Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Evaluating Dominance Styles in Assamese and Rhesus Macaques

  • Published:
International Journal of Primatology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Researchers have suggested that several types of agonistic and affiliative behavior covary as a set of species-specific traits, and have used the term dominance style to describe the covariation. We compared measures of dominance style between a group of Assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis) and a group of rhesus macaques (M. mulatta), though kinship information was unknown. Assamese and rhesus female-female dyads each showed a low proportion of counter aggression and a low conciliatory tendency, suggesting that they have despotic social relationships. They also showed a despotic pattern on several other types of agonistic and affiliative behavior, such as approach outcomes and grooming distributions, which is consistent with the covariation of dominance style traits. Assamese male-male dyads showed relatively high levels of reconciliation and counter aggression versus other macaque males portrayed in the literature, suggesting that Assamese males have a tolerant dominance style. Insofar as macaque dominance style depends on the behavior of females, we suggest that Assamese macaques, like rhesus macaques, have despotic social relationships, which contrasts with evidence of a strong correlation between phylogeny and dominance style in macaques. Further, our results indicate that strong male bonding and tolerant dominance relationships among males are independent of female dominance style. Lastly, some measures of agonistic behavior, such as rate of aggression or proportion of bites, are likely altered in competitive environments and thus are not useful indicators of dominance style.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abegg, C., Thierry, B., & Kaumanns, W. (1996). Reconciliation in three groups of lion-tailed macaques. International Journal of Primatology, 17, 803–816.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aureli, F. (1992). Post-conflict behavior among wild long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 31, 329–337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aureli, F., Das, M., & Veenema, H. C. (1997). Differential kinship effect on reconciliation in three species of macaques (Macaca fascicularis, M. fuscata, and M. sylvanus). Journal of Comparative Psychology, 111, 91–99.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Berman, C. M., Ionica, C. S., Dorner, M., & Li, J. (2006). Postconflict affiliation between former opponents in Macaca thibetana on Mt. Huangshan, China. International Journal of Primatology, 27, 827–854.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berman, C. M., Ionica, C. S., & Li, J. H. (2004). Dominance style among Macaca thibetana on Mt. Huangshan, China. International Journal of Primatology, 25, 1283–1312.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bernstein, I. S., & Cooper, M. A. (1999). Dominance in Assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis). American Journal of Primatology, 48, 283–289.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bernstein, I. S., & Ehardt, C. L. (1985). Age-sex differences in the expression of agonistic behavior in rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) groups. Journal of Comparative Psychology, 99, 115–132.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bernstein, I. S., Williams, L., & Ramsey, M. (1983). The expression of aggression in Old World monkeys. International Journal of Primatology, 4, 113–125.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buzas, M., & Gibson, T. (1969). Species diversity: Benthonic Foraminifera in the western North Atlantic. Science, 163, 72–75.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Call, J., Aureli, F., & de Waal, F. B. M. (1999). Reconciliation patterns among stumptailed macaques: A multivariate approach. Animal Behavior, 58, 165–172.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castles, D. L., Aureli, F., & de Waal, F. B. M. (1996). Variation in conciliatory tendency and relationship quality across groups of pigtail macaques. Animal Behavior, 52, 389–403.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castles, D. L., & Whiten, A. (1998). Post-conflict behaviour of wild olive baboons. I. Reconciliation, redirection and consolation. Ethology, 104, 126–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chikazawa, D., Gordon, T., Bean, C., & Bernstein, I. (1979). Mother-daughter dominance reversals in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta). Primates, 20, 301–305.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cooper, M. A., Aureli, F., & Singh, M. (2007). Sex differences in reconciliation and post-conflict anxiety in bonnet macaques. Ethology, 113, 26–38.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cooper, M. A., & Bernstein, I. S. (2000). Social grooming in Assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis). American Journal of Primatology, 50, 77–85.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cooper, M. A., & Bernstein, I. S. (2002). Counter aggression and reconciliation in assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis). American Journal of Primatology, 56, 215–230.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Datta, S., & Beauchamp, G. (1991). Effects of group demography on dominance relationships among female primates. I: Mother-daughter and sister-sister relations. American Naturalist, 138, 201–226.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Waal, F. B. M. (1977). The organization of agonistic relations within two captive groups of Java monkeys (Macaca fascicularis). Zeitshrift für Tierpschychologie, 44, 225–282.

    Google Scholar 

  • de Waal, F. B. M., & Luttrell, L. (1989). Toward a comparative socioecology of the genus Macaca: Different dominance styles in rhesus and stumptail monkeys. American Journal of Primatology, 19, 83–109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Waal, F. B. M., & Yoshihara, D. (1983). Reconciliation and redirected affection in rhesus monkeys. Behaviour, 85, 224–241.

