Abstract
The frequency of multiple births, life history parameters, body size, and diet characteristics were obtained from the literature for 70 primate species. The general pattern within the primate order is to have single infant litters, yet multiple births regularly occur in a number of species in specific phylogenetic groups. Primates which have large litters tend to be small, have short gestation periods and give birth to small infants, which are weaned quickly, and mature rapidly. Species in which multiple births are common also have short interbirth intervals and in the Callitrichidae have males which exhibit paternal care. In addition, they are commonly insectivorous. Although it is difficult to isolate the effects of diet on litter size, independent of body size, analyses suggest that after the influence of body size is statistically removed, as the proportion of insects in the diet increases, animals have larger litters. We suggest that by adopting a mixed diet of insects and fruit primates may be able to ensure access to a seasonally stable food resource that is not greatly restricted by the presence of toxins. This diet would allow a relatively high metabolism and facilitate large litters.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ardito, G., 1976. Checklist of the data on the gestation length of primates.J. Human Evol., 5: 213–222.
Bennett, E. L., 1982. The traumas of twins: twinning and infant development in a wild arboreal colobine.Int. J. Primatol., 3: 260.
Bond, M. R. &J. A. Block, 1982. Growth and development of twin orang-utans,Pongo pygmaeus.Int. Zoo Yrbk., 22: 256–261.
Burton, F. D. &A. de Pelham, 1979. A twinning event inMacaca sylvanus of Gibraltar.J. Med. Primatol., 8: 105–112.
Buss, D. H., 1971. Mammary glands and lactation. In:Comparative Reproduction of Non-human Primates,E. S. E. Hafez (ed.), Charles Thomas, Springfield, pp. 315–323.
Chapman, C. A. &L. J. Chapman, 1986. Development of howling monkey twins (Alouatta palliata) in Santa Rosa National Park, Costa Rica.Primates, 27: 377–381.
---- & ----, in prep. Density and demography if tropical fruiting trees: Comparisons between successional forests types.
Chiarelli, A. B., 1972.Taxonomic Atlas of Living Primates. Academic Press, New York.
Clark, C. B., 1977. A preliminary report on weaning among chimpanzees of the Gombe National Park, Tanzania. In:Primate Bio-social Development,S. Chevalier-Skolnikoff &F. Poirier (eds.), Garland, New York, pp. 235–250.
Clutton-Brock, T. H. &P. H. Harvey, 1977a. Species differences in feeding and ranging behaviour in primates. In:Primate Ecology,T. H. Clutton-Brock (ed.), Academic Press, New York, pp. 557–584.
———— & ————, 1977b. Primate ecology and social organization.J. Zool., 183: 1–39.
---- & ----, 1983. The functional significance of variation in body size among mammals. In:Advances in the Study of Mammalian Behavior,J. F. Eisenberg & D. G. Kleiman (eds.), Special publication of the American Society of Mammalogists No. 7, pp. 632–663.
Cowgill, U. M. &L. B. Zeman, 1980. Lifespan in captive nocturnal prosimians (Perodictus potto) with reproductive and mortality records.Primates, 21: 437–439.
Dalby, P. L. &E. J. Maruska, 1975. Twinning in the potto,Perodictus potto.Lab. Primate Newsl., 14: 5–6.
DeVore, I., 1965.Primate Behaviour. Holt Rinehardt, New York.
Doyle, G. A. &R. D. Martin, 1979.The Study of Prosimian Behaviour. Academic Press, New York.
Eisenberg, J. F., 1977. Comparative ecology and reproduction of New World monkeys. In:The Biology and Conservation of the Callitrichidae,D. G. Kleiman (ed.), Smithsonian Inst. Press, Washington, D.C., pp. 13–22.
————, 1981.The Mammalian Radiations. Univ. of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Eisenstein, N. &M. R. D'Amato, 1972. Twinning in the New World monkeyCebus apella.J. Mammal., 53: 406–407.
Fitzsimons, F. W., 1919.The Natural History of South Africa. London.
Guilloud, N. B., 1969. The breeding of apes: experience at the Yerkes Regional Centre and a brief review of the literature.Ann. New York Acad. Sci., 162: 297–300.
Hafez, E. S. E., 1971.Comparative Reproduction of Non-human Primates, Charles Thomas, Springfield.
Hampton, S. H., J. K. Hampton, &B. M. Levy, 1977. Husbandry of rare marmoset species. In:Saving the Lion Marmoset,D. D. Bridgewater (ed.), The Wild Animal Propagation Trust, Wheeling, pp. 70–85.
Harcourt, A. H., P. H. Harvey, S. G. Larson, &R. V. Short, 1981. Testis weight, body weight, and breeding system in primates.Nature, 293: 55–57.
Harvey, P. H. &T. H. Clutton-Brock, 1985. Life History variation in primates.Evolution, 39: 559–581.
————,R. D. Martin, &T. H. Clutton-Brock, 1986. Life history in comparative perspective. In:Primate Societies,B. B. Smuts,D. L. Cheney,R. M. Seyfarth,R. W. Wrangham, &T. T. Struhsaker (eds.), Univ. of Chicago Press, Chicago, pp. 181–196.
Hendrickx, A. G., M. L. Houston, &D. C. Kraemer, 1968. Observations on twin baboon embryos (Papio spp.).Anat. Record, 160: 181–186.
Hennemann, W. W., 1983. Relationships among body mass, metabolic rate, and the intrinsic rate of natural increase in mammals.Oecologia, 56: 104–108.
Hershkovitz, P., 1977.Living New World Monkeys (Platyrrhini), Vol. 1. Univ. of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Hildwein, G. &M. Goffart, 1975. Standard metabolism and thermoregulation in a prosimianPerodictus potto.Comp. Biochem. Physiol., 50: 201–213.
Hill, C. A., 1973. The frequency of multiple births in the genusLemur.Mammalia, 37: 101–104.
Janzen, D. H., 1973. Sweep samples of tropical foliage insects: Effects of season, vegetation types, elevation, time of day, and insularity.Ecology, 54: 687–708.
————, 1978. Complications in interpreting the chemical defenses of trees against tropical arboreal plant-eating vertebrates. In:The Ecology of Arboreal Folivores,G. G. Montgomery (ed.), Smithsonian Univ. Press, Washington, D.C., pp. 73–84.
————, 1987. When, and when not to leave.Oikos, 49: 41–243.
———— &J. W. Schoener, 1968. Differences in insect abundances and diversity between wetter and drier sites during a tropical dry season.Ecology, 49: 96–110.
Jarman, P. J., 1974. The social organization of antelope in relation to their ecology.Behaviour, 48: 216–267.
Jolly, A., 1972.The Evolution of Primate Behaviour. MacMillan Co., New York.
Kay, R. F., 1984. On the use of anatomical features to infer foraging behaviour in extinct primates. In:Adaptations for Foraging in Nonhuman Primates,P. S. Rodman &J. G. H. Cant (eds.), Columbia Univ. Press, New York, pp. 21–53.
Kirchshofer, R., A. Weisse, K. Berenz, &H. Klose, 1968. A preliminary account of the physical and behavioral development during the first 10 weeks of the hand reared gorilla twins born at Frankfurt Zoo.Int. Zoo Yrbk., 8: 121–128.
Kleiman, D. G., 1977. Monogamy in mammals.Quart. Rev. Biol., 52: 39–69.
Koford, C. B., P. A. Farber, &W. F. Windle, 1966. Twins and teratisms in rhesus monkeys.Folia Primatol., 4: 221–226.
Lefebver, L., 1985. Parent-offspring food sharing: a statistical test of the early weaning hypothesis.J. Human Evol., 14: 255–261.
Leutenegger, W., 1973. Maternal-fetal weight relationships in primates.Folia Primatol., 20: 280–293.
————, 1976. Allometry of neonatal size in eutherian mammals.Nature, 263: 568–569.
————, 1979. Evolution of litter size in primates.Amer. Naturalist, 114: 525–532.
McKey, D. B., J. S. Gartlan, P. G. Waterman, &G. M. Choo, 1981. Food selection by black colobus monkeys (Colobus satanas) in relation to plant chemistry.Biol. J. Linn. Soc., 16: 115–146.
McNab, B. K., 1969. The economics of temperature regulation in neotropical bats.Comp. Biochem. Physiol., 31: 227–268.
————, 1978. Energetics of arboreal folivores: physiological problems and ecological consequences of feeding on a ubiquitous food supply. In:The Ecology of Arboreal Folivores,G. G. Montogomery (ed.), Smithsonian Inst. Press, Washington D.C., pp. 153–162.
————, 1980. Food habits, energetics, and the population biology of mammals.Amer. Naturalist, 116: 227–268.
----, 1983. Ecological and behavioural consequences of adaptation to various food resources. In:Advances in the Study of Mammalian Behavior,J. F. Eisenberg & D. G. Kleiman (eds.), Special publication of the American Society of Mammalogists No. 7, pp. 664–697.
————, 1986. The influence of food habits on the energetics of eutherian mammals.Ecol. Monogr., 56: 1–19.
Meritt, D. A., 1980. Captive reproduction and husbandry of the douroucouli (Aotus trivirgatus) and the titi monkey (Callicebus spp.).Int. Zoo Yrbk, 20: 52–59.
Millar, J. S., 1981. Pre-partum reproductive characteristics of eutherian mammals.Evolution, 35: 1149–1163.
Milton, K., 1982. Dietary quality and demographic regulation in a howler monkey population. In:The Ecology of Tropical Forests,E. Leigh,A. S. Rand, &D. Windsor (eds.), Smithsonian Inst. Press, Washington D.C., pp. 273–284.
————,T. M. Casey, &K. K. Cassey, 1979. The basal metabolism of mantled howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata).J. Mammal., 60: 373–376.
Muller, E. F., J. M. Kamau, &G. Maloiy, 1983. A comparative study of basal metabolism and thermoregulation in a folivorous (Colobus guereza) and an omnivorous (Cercopithecus mitis) primate species.Comp. Biochem. Physiol., 74: 319–322.
Makamichi, M., 1985. Development of infant twin Japanese monkeys (Macaca fuscata) in a free-ranging group.Primates, 24: 576–583.
Napier, J. R. &P. H. Napier, 1967.A Handbook of Living Primates. Academic Press, New York.
Peacock, L. J. &C. M. Rogers, 1959. Gestation period and twinning in chimpanzees.Science, 129: 959.
Peters, R. H., 1983.The Ecological Implications of Body Size. Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge.
Rasmussen, D. T., 1985. A comparative study of breeding seasonality and litter size in eleven taxa of captive lemurs (Lemur andVarecia).Int. J. Primatol., 6: 501–517.
———— &M. K. Izard, 1988. Scaling of growth and life history traits relative to body size, brain size, and metabolic rate in lorises and galagos (Lorisidae, Primates).Amer. J. Phys. Anthropol., 75: 357–362.
Richard, A. F., 1985.Primates in Nature. W. H. Freeman & Co., New York.
Rosen, S. I., 1972. Twin gorilla fetuses.Folia Primatol., 17: 132–141.
Schmidt, J. O., 1979. Ant venoms: A study of venom diversity. In:Pesticide and Venom Neurotoxicity,D. L. Shankland,R. M. Hollingworth, &T. Smyth (eds.), Plenum Press, New York, pp. 247–263.
Schrier, A. H. &M. L. Povar, 1984. Twin stumptailed monkeys born in laboratory.Lab. Primate Newsl., 23: 18.
Schultz, A. H., 1921. Fetuses of the Guiana howling monkey.Zoologica, 3: 243–261.
————, 1948. The number of young at a birth and the number of nipples in primates.Amer. J. Phys. Anthropol., 6: 1–23.
————, 1956. The concerns and frequency of pathological and teratological conditions and of twinning among non-human primates.Primatologia, 1: 965–1014.
Shideler, S. E. &D. G. Lindburg, 1982. Selected aspects ofLemur variegatus reproductive biology.Zoo Biol., 1: 127–134.
Sokal, R. R. &F. J. Rolhf, 1981.Biometry. W. H. Freeman & Co., San Francisco.
Stott, K., 1946. Twins in the green guenon.J. Mammal., 27: 394.
————, 1953. Twinning in hooded capuchin.J. Mammal., 34: 385.
Strandskov, H. H., 1945. Plural birth frequencies in the total, the “white,” and the “coloured” U.S. populations.Amer. J. Phys. Anthropol., 3: 49–55.
Taub, D. M. &W. K. Redican, 1984. Adult male-infant interactions in Old World monkeys and apes. In:Primate Paternalism,D. M. Taub (ed.), Van Nostrand Reinhold Co., New York, pp. 377–406.
Terborgh, J., 1983.The Behavioral Ecology of Five New World Primates. Princeton Univ. Press, Princeton.
———— &A. Wilson Goldizen, 1985. On the mating system of the cooperatively breeding saddle-backed tamarin (Saguinus fuscicolis).Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol., 16: 293–299.
Tuomi, J., 1980. Mammalian reproductive strategies: a generalized relation of litter size to body size.Oecologia, 45: 39–44.
Vogt, J. L., 1984. Interactions between males and infants in Prosimians and New World monkeys. In:Primate Paternalism,D. Taub (ed.), Van Nostrand Reinhold Co., New York, pp. 346–376.
van Wagenen, G., 1972. Vital statistics from a breeding colony: reproduction and pregnancy outcome inMacaca mulatta.J. Med. Primatol., 1: 3–28.
Western, D., 1979. Size, life history, and ecology in mammals.Afr. J. Ecol., 17: 185–204.
Wildt, D. E. &W. R. Dukelow, 1974. The nonhuman primate as a model for human twinning.Lab. Primate Newsl., 13: 15–18.
Wislocki, G. B., 1939. Observations on twinning in marmosets.Amer. J. Anat., 64: 445–483.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
About this article
Cite this article
Chapman, C.A., Walker, S. & Lefebvre, L. Reproductive strategies of primates: The influence of body size and diet on litter size. Primates 31, 1–13 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02381026
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02381026