Hand preferences for unimanual and coordinated bimanual tasks in baboons (Papio anubis)

Abstract

This study examined hand preference in baboons in a sample of 94 subjects for a unimanual task and in a sample of 104 subjects for a bimanual task. For the unimanual task, handedness was assessed by observing simple reaching for grains. For the bimanual task, tubes lined with peanut butter inside were presented to the baboons. The hand and the finger used to remove peanut butter were recorded. Population-level right-handedness was found for the bimanual but not the unimanual task. In addition, test-retest correlations showed consistency in hand use across time for the coordinated bimanual task but not the simple reaching task. No significant effects of age and sex on the direction and strength of hand preferences were found for either task. These are the first evidences of population-level handedness in baboons and the results are discussed in the context of evolutionary theories of cerebral dominance.

Observations of hand preference in wild groups of white‐faced sakis (Pithecia pithecia) in Suriname

“…This result is interesting because the motor functions required for CBA and non-CBA tasks are alike. Our results therefore support the notion that more complex tasks (with greater fine-tune motor activity such as CBAs) are more likely to show hand preference [Vauclair et al, 2005].…”

Lateralization of the Vertebrate Brain: Taking the Side of Model Systems: Figure 1.

“…For example, during tasks requiring controlled posture and reaching, the majority of prosimians show left-handedness . In Old and New World monkeys as well as great apes, assessment of hand preferences for coordinated bimanual tasks has revealed consistent evidence of population level handedness (Hopkins, 2005;Vauclair et al, 2005b). Two interesting trends emerge.…”

Exploring the relationship between cerebellar asymmetry and handedness in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and capuchins (Cebus apella)

“…First, the TUBE task shows good test-retest correlation, even after as many as 6 years separating tests, in different species (Hopkins & Cantalupo, 2003;Vauclair et al, 2003). Second, the tube task elicits consistent and significant hand preferences in the majority of subjects tested with a given species (see Vauclair et al,.2005). Lastly, recent studies in capuchin monkeys and chimpanzees have shown that handedness for this task correlates with neuroanatomical structures associated with cortical motor areas representing hand (chimpanzees: Hopkins & Cantalupo, 2004;capuchins: Phillips & Sherwood, 2005).…”