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The Effects of Forest Fragment Age, Isolation, Size, Habitat Type, and Water Availability on Monkey Density in a Tropical Dry Forest

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New Perspectives in the Study of Mesoamerican Primates

Part of the book series: Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects ((DIPR))

Summary

In summary, forest fragment age is an important explanatory variable for capuchin and howler density (higher densities were found in older areas of forest), whereas it makes no contribution to explaining the density of spider monkeys. The presence of evergreen forests in ACG is also important for explaining the absolute density of all three species, as there were higher densities in fragments containing evergreen forest. Transects where water was available in the dry season had higher capuchin densities; water availability appears to be more important for this species than for the spider monkeys and howlers. Forest fragment isolation and size made little contribution to explaining the density of any primate in ACG, probably due to the large size of forest fragments surveyed. Based on these findings, we conclude that older fragments of forest with dryseason standing water, and a substantial amount of evergreen forest should be preferentially protected to enhance the conservation of white-faced capuchins, black-handed spider monkeys, and mantled howlers in Costa Rica.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada, T2N 1N4

    Holly Noelle DeGama-Blanchet & Linda Marie Fedigan

Authors
  1. Holly Noelle DeGama-Blanchet
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  2. Linda Marie Fedigan
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Estación de Biología Los Tuxtlas, Instituto de Biología, UNAM, Apdo. Pos. 176, San Andrés Tuxtla, Veracruz, 95700, Mexico

    Alejandro Estrada

  2. Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA

    Paul A. Garber

  3. Department of Anthropology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, T2N 1N4, Canada

    Mary S. M. Pavelka

  4. Department of Anthropology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA

    LeAndra Luecke

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© 2006 Spring Science+Business Media, Inc.

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DeGama-Blanchet, H.N., Fedigan, L.M. (2006). The Effects of Forest Fragment Age, Isolation, Size, Habitat Type, and Water Availability on Monkey Density in a Tropical Dry Forest. In: Estrada, A., Garber, P.A., Pavelka, M.S.M., Luecke, L. (eds) New Perspectives in the Study of Mesoamerican Primates. Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-25872-8_8

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