Energetic costs of reproduction in female northern muriquis, Brachyteles hypoxanthus (Primates: Platyrrinhi: Atelidae)

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Infant care is known to impose high energetic costs on female primates because in addition to lactation, most primate mothers also provide transport for their offspring. Many studies have documented the high energetic costs of lactation, but less is known about energetic costs of infant carrying and their effects on the recovery of maternal physical condition. We compared the activities of female northern muriquis (Brachyteles hypoxanthus Kuhl, 1820) over a 12-month period at the RPPN Feliciano Miguel Abdala, Minas Gerais, Brazil to investigate whether mothers during their weaning year behaved differently than mothers in their post-weaning year, when they resumed reproductive cycling and copulating, and conceived again. We found no significant differences in the behavioral activity budgets of mothers in their weaning year (n = 4) versus post-weaning year (n = 5), despite the significantly higher proportion of time that mothers in their weaning year spent in close proximity with their infants and carrying their infants compared to mothers in their post-weaning year. We suggest that the energy budgets of weaning are similar to those of post-weaning in female northern muriquis.

Associations between fecal cortisol and biparental care in a pair‐living primate

“…Individuals may also shift their diets, or time spent foraging, to offset increased energetic demands associated with infant care (Vasey, 2004). There is evidence consistent with these explanations in some wild populations of primates (Guedes et al, 2008;Vasey, 2004), including species with biparental care, such as titi monkeys (Dolotovskaya & Heymann, 2020).…”

Comportamento locomotor e uso da cauda de muriqui-do-norte Brachyteles hypoxanthus Wied, 1820 (Primates, Atelidae) em cativeiro e suas implicações para o manejo da espécie

“…O pulo na MA(15,76 ± 5,38 vs. 3,28 ± 2,81: z= 3,2557; n=8; p= 0,0006), a locomoção suspensória na MA ( 41,55 ± 10,40 vs. 56,41 ± 10,71: z= 24155; n=8; p= 0,0079) e a escalada no RA (5,25 ± 3,35 mais vagarosas em relação ao adulto de menor idade, igualmente para as posturas de cauda. Ainda que a locomoção rápida seja importante para ajudar os indivíduos a explorarem maiores áreas e a fugir de predadores, a velocidade associada ao tamanho do corpo Mudanças no uso de determinado modo locomotor em função do período de gravidez e cuidado parental ocorrem nas fêmeas de B. hypoxanthus, de maneira que o pulo e a locomoção suspensória são utilizados em menor frequência por serem movimentos de alto impacto(RIMOLI, 1994;GUEDES, 2008). Este fato foi confirmado com a Ecológica que reduziu a locomoção suspensória e o pulo após o nascimento do filhote.…”