Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects

MacLatchy, Laura

doi:10.1007/s10914-009-9114-1

Cited by 7 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 763 publications

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“…The most relevant nonbiotic environmental factors influencing chimpanzee nesting sites are human settlements, activities, and accessibility (Adanu, 2011; Heinicke et al, 2019; Sesink Clee et al, 2015). High nest densities have been recorded in steep areas, given that they are more inaccessible for humans and are usually unsuitable for agriculture (Adanu, 2011; Heinicke et al, 2019; Sesink Clee et al, 2015). In addition, there are also anthropological and cultural aspects affecting their populations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reaffirming the Loma Mountains National Park in Sierra Leone as a critical site for the conservation of West African chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus)

Molina‐Vacas

Muñoz‐Mas

Amarasekaran

et al. 2023

American J Primatol

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The population of West African chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) is declining rapidly mostly due to the impact of human activities and habitat loss. Sierra Leone harbors the third largest population of this subspecies, recently reclassified as Critically Endangered in the 2016 IUCN Red List. Population monitoring provides crucial data for planning and evaluating conservation and management policies.Therefore, to assess the status of the population size inhabiting the Loma Mountains National Park (LMNP) in Sierra Leone, we performed a nest count survey and estimated chimpanzee density and abundance using distance sampling. In total, 34 × 2-km-line transects were surveyed, with transects being systematically distributed across the LMNP area (288.5 km 2 ). Concurrently, we compiled environmental data, which were used to model nest distribution and infer the most relevant environmental and anthropogenic drivers of the observed nest abundances.We encountered 10.03 nests/km and estimated a density of 3.47 ± standard error (SE) 0.92 individuals/km 2 (i.e., 1002 ± SE 266 individuals in total). Compared to the figures obtained from a systematic literature review, our results suggest that the density and abundance of chimpanzees in the LMNP is among the highest across Africa. Contrary to expectation, no specific anthropogenic features predicted nest distribution and abundance. However, the nest distribution model indicated preference for elevated and steep areas covered by closed evergreen forest, which could be an indication of human avoidance. Based on these results, we highlight the value of LMNP for the conservation of the chimpanzees in Sierra Leone and the urgent necessity of guarantying long-term funding for this park's management to ensure the survival of this critically endangered subspecies in West Africa.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reaffirming the Loma Mountains National Park in Sierra Leone as a critical site for the conservation of West African chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus)

Molina‐Vacas

Muñoz‐Mas

Amarasekaran

et al. 2023

American J Primatol

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Historical Overview of Paleoanthropological Research

Henke¹

SpringerReference

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Referential alarm calling behaviour in New World primates

Cäsar

Zuberbühler

2012

Current Zoology

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There is relatively good evidence that non-human primates can communicate about objects and events in their environment in ways that allow recipients to draw inferences about the nature of the event experienced by the signaller. In some species, there is also evidence that the basic semantic units are not individual calls, but call sequences and the combinations generated by them. These two findings are relevant to theories pertaining to the origins of human language because of the resemblances of these phenomena with linguistic reference and syntactic organisation. Until recently, however, most research efforts on the primate origins of human language have involved Old World species with comparatively few systematic studies on New World monkeys, which has prevented insights into the deeper phylogenetic roots and evolutionary origins of language-relevant capacities. To address this, we review the older primate literature and very recent evidence for functionally referential communication and call combinations in New World primates. Within the existing literature there is ample evidence in both Callitrichids and Ce-bids for acoustically distinct call variants given to external disturbances that are accompanied by distinct behavioural responses. A general pattern is that one call type is typically produced in response to a wide range of general disturbances, often on the ground but also including inter-group encounters, while another call type is produced in response to a much narrower range of aerial threats. This pattern is already described for Old World monkeys and Prosimians, suggesting an early evolutionary origin. Second, recent work with black-fronted titi monkeys has produced evidence for different alarm call sequences consisting of acoustically distinct call types. These sequences appear to encode several aspects of the predation event simultaneously, notably predator type and location. Since meaningful call sequences have already been described in Old World primates, we suggest that basic combinatorial vocal communication has evolved in the primate lineage long before the advent of language. Moreover, it is possible that some of these communicative abilities have evolved even earlier, or independently, as there is comparable evidence in other taxonomic groups. We discuss these findings in an attempt to shed further light on the primate stock from which human language has arisen.

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Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects

Cited by 7 publications

References 763 publications

Reaffirming the Loma Mountains National Park in Sierra Leone as a critical site for the conservation of West African chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus)

Reaffirming the Loma Mountains National Park in Sierra Leone as a critical site for the conservation of West African chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus)

Historical Overview of Paleoanthropological Research

Referential alarm calling behaviour in New World primates

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