Abstract
Alpha-male sooty mangabeys in four separate social groups discriminated between a female’s fertile and her postconception maximal swelling, confirming a previous finding that one alpha male, but not other males in the group, refrained from mounting females during the postconception maximum swelling. During a 3-hr observation session, the males mounted females an average of 2.2 ± 0.3 times during the females’ fertile maximal swelling, while there were no mounts by alpha males during the females’ postconception maximal swelling. Alpha males also showed higher durations of following and frequencies of genital inspection toward females during the fertile maximal swelling. Additionally, we collected blood samples from four females three times per week to monitor estradiol (E2), progesterone (P4), and luteinizing hormone (LH) changes during both swelling phases. Peak E2 concentrations preceded the maximal swelling during both the conception and the post-conception swelling, though to a greater extent during the latter period. Although 3×-weekly blood samples showed significantly greater E2 concentrations during the postconception swelling, daily samples to confirm the results revealed one instance of comparable concentrations of E2 during a fertile swelling. Thus, peak E2 concentrations may not differ during the conception and postconception swelling cycles, though the duration of the E2 elevation is longer during the postconception swelling. LH concentrations, corresponding to the conception and postconception maximal swelling, were significantly different, while P4concentrations were not. The behavioral results indicate that alpha males discriminate between a fertile swelling (associated with ovulation) and a nonfertile swelling (occurring approximately 49 days postconception); however, whether this discrimination is tied to the difference in the hormonal pattern has yet to be demonstrated.
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Hodgen, G. D., Dufau, M. L., Catt, K. J., and Tullner, W. W. (1972). Estrogens, progesterone and chorionic gonadotropin in pregnant rhesus monkeys.Endocrinology 91: 896–900.
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Kinnaird, M. (1990). Pregnancy, gestation, and parturition in free-ranging Tana River crested mangabeys(Cereocebus galeritus galeritus).Am. J. Primalol. 22: 285–289.
Kleiman, D. G., and Mack, D. S. (1977). A peak in sexual activity during mid-pregnancy in the golden lion tamarin,Leontopithecus rosalia (Primates: Callilhrichidae).J. Mammol. 58: 657–660.
Napier, J. R., and Napier, P. H. (1967).Handbook of Living Primates, Academic Press, London.
Nigi, H., Hayama, S., and Torii, R. (1990). Copulalory behavior unaccompanied by ovulation in the Japanese monkey(Macaco fuscata).Primates 31: 243–250.
Rowell, T. E. (1966). Hierarchy in the organisation of a captive baboon group.Anim. Behav. 14: 430–443.
Rowell, T. E., and Chalmers, N. R. (1970). Reproductive cycles of the mangabeyCereocebus albigena.Folia Primatol. 12: 264–272.
Sade, D. S. (1967). Determinants of dominance in a group of free ranging rhesus monkeys. In Altmann, S. A. (ed.),Social Communication Among Primates, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, pp. 99–114.
Steiner, R. A., and Bremner, W. J. (1981). Endocrine correlates of sexual development in the male monkey,Macaca fascicularis.Endocrinology 109: 914–919.
Taub, D. M. (1980). Females choice and mating strategies among wild barbary macaques(Macaca sylvanus L.). In Lindburg, D. G. (ed.),The Macaques: Studies in Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, pp. 287–344.
Walker, M. L., Gordon, T. P., and Wilson, M. E. (1982). Reproductive performance in capture-acclimated female rhesus monkeys(Macaca mulatto).J. Med. Primatol. 11: 291–302.
Wallis, J. (1982). Sexual behavior of captive chimpanzees(Pan troglodytes): Pregnant versus cycling females.Am. J. Primatol.3: 77–88.
Wallis, J., and Lemmon, W. B. (1986). Social behavior and genital swelling in pregnant chimpanzees(Pan troglodytes).Am. J. Primalol. 10: 171–183.
Wilson, M. E., Gordon, T. P., and Collins, D. C. (1982). Serum 17B estradiol and progesterone associated with mating behavior during early pregnancy in female rhesus monkeys.Horm. Behav. 16: 94–106.
Wilson, M. E., Walker, M. L., Pope, N. S., and Gordon, T. P. (1988). Prolonged lactational infertility in adolescent rhesus monkeys.Biol. Reprod. 38: 163:-174.
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Gust, D.A. Alpha-male sooty mangabeys differentiate between females’ fertile and their postconception maximal swellings. Int J Primatol 15, 289–301 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02735278
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02735278