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Social Organization and Male Residence Pattern in Phayre’s Leaf Monkeys

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Long-Term Field Studies of Primates

Abstract

The genus Trachypithecus (Colobinae, Presbytini) has previously been characterized by one-male groups and both male and female dispersal. Occasionally, males may mature in their natal groups, resulting in so-called age-graded multi-male groups. Our long-term observations of a population of Phayre’s leaf monkeys (Trachypithecus phayrei crepusculus) in Thailand, while revealing values in group size and composition similar to other species, indicate a hitherto undescribed social organization, in which males mature and breed in their natal group or disperse and form new groups. Groups are not age-graded and multi-male groups are one phase of a dynamic social organization changing between multi-male and one-male constellations. The ways in which our views of the social organization of Phayre’s leaf monkeys changed over a period of eight years underscore the importance of long-term studies for a full understanding of the behavioral ecology of long-lived species like primates.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Systematic data collection ran from January 2001 to January 2009 when it was discontinued due to a lack of funding.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Peter Kappeler and his team for organizing an inspiring conference, Peter Kappeler and David Watts for putting this volume together, and Charles Janson, Peter Kappeler, and David Watts for their helpful comments on the manuscript. Our field project would not have been possible without the support of many institutions and people. We wish to thank the National Research Council of Thailand, the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, and the Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary (K. Kreetiyutanont, M. Kumsuk, T. Naknakced, K. Nitaya, and J. Prabnasuk) for support and permission. We gratefully acknowledge support and cooperation by J. Beehner (University of Michigan), N. Bhumpakphan and W. Eiadthong (Kasetsart University), W. Brockelman (Mahidol University), N. Czekala (Papoose Foundation), T. Disotell and A. DiFiore (New York University), N. Dominy (UC at Santa Cruz), G. Gale and T. Savini (King Mongkut University at Thonburi), P. Lukas and E. Vogel (George Washington University). For help with the data collection we thank our sanctuary rangers, volunteer research assistants, predoc, and postdoc researchers: A. Bprasapmu, R. Bunting, J. Burns, K. Carl, A. Derby-Lewis, S. Dtubpraserit, W. Engelke, V. Ethier, J. Garten, L. Gibson, C. Gilbert, K. Jenks, J. Kamilar, S. Kropidlowski, E. Larney, E. Lloyd, A. Lu, E. McCullough, J. Mizen, S. Myers, W. Nathongbo (†), K. Ossi-Lupo, G. Pages, G. Preece, Z. Primeau, L. Sarringhaus, S. Suarez, A. Suyanang, P. Terranova, B. Wheeler, T. Whitty, A. Yamee, and R. Zulueta. For help with plant identification we are grateful to N. Bhumpakphan, W. Brockelman, A. Chunchaen, W. Eiadthong, P. Ketdee, and M. Kumsuk. For technical support in Thailand we thank E. Akarachaiyasak, C. Kanwutanakip-Savini, N. Naksathit, R. Phoonjampa, K. Roongadulpisan, U. Suwanvecho, and M. Umponjan. The study was financially supported by the National Science Foundation (BCS-0215542 & BCS-0542035), the National Science Foundation DDIG (BCS-0452635 to C. Borries & A. Lu; BCS-0647837 to A. Koenig & K. Ossi-Lupo), the Leakey Foundation (to A. Koenig & C. Borries, A. Lu, K. Ossi-Lupo), the American Society of Primatologists (to E. Larney, A. Lu, K. Ossi-Lupo), the Wenner-Gren Foundation (to E. Larney, K. Ossi-Lupo), and Stony Brook University (Department of Anthropology & Office of the Vice President for Research to AK). The research was approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) Stony Brook University (IDs: 20001120 to 20081120) and complied with the current laws of Thailand and the USA.

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  1. Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA

    Andreas Koenig & Carola Borries

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  1. Andreas Koenig
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  2. Carola Borries
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Correspondence to Andreas Koenig .

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  1. , Dept. of Behavioral Ecology, University of Göttingen, Kellnerweg 6, Göttingen, 37077, Germany

    Peter M. Kappeler

  2. Dept. Anthropology, Yale University, Sachem Street 10, New Haven, 06511, Connecticut, USA

    David P. Watts

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Koenig, A., Borries, C. (2012). Social Organization and Male Residence Pattern in Phayre’s Leaf Monkeys. In: Kappeler, P., Watts, D. (eds) Long-Term Field Studies of Primates. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-22514-7_10

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