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Fluctuating asymmetry inMacaca fascicularis: A study of the etiology of developmental noise

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Abstract

Fluctuating asymmetry was determined for six cranial measurements in an age-diverse sample of 138 individuals ofMacaca fascicularis. These data were used to choose among four hypotheses concerning the etiology of developmental noise. The hypotheses considered are (1) that developmental noise represents asymmetry in the causal history of a developing organism's interaction with the environment, (2) that it represents stochasticity in the mechanics of growth and induction, (3) that it reflects variation in the initial conditions of a developmental process, and (4) that it represents the random accumulation of noise at a level below that of morphogenetic mechanism. These hypotheses were tested against predictions concerning the intraspecific patterning of fluctuating asymmetry against age and size and the covariation of asymmetry values. Only the predictions of the fourth hypothesis were confirmed by results of this study. These results provide evidence for the view that developmental noise, as reflected by fluctuating asymmetry, is an intrinsic property of developmental systems, and not merely produced by the complexity of the organism's interaction with the environment.

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  1. Department of Anthropology, University of Chicago, 1126 East 59th Street, 60637, Chicago, Illinois

    Benedikt Hallgrímsson

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Hallgrímsson, B. Fluctuating asymmetry inMacaca fascicularis: A study of the etiology of developmental noise. International Journal of Primatology 14, 421–443 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02192775

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02192775

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