Does the Structure of Female Rhesus Macaque Coo Calls Reflect Relatedness and/or Familiarity?

ABSTRACT: In social animals, kin relations strongly shape the social structure of a group. In female-bonded species, maternal relatedness is likely to be mediated via familiarity, but evidence is accumulating that non-human primates are able to recognize kin that they are not familiar with and adjust their behavior accordingly. In playback experiments, female rhesus macaques showed increased interest in 'coo' calls produced by unfamiliar paternal half-sisters compared to 'coo' calls produced by unfamiliar unrelated females, suggesting that these calls should have some common structural characteristics that facilitate the discrimination of kin from non-kin. Here we analyzed 'coo' calls of 67 adult female rhesus macaques from four groups and seven matrilines living on the island of Cayo Santiago (Puer

SUBMITTER: Pfefferle D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5007041 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature