者，长尾猴和pata猴子似乎在许多方面，包括他们的睡眠地点的选择，母亲和婴儿的行为在捕食者的存在，和他们的逃跑策略，他们的反应感知捕食风险。 这些差异被假设是由于每个物种所使用的栖息地结构的差异;包括使用不同的树种，以及树高和草覆盖密度的差异。 这一假设将通过定量测量栖息地结构（包括树高和草的高度和密度），并通过观察1）动物对捕食者的反应，2）对其他猴子发出的自然发生的警报呼叫的反应，以及3）对猴子预先记录的警报呼叫的反应进行检查，这些警报呼叫在受控的实验设计中被回放给它们。这个项目的结果有望提升我们对捕食作为灵长类动物行为选择压力的理解，并有助于重建早期同域原始人的行为生态学。

Predation has been invoked as a strong selective pressure on many aspects of primate behavior. This project proposes to expand our understanding of predation as a selective pressure on primate behavioral patterns by investigating the relationship between habitat structure and anti-predator behavior in sympatric vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops) and patas monkeys (Erythrocebus patas) in Laikipia, Kenya. Despite being closely related, similar in body size, and sharing the same community of predators, vervets and patas monkeys appear to differ in their responses to perceived risk of predation in many ways, including their choice of sleeping sites, the behavior of mothers and infants in the presence of predators, and their escape tactics. These differences are hypothesized to be due to differences in the structure of the habitat used by each species; including use of different tree species, and differences in tree height and density of grass cover. This hypothesis will be examined through quantitative measurement of habitat structure, including tree height and grass height and density, and by observation of 1) the animals' responses to predators, 2) responses to naturally occurring alarm calls given by other monkeys, and 3) responses to pre-recorded alarm calls of monkeys that are played back to them in a controlled, experimental design. The results of this project promise to elevate our understanding of predation as a selective pressure on primate behavior, and to assist in reconstructing the behavioral ecology of early, sympatric hominids.