Food Preferences and Nutrient Composition in Captive White-handed Gibbons, Hylobates lar

Jildmalm, Ronald; Amundin, Mats; Laska, Matthias

doi:10.1007/s10764-008-9314-1

Cited by 11 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 34 publications

(48 reference statements)

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“…As well-documented frugivores, fruits (especially ripe fruits), account for more than 50% of gibbons’ diet, except for the more folivorous siamang ( Symphalangus syndactylus ) [ 63 - 66 ]. It is commonly agreed that food choices of primates are correlated with the nutritional and toxic contents [ 65 , 67 , 68 ]. Compared with other parts of plant, fruits typically have the highest content of soluble carbohydrates, i.e., sweet tasting compounds [ 69 , 70 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differentiated adaptive evolution, episodic relaxation of selective constraints, and pseudogenization of umami and sweet taste genes TAS1Rs in catarrhine primates

et al. 2014

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BackgroundUmami and sweet tastes are two important basic taste perceptions that allow animals to recognize diets with nutritious carbohydrates and proteins, respectively. Until recently, analyses of umami and sweet taste were performed on various domestic and wild animals. While most of these studies focused on the pseudogenization of taste genes, which occur mostly in carnivores and species with absolute feeding specialization, omnivores and herbivores were more or less neglected. Catarrhine primates are a group of herbivorous animals (feeding mostly on plants) with significant divergence in dietary preference, especially the specialized folivorous Colobinae. Here, we conducted the most comprehensive investigation to date of selection pressure on sweet and umami taste genes (TAS1Rs) in catarrhine primates to test whether specific adaptive evolution occurred during their diversification, in association with particular plant diets.ResultsWe documented significant relaxation of selective constraints on sweet taste gene TAS1R2 in the ancestral branch of Colobinae, which might correlate with their unique ingestion and digestion of leaves. Additionally, we identified positive selection acting on Cercopithecidae lineages for the umami taste gene TAS1R1, on the Cercopithecinae and extant Colobinae and Hylobatidae lineages for TAS1R2, and on Macaca lineages for TAS1R3. Our research further identified several site mutations in Cercopithecidae, Colobinae and Pygathrix, which were detected by previous studies altering the sensitivity of receptors. The positively selected sites were located mostly on the extra-cellular region of TAS1Rs. Among these positively selected sites, two vital sites for TAS1R1 and four vital sites for TAS1R2 in extra-cellular region were identified as being responsible for the binding of certain sweet and umami taste molecules through molecular modelling and docking.ConclusionsOur results suggest that episodic and differentiated adaptive evolution of TAS1Rs pervasively occurred in catarrhine primates, most concentrated upon the extra-cellular region of TAS1Rs.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12983-014-0079-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differentiated adaptive evolution, episodic relaxation of selective constraints, and pseudogenization of umami and sweet taste genes TAS1Rs in catarrhine primates

et al. 2014

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“…Several other studies, however, have demonstrated significant physical differences between free‐ranging and captive populations including that free‐ranging animals grow for longer periods of time (Altmann et al,1981; Cheverud et al,1992), mature later (Altmann et al,1981; Altmann and Alberts,2005) and have delayed dental eruption (Phillips‐Conroy and Jolly,1988; Zihlman et al,2004). Several behavioral aspects of feeding can differ in captivity as well, including manual manipulation of food and posture during feeding (Kerridge,1997), ability to forage and locate food items (Snowdon,1994; Britt and Iambana,2003), food choice (Fernandes,1996; Jildmalm et al,2008), and the social context of feeding (Brent et al,1993; Carlstead,1996; Yamamoto and Lopes,2004). Collectively, these observations demonstrate the potential for differential growth and behavioral development to impact feeding behaviors in captive versus wild primates.…”

Section: Potential Differences Between Laboratory and Natural Environmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of experimental manipulations on chewing speed during in vivo laboratory research in tufted capuchins (Cebus apella)

