Behavioral Contagion in Wild Ecuadorian White-Fronted Capuchins (Cebus aequatorialis).

ABSTRACT: Behavioral contagion is spread across animal species and is thought to promote social cohesion and group synchronization. While yawn contagion has been extensively studied, scratch contagion remains comparatively under-researched, particularly in wild populations. We investigated whether yawn and scratch contagion occurred in a wild group of Ecuadorian white-fronted capuchins (Cebus aequatorialis, N = 16) at La Hesperia Cloud Forest Reserve in Ecuador. We assessed whether scratching or yawning were more likely to occur after observing a conspecific (i.e., the trigger) scratching or yawning (i.e., triggering event) compared to a control condition. We further examined whether this effect was modulated by the (a) individual characteristics of the trigger and the partner (sex, age category, an

SUBMITTER: Hannaoui NH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12834550 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature