Risky Business? Lethal Attack by a Jaguar Sheds Light on the Costs of Predator Mobbing for Capuchins (Cebus capucinus)

Tórrez, Lucía; Robles, Nena; González, Anyuri; Crofoot, Margaret C.

doi:10.1007/s10764-012-9588-1

Cited by 23 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 32 publications

(33 reference statements)

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“…In a review of the interactions between baboons and their predators, Cowlishaw [1994] reports 1 case in which mobbing proved fatal for the baboon involved. My colleagues and I have reported a fatal attack by a jaguar on a mobbing capuchin monkey [Tórrez et al, 2012], and observers have also reported a case in which an infant tamarin monkey died as a result of a bite it sustained while mobbing a venomous snake [Correa and Coutinho, 1997]. These lethal attacks demonstrate that mobbing can be extremely costly.…”

Section: You Only Die Once: Evaluating the Costs Of Predator Mobbingmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…These attacks are impressive both in their intensity and in the seemingly large risks that participants take in approaching, pestering and sometimes physically assaulting predators as large as leopards and jaguars [Cowlishaw, 1994;Lloyd et al, 2006;Tórrez et al, 2012]. The cooperative nature of the attacks is also intriguing: despite the apparent danger, group mates often rush to join the mob surrounding a potential predator and frequently threaten it in a highly coordinated fashion.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Why Mob? Reassessing the Costs and Benefits of Primate Predator Harassment

Crofoot¹

2013

IJFP

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While some primate species attempt to avoid predators by fleeing, hiding or producing alarm calls, others actually approach, harass and sometimes attack potential threats, a behavior known as ‘mobbing’. Why individuals risk their safety to mob potential predators remains poorly understood. Here, I review reports of predator harassment by primates to (1) determine the distribution of this behavior across taxa, (2) assess what is known about the costs of mobbing, and (3) evaluate hypotheses about its function. Mobbing is taxonomically widespread and is used against a wide range of predator species. However, inconsistent use of the term ‘mobbing’ within the primate literature, the lack of systematic studies of primate mobbing, and the likelihood of systematic biases in the existing data pose significant obstacles to understanding this puzzling behavior. Although difficult to quantify, the costs associated with harassing predators appear nontrivial. Many benefits that have been proposed to explain mobbing in birds may also be important in primate systems. There are puzzling aspects of primate mobbing, however, that existing hypotheses cannot explain. Future research should consider the within-group signaling potential of this costly behavior, as well as the ability of behavioral syndromes to explain the distribution of mobbing in primates.

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Section: You Only Die Once: Evaluating the Costs Of Predator Mobbingmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Mob? Reassessing the Costs and Benefits of Primate Predator Harassment

Crofoot¹

2013

IJFP

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“…The detailed behavioral responses of groups to the two types of predator models also suggest escape specificity based on pred- Mobbing is a risky behavior for these small primates (e.g., Tórrez, Robles, González, & Crofoot, 2012) and may function more as a deterrent to ambush predators than pursuit predators (Crofoot, 2012). Finally, although sakis called at both model types, they produced loud vocalizations at a continuous rate to the jaguar models, whereas they produced high-pitched, whistle-like calls in brief bursts to the harpy models.…”

Section: Do Saki Monkeys Have Predator-specific Responses In Both Pmentioning

confidence: 99%

Model vs. playback experiments: The impact of sensory mode on predator‐specific escape responses in saki monkeys

Adams

Kitchen

2020

Ethology

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Although experimentally simulating predator presence helps improve sample sizes in studies of free‐ranging animals, few studies have examined whether auditory playbacks and visual models produce similar results. Additionally, it is unclear if anti‐predator strategies are specific to predator hunting styles in understudied Neotropical pitheciid primates, limiting what we can generalize about this phenomenon across this taxonomic order. We conducted predator simulation experiments to assess whether wild Rylands' bald‐faced saki monkeys (Pithecia rylandsi) recognize predators based solely on acoustic cues, exhibit predator‐specific responses to different predator types, and vary responses to presentations in different sensory modes. In our playback experiments, sakis had weak responses to non‐predator control vocalizations compared to jaguar growls and harpy eagle shrieks. In most predator playbacks, subjects' first glance corresponded to the direction from which simulated predators would typically attack (above vs. below). However, although sakis exhibited appropriate movement responses to harpy playbacks (i.e., descending canopy), they exhibited no clear movement patterns when presented with jaguar playbacks. In contrast, jaguar model experiments consistently elicited fast approaches, mobbing‐style responses, and long alarm calling bouts. Thus, if we had relied on playbacks alone, we might have concluded that sakis have only generalized responses to terrestrial ambush predators. In fact, in all variables measured (e.g., latency, number of calls, and response duration), models of both predator species elicited stronger reactions than playbacks. Results indicate that bald‐faced sakis can identify predators based solely on vocalizations, but do not exhibit predator‐specific escape responses to terrestrial predators based on acoustic cues alone. The differential response to playbacks and models calls into question the reliability of using acoustic‐only stimuli to assess the specificity of anti‐predator behavior to predator hunting styles in some primate species.

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“…Potential predators of primates include felids, canids, mustelids, snakes, crocodiles, raptors and other primates [Isbell, 1994;Mil ler and Treves, 2007]. Predation on primates is rarely observed [Matsuda and Izawa, 2008;Barnett et al, 2011;Tórrez et al, 2012], but, as Ferrari [2009] has pointed out, this may merely indicate how very effective primate vigilance and antipredator behaviours can be [Asensio and Gómez-Martín, 2002;Miranda et al, 2006;Mourthé, 2011].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Crying Tapir: The Functionality of Errors and Accuracy in Predator Recognition in Two Neotropical High-Canopy Primates

Mourthé¹,

Barnett²

2015

IJFP

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Predation is often considered to be a prime driver in primate evolution, but, as predation is rarely observed in nature, little is known of primate antipredator responses. Time-limited primates should be highly discerning when responding to predators, since time spent in vigilance and avoidance behaviour may supplant other activities. We present data from two independent studies describing and quantifying the frequency, nature and duration of predator-linked behaviours in 2 high-canopy primates, Ateles belzebuth and Cacajao ouakary. We introduce the concept of ‘pseudopredators' (harmless species whose appearance is sufficiently similar to that of predators to elicit antipredator responses) and predict that changes in behaviour should increase with risk posed by a perceived predator. We studied primate group encounters with non-primate vertebrates across 14 (Ateles) and 19 (Cacajao) months in 2 undisturbed Amazonian forests. Although preliminary, data on both primates revealed that they distinguished the potential predation capacities of other species, as predicted. They appeared to differentiate predators from non-predators and distinguished when potential predators were not an immediate threat, although they reacted erroneously to pseudopredators, on average in about 20% of the responses given toward other vertebrates. Reacting to pseudopredators would be interesting since, in predation, one error can be fatal to the prey.

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Risky Business? Lethal Attack by a Jaguar Sheds Light on the Costs of Predator Mobbing for Capuchins (Cebus capucinus)

Cited by 23 publications

References 32 publications

Why Mob? Reassessing the Costs and Benefits of Primate Predator Harassment

Why Mob? Reassessing the Costs and Benefits of Primate Predator Harassment

Model vs. playback experiments: The impact of sensory mode on predator‐specific escape responses in saki monkeys

Crying Tapir: The Functionality of Errors and Accuracy in Predator Recognition in Two Neotropical High-Canopy Primates

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