Thompson

Donley

Stimpson

et al. 2011

American J Phys Anthropol

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Even though in vivo studies of mastication in living primates are often used to test functional and adaptive hypotheses explaining primate masticatory behavior, we currently have little data addressing how experimental procedures performed in the laboratory influence mastication. The obvious logistical issue in assessing how animal manipulation impacts feeding physiology reflects the difficulty in quantifying mechanical parameters without handling the animal. In this study, we measured chewing cycle duration as a mechanical variable that can be collected remotely to: 1) assess how experimental manipulations affect chewing speed in Cebus apella, 2) compare captive chewing cycle durations to that of wild conspecifics, and 3) document sources of variation (beyond experimental manipulation) impacting captive chewing cycle durations. We find that experimental manipulations do increase chewing cycle durations in C. apella by as much as 152 milliseconds (ms) on average. These slower chewing speeds are mainly an effect of anesthesia (and/or restraint), rather than electrode implantation or more invasive surgical procedures. Comparison of captive and wild C. apella suggest there is no novel effect of captivity on chewing speed, although this cannot unequivocally demonstrate that masticatory mechanics are similar in captive and wild individuals. Furthermore, we document significant differences in cycle durations due to inter-individual variation and food type, although duration did not always significantly correlate with mechanical properties of foods. We advocate that the significant reduction in chewing speed be considered as an appropriate qualification when applying the results of laboratory-based feeding studies to adaptive explanations of primate feeding behaviors.

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“…Furthermore, the nutrient composition of cultivated fruits and vegetables is well-established (Food Standards Agency, 2002) whereas that of plants consumed by primates in the wild is often unknown. Studies that adopted the approach to present cultivated fruits and vegetables to captive animals found that some primate species such as white-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar), ringtailed lemurs (Lemur catta), and pigtail macaques (Macaca nemestrina) display significant positive correlations between their food preferences and carbohydrate content (Hansell et al, 2020;Jildmalm et al, 2008;Laska, 2001) and are thus selective feeders with regard to their preferred source of metabolic energy. Other primate species such as spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) and squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus), in contrast, displayed significant positive correlations with total energy content (Laska, 2001;Laska et al, 2000) and are thus opportunistic feeders with regard to their preferred source of metabolic energy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Go for Lipids! Food Preferences and Nutrient Composition in Zoo-Housed White-Faced Sakis, Pithecia pithecia

Martins

Magnusson²,

Laska

2022

Int J Primatol

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The role that single nutrients may play for food choices in nonhuman primates is not fully understood. White-faced sakis (Pithecia pithecia) are unusual among frugivorous primates as they do not serve as seed dispersers but rather exploit the seeds they consume, presumably for their high contents of lipids and proteins. Therefore, we assessed the occurrence of spontaneous food preferences in zoo-housed white-faced sakis and analyzed whether these preferences correlate with nutrient composition. Using a two-alternative choice test, we repeatedly presented three female and two male sakis with all possible binary combinations of 15 types of food that are part of their diet under human care, and found them to display the following rank order of preference: peanut > hazelnut > avocado > melon > egg > apple > mealworms > beetroot > carrot > cucumber > cabbage > tomato > sweet potato > broccoli > eggplant. This preference ranking significantly and positively correlated with the total energy content of the food items. However, we found the strongest positive correlation among the three macronutrients providing metabolic energy between the sakis’ food preferences and lipid content. This is remarkable as all other primate species tested so far using this method displayed the strongest correlation with carbohydrates instead. Together with our finding that the sakis significantly preferred foods high in mono-unsaturated fatty acids, the building blocks of lipids, these results support the notion that white-faced sakis exploit the lipids contained in seeds to meet their requirements of metabolic energy.

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Food Preferences and Nutrient Composition in Captive White-handed Gibbons, Hylobates lar

Cited by 11 publications

References 34 publications

Differentiated adaptive evolution, episodic relaxation of selective constraints, and pseudogenization of umami and sweet taste genes TAS1Rs in catarrhine primates

Differentiated adaptive evolution, episodic relaxation of selective constraints, and pseudogenization of umami and sweet taste genes TAS1Rs in catarrhine primates

The influence of experimental manipulations on chewing speed during in vivo laboratory research in tufted capuchins (Cebus apella)

Go for Lipids! Food Preferences and Nutrient Composition in Zoo-Housed White-Faced Sakis, Pithecia pithecia

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