Paternal care in socially monogamous owl monkeys (Aotus azarai) of the Argentinean Chaco

灵长类动物中存在强烈的父系关爱仍然是一个谜。雄性灵长类动物不能确定他们是否为自己照顾的幼崽产下了后代，也不能提供哺乳期雌性动物提供的营养。然而，在灵长类动物中，没有比南美洲的山雀猴和猫头鹰猴更广泛、更有义务的父系照顾了。后者生活在小的社会一夫一妻制群体中，由一对成年夫妇和2-4只幼鸟组成。受抚养的婴儿90%的时间都是由他们假定的父亲抚养的，父亲也比母亲或任何其他群体成员更多地与他们玩耍、梳理和分享食物。在新热带灵长类动物一夫一妻制和父权照顾的长期研究项目的背景下，本研究将有助于我们理解猫头鹰猴的父权照顾。利用长期的行为、人口统计和基因数据，我将研究：男性养育能力的差异如何影响婴儿的发育速度，2。2 .男性护理/服务是否降低了女性的生殖成本；雄性照顾是否可以作为一种交配策略。

The existence of intense paternal care among primates remains an enigma. Male primates cannot be certain that they have sired the infants they care for, nor can they provide the nourishment that lactating females supply. Still, nowhere amongst primates is paternal care more extensive and more obligate than among the titi monkeys and owl monkeys of South America. The latter live in small socially monogamous groups consisting of an adult pair and 2-4 young. Dependent infants are carried as much as 90% of the time by their putative father who also plays, grooms and shares food with them more than the mother or any other group member does. The proposed study will contribute to our understanding of paternal care in owl monkeys, in the context of a long-term research program on monogamy and paternal care in Neotropical primates. Using long-term behavioural, demographic and genetic data I will examine: 1. how differences in males’ parenting abilities influence the development rates of infants, 2. whether females’ reproductive costs are lessened by male care/services, and 3. whether male care may function as a mating strategy.