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Measuring the Toughness of Primate Foods and its Ecological Value

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Abstract

The mechanical properties of plant foods play an important role in the feeding process, being one of many criteria for food acceptance or rejection by primates. One of the simplest justifications for this statement is the general finding that primates tend to avoid foods with high fiber. Although fiber is largely tasteless, odorless, and colorless, it imparts texture, a sensation in the mouth related to the physical properties of foods. All primates encounter such mechanical resistance when they bite into plant food, and studies on humans show that an incisal bite facilitates quick oral assessment of a property called toughness. Thus, it is feasible that primates make similar assessments of quality in this manner. Here, we review methods of measuring the toughness of primate foods, which can be used either for making general surveys of the properties of foods available to primates or for establishing the mechanisms that protect these foods from the evolved form of the dentition.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Bioclinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, Safat, 13110, Kuwait

    Peter W. Lucas

  2. School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287-2402, USA

    Lynn Copes

  3. Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, Huntington, WV, 25755, USA

    Paul J. Constantino

  4. Department of Anthropology, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 131 George Street, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA

    Erin R. Vogel

  5. Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA

    Janine Chalk

  6. Departamento de Ciencias Biologicas, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Bairro Eldorado, 09972-270, Diadema, SP, Brazil

    Mauricio Talebi

  7. Pró-Muriqui Association, Parque Estadual Carlos Botelho, São Miguel Arcanjo, SP, CEP 18230-000, Brazil

    Mariana Landis

  8. School of Engineering and Applied Science, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA

    Mark Wagner

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  1. Peter W. Lucas
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  2. Lynn Copes
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  3. Paul J. Constantino
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  4. Erin R. Vogel
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  6. Mauricio Talebi
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  7. Mariana Landis
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  8. Mark Wagner
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Correspondence to Peter W. Lucas.

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Lucas, P.W., Copes, L., Constantino, P.J. et al. Measuring the Toughness of Primate Foods and its Ecological Value. Int J Primatol 33, 598–610 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-011-9540-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-011-9540-9

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