Doctoral Dissertation Improvement: Social and Reproductive Tactics of Black-and-White Ruffed Lemurs (Varecia Variegata)

多年来，研究人员一直在研究影响灵长类动物（特别是黑猩猩和蜘蛛猴）裂变-融合社会模式的机制。虽然已经确定了一些有希望的相关性，但围绕每个相关性的重要性以及这些相关性中是否有任何一个对测距决策的影响具有“普遍性”的争论仍然存在。更重要的是，这些行为很少在遗传相关性和生理学的背景下得到解决，这些参数是经常用来解释这些行为如何发展的理论的组成部分。虽然黑猩猩和蜘蛛猴传统上被认为是仅有的两种符合“经典”的分裂-融合行为模型的灵长类动物，但最近的证据表明，黑白色皱狐猴（Varecia variegata），一种社会复杂性较低的灵长类动物，可能表现出类似的社会策略。本研究将探讨机制，通过检查的影响，生态，行为和生物学相关的裂变融合的社会组织的黑色和白色皱狐猴生活在Ranomafana国家公园，马达加斯加。具体而言，这项研究将解决森林结构，栖息地质量，从属性和侵略性的社会互动，遗传相关性，和生理健康的影响，在一个黑色和白色皱狐猴社区的裂变融合模式和社会关系。通过采用多变量的方法，同时考虑生态，行为，遗传和健康状况的影响，一个更综合的图片灵长类动物的裂变融合social strategies may emerge.This study will be the first of its kind to document the social and sexual strategies showed by the only lemur living in a fissation-fusion society.此外，这将是第一次尝试将遗传相关性与狐猴的裂变融合行为联系起来，这一任务最近才在黑猩猩和蜘蛛猴中得到解决。尽管裂变-融合社会性具有异质性，但来自亲缘关系较远的灵长类动物的数据将填补灵长类文献中的一个重大空白。有了这些数据，就有可能确定生活在这种流体社会中的灵长类动物中具有“普遍”重要性的机制。如果这项研究成功，那么就有可能建立模型来预测这种社会组织何时会出现。这项研究也将具有重要的保护意义。关于遗传群落相关性和扩散模式的信息将是第一次从这种极度濒危的灵长类动物中获得，并将成为帮助与马达加斯加公园管理局建立保护管理计划的组成部分。此外，这将是第一项记录野生狐猴健康随时间变化的研究，目前只有基线数据。由于许多人认为马达加斯加是世界上最重要的保护优先事项之一，拟议的数据收集对保护工作至关重要。这项研究还将提供新的数据供公众使用;新开发的微卫星标记和序列数据将通过同行评审期刊上的出版物提供，并将张贴在基因库上，而生物医学价值将通过MedArks数据库提供给动物园和大学。最后，但最重要的是，这项研究启动了马达加斯加当地社区与外国研究人员之间的对话，包括培训和就业机会，以及公共论坛上的教育讲习班。

For years, researchers have studied the mechanisms influencing fission-fusion social patterns in primates, particularly among chimpanzees and spider monkeys. Although a number of promising correlates have been identified, debate surrounds the importance of each, and whether any of these are 'universal' in their influence on ranging decisions. Even more importantly, these behaviors have rarely been addressed in the context of genetic relatedness and physiology, parameters which are integral to the theories often used to explain how such behaviors develop. Though chimpanzees and spider monkeys are traditionally considered the only two primates to fit the 'classic' model of fission-fusion behavior, recent evidence suggests that black-and-white ruffed lemurs (Varecia variegata), a less socially complex primate, may exhibit similar social strategies. This research will investigate mechanisms cited previously by examining the influences of ecological, behavioral and biological correlates on the fission-fusion social organization of black-and-white ruffed lemurs living in Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar. Specifically, this research will address how forest structure, habitat quality, affiliative and aggressive social interactions, genetic relatedness, and physiological health influence the fission-fusion patterns and social relationships within a black-and-white ruffed lemur community. By employing a multivariate approach that simultaneously considers the effects of ecology, behavior, genetics and health status, a more integrative picture of primate fission-fusion social strategies may emerge.This study will be the first of its kind to document the social and sexual strategies exhibited by the only lemur living in a fission-fusion society. Additionally, this will be the first attempt to link genetic relatedness to fission-fusion behaviors in lemurs, a task that has only recently been addressed among chimpanzees and spider monkeys. Despite the heterogeneous nature of fission-fusion sociality, data from a more distantly related primate will fill a substantial gap in the primate literature. With these data, it may be possible to identify mechanisms of 'universal' importance amongst primates living within such fluid societies. Should this study succeed, it may then be possible to create models to predict when this type of social organization should be expected to arise.This research will also have important conservation implications. Information on genetic community relatedness and dispersal patterns will be the first available from this critically endangered primate, and will be integral to helping establish conservation management plans with Malagasy park services. Furthermore, this will be first study to document temporal variation in the health of wild lemurs, of which only baseline data are currently available. As many consider Madagascar to be among the world's top conservation priorities, the proposed data collection is critical to conservation efforts. This research will also contribute new data for public use; newly developed microsatellite markers and sequence data will be made available via publications in peer reviewed journals and will be posted on GenBank, while biomedical values spanning a total of four years will be made available to zoos and universities through the MedArks database. Lastly, but most importantly, this study has initiated dialogue between local Malagasy communities and foreign researchers, including training and employment opportunities, as well as educational workshops in a public forum.