    Google Scholar 

  • Delson, E. (1980). Fossil macaques, phyletic relationships and a scenario of deployment. In D. Lindburg (Ed.) The Macaques: Studies in Ecology, Behavior and Evolution pp. 10–30. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flack, J. C., & de Waal, F. B. M. (2004). Dominance style, social power, and conflict management: a conceptual framework. In B. Thierry, M. Singh, & W. Kaumanns (Eds.) Macaque Societies: A Model for the Study of Social Organization (pp. 157–182). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fooden, J. (1982). Taxonomy and evolution of the sinica group of macaques: 3. Species and subspecies accounts of Macaca assamensis. Fieldiana Zoologica, 10, 1–52.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fooden, J. (1986). Taxonomy and evolution of the sinica group of macaques: 5. Overview of natural history. Fieldiana Zoologica, 29, 1–22.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hemelrijk, C. K. (1999). An individual-oriented model of the emergence of despotic and egalitarian societies. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B—Biological Sciences, 266(1417), 361–369.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hill, W., & Bernstein, I. S. (1969). On the morphology, behavior and systematic status of the Assam macaque (Macaca assamensis McClelland, 1939). Primates, 10, 1–17.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hoelzer, G., & Melnick, D. (1996). Evolutionary relationships of the macaques. In J. Fa, & D. Lindburg (Eds.) Evolution and Ecology of Macaque Societies (pp. 3–19). New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Isbell, L. A., & Young, T. P. (2002). Ecological models of female social relationships in primates: Similarities, disparities, and some directions for future clarity. Behaviour, 139, 177–202.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, I., & Rosenblum, L. (1966). A behavioral taxonomy for Macaca nemestrina and Macaca radiata: Based on longitudinal observation of family groups in the laboratory. Primates, 7, 205–208.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kawamura, S. (1965). Matriarchal social ranks in the Minoo-B group: A study of Japanese monkeys. In K. Imanishi, & S. Altmann (Eds.) Japanese Monkeys: A Collection of Translations (pp. 66–86). Atlanta: Emory University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koenig, A., Larney, E., Lu, A., & Borries, C. (2004). Agonistic behavior and dominance relationships in female Phayre’s leaf monkeys—preliminary results. American Journal of Primatology, 64, 351–357.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kummer, H. (1971). Primate Societies: Group Techniques of Ecological Adaptation. Chicago: Aldine-Atherton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kummer, H., Goetz, W., & Angst, W. (1974). Triadic differentiation: An inhibitory process protecting pair bonds in baboons. Behaviour, 49, 62–87.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kutsukake, N., & Castles, D. L. (2001). Reconciliation and variation in post-conflict stress in Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata fuscata): Testing the integrated hypothesis. Animal Cognition, 4, 259–268.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Majolo, B., Ventura, R., & Koyama, N. (2005). Postconflict behavior among male Japanese macaques. International Journal of Primatology, 26, 321–336.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matsumura, S. (1996). Postconflict affiliative contacts between former opponents among wild moor macaques (Macaca maurus). American Journal of Primatology, 38, 211–219.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matsumura, S., & Kobayashi, T. (1998). A game model for dominance relations among group-living animals. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 42, 77–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Menard, N., & Vallet, D. (1996). Demography and ecology of Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus) in two different habitats. In J. Fa, & D. Lindburg (Eds.) Evolution and Ecology of Macaque Societies (pp. 106–131). New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nakamichi, M., Itoigawa, N., Imakawa, S., & Machida, S. (1995). Dominance relations among adult females in a free-ranging group of Japanese monkeys at Katsuyama. American Journal of Primatology, 37, 241–251.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ogawa, H. (1995). Bridging behavior and other affiliative interactions among male Tibetan macaques (Macaca thibetana). International Journal of Primatology, 16, 707–729.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Petit, O., Abegg, C., & Thierry, B. (1997). A comparative study of aggression and conciliation in three cercopithecine monkeys (Macaca fuscata, Macaca nigra, Papio papio). Behaviour, 134, 415–432.

