Doctoral dissertation research: Examining the effects of forest ecology on primate nutrition and social organization

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Primates depend heavily on plants resources for food in subtropical and tropical forests. However, the way in which overall forest structure and function is related to primate ecology and behavior is not fully understood. Tree species differ in their traits, some of which affect plant growth and survival (e.g., leaf mass), while others (e.g., fruit sugars) negative or positively affect primates. A "trait landscape" results from tree species' spatial distributions and traits, including phenological activity (e.g., flowering). This doctoral dissertation project examines how the constellation of plant traits in forests that primates inhabit affect primate diet, nutrition, and mating patterns such as monogamy. This project contributes to professional development and STEM education of undergraduates and assistants from local communities. International collaborators, including students and assistants, will obtain hands-on training in canopy access techniques, drone remote sensing, and programming using Python. The project will also support K-12 curriculum development and primate conservation in the study region. The goal of this project is to identify important ecological correlates of primate diet and monogamous mating system, by carefully considering and incorporating the bottom-up roles of plant traits and the spatiotemporal details of forest ecology and composition. Specifically, the project will examine the bottom-up effects of a tree community’s spatiotemporal distribution of functional and trophic effect traits on the nutritional ecology and mating pattern of Azara's owl monkey (Aotus azarae azarae). The researchers will (1) consider the owl monkeys' diet and nutritional ecology in a forest ecology context by considering the functional ecology/trait space of the tree community, and juxtapose their findings with those of traditional nutritional ecology analyses, and (2) assess how and why functional and trophic effect traits are equally distributed over space and time in gallery forests, with pair-living and a monogamous mating system as corollaries. The researchers will collect standardized plant samples and analyze these for functional traits, nutrients, and plant secondary compounds. They will furthermore assess the spatiotemporal details of species distribution and phenology through drone remote sensing, and statistically analyze spatial, nutritional, and community ecology parameters.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.