    Google Scholar 

  • Petit, O., & Thierry, B. (1992). Affiliative function of the silent bared-teeth display in Moor macaques (Macaca maurus): Further evidence for the particular status of Sulawesi macaques. International Journal of Primatology, 13, 97–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Preuschoft, S. (2004). Power and communication. In B. Thierry, M. Singh, & W. Kaumanns (Eds.) Macaque Societies: A Model for the Study of Social Organization (pp. 56–60). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Preuschoft, S., & Paul, A. (2000). Dominance, egalitarianism, and stalemate: An experimental approach to male-male competition. In P. M. Kappeler (Ed.) Primate Males: Causes and Consequences of Variation in Group Composition (pp. 205–216). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Preuschoft, S., Paul, A., & Kuester, J. (1998). Dominance styles of female and male Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus). Behaviour, 135, 731–755.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schino, G., Rosati, L., & Aureli, F. (1998). Intragroup variation in conciliatory tendencies in captive Japanese macaques. Behaviour, 135, 897–912.

    Google Scholar 

  • Seyfarth, R. M., & Cheney, D. L. (1984). Grooming, alliances and reciprocal altruism in vervet monkeys. Nature, 308, 541–543.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Silk, J. B. (1994). Social relationships of male bonnet macaques: Male bonding in a matrilineal society. Behaviour, 130, 271–291.

    Google Scholar 

  • Silk, J. B., & Samuels, A. (1984). Triadic interactions among Macaca radiata: Passports and buffers. American Journal of Primatology, 6, 373–376.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Singh, M., Akram, N., & Pirta, R. (1984). Evolution of demographic patterns in the bonnet monkey (Macaca radiata). In M. L. Roonwal, S. M. Mohnot, & N. S. Rathore (Eds.) Current Primate Researchers (pp. 7–16). Jodhpur, India: University of Jodhpur Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singh, M., Singh, M., Sharma, A., & Krishna, B. (2003). Methodological considerations in measurement of dominance in primates. Current Science, 84, 709–713.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sinha, A., Mukhopadhyay, K., Datta-Roy, A., & Ram, S. (2005). Ecology proposes, behavior disposes: Ecological variability in social organization and male behavioral strategies among wild bonnet macaques. Current Science, 89, 1166–1179.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, R. J., & Jungers, W. L. (1997). Body mass in comparative primatology. Journal of Human Evolution, 32, 523–559.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sterck, E., Watts, D. P., & van Schaik, C. P. (1997). The evolution of female social relationships in nonhuman primates. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 41, 291–309.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taub, D. (1980). Testing the ‘agonistic buffering’ hypothesis I. The dynamics of participation in the triadic interaction. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 6, 187–197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thierry, B. (1985). Patterns of agonistic interactions in three species of macaque (Macaca mulatta, M. fascicularis, M. tonkeana). Aggressive Behavior, 11, 223–233.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thierry, B. (1990). Feedback loop between kinship and dominance: The macaque model. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 145, 511–521.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Thierry, B. (2000). Covariation of conflict management patterns across macaque species. In F. Aureli, & F. B. M. de Waal (Eds.) Natural Conflict Resolution (pp. 106–128). Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thierry, B., Iwaniuk, A. N., & Pellis, S. M. (2000). The influence of phylogeny on the social behaviour of macaques (Primates: Cercopithecidae, genus Macaca). Ethology, 106, 713–728.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thoren, S., Lindenfors, P., & Kappeler, P. M. (2006). Phylogenetic analyses of dimorphism in primates: Evidence for stronger selection on canine size than on body size. American Journal Physical Anthropology, 130, 50–59.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Veenema, H. C., Das, M., & Aureli, F. (1994). Methodological improvements for the study of reconciliation. Behavioural Processes, 31, 29–37.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, E. (1975). Sociobiology: The New Synthesis. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wittig, R. M., & Boesch, C. (2003). The choice of post-conflict interactions in wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Behaviour, 140, 1527–1559.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wittig, R. M., & Boesch, C. (2005). How to repair relationships—Reconciliation in wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Ethology, 111, 736–763.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhao, Q., & Deng, Z. (1988). Macaca thibetana at Mt. Emei, China: III. Group composition. American Journal of Primatology, 16, 269–273.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

A grant from the National Geographic Society (grant 5862–97) funded the research, which we conducted in cooperation with the Indo-US Primate Project, principal investigators S. M. Mohnot and Charles Southwick. We thank Arun Srivastava and Prabal Sarkar for logistical support in the field, and Mohibul Haque for help in data collection. The University of Georgia Animal Care and Use Committee approved all procedures, and the study complied with Indian law.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    Matthew A. Cooper

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA

    Irwin S. Bernstein

Authors
  1. Matthew A. Cooper
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Irwin S. Bernstein
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Matthew A. Cooper.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Cooper, M.A., Bernstein, I.S. Evaluating Dominance Styles in Assamese and Rhesus Macaques. Int J Primatol 29, 225–243 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-008-9236-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-008-9236-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation