Abstract
Of all the calls made by non-human primates, the function of short-distance contact calls has largely remained to be determined. These calls are the most frequent in the repertoire and are most often exchanged between individuals in a non-random way. To our knowledge, no study has ever examined how vocal exchanges are structured in red-capped mangabeys (Cercocebus torquatus), a semi-terrestrial monkey living in the African forest with a complex semi-tolerant/semi-despotic social system. Our goal was to assess the organization of contact call exchanges in this species and their relationship with individual and social factors such as age, affinity, and hierarchy. Therefore, we observed several captive groups of red-capped mangabeys and collected data on vocal behavior, as well as grooming, agonistic behavior, and spatial proximity. We defined a vocal exchange in this species as a series of contact calls made by two or more individuals within a maximum inter-caller interval of 2 s. At the individual level, the higher the individual's hierarchical rank, the less they initiated exchanges. Furthermore, the most socially integrated individuals had a longer average response time than the less integrated ones. At the dyadic level, preferred exchange partners were individuals often observed near one other or individuals most distant in age. Also, the further apart two individuals were in the dominance hierarchy, the shorter the response time. Our results support both the social bonding hypothesis and a modulating key role of the dominance hierarchy on the social use of contact calls, which is in line with the social style of this species.
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04 February 2023
A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-023-01835-y
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Acknowledgements
Our main thanks go to the animal caretakers in charge of the animals studied (Arnaud Rossard, Philippe Bec, Céline Nicolle, Marine Mergen).
Funding
This research received funds from Rennes 1 University, National Center for Scientific Research (C.N.R.S.), French University Institute (I.U.F.) and from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement No 788077, Orisem, PI: Schlenker). Research was conducted in part at Institut d’Etudes Cognitives, Ecole Normale Supérieure – PSL Research University, supported by grants ANR-10-IDEX-0001-02 and FrontCog ANR-17-EURE-0017.
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Meunier, B., Durier, V., Giacalone, A. et al. Social factors drive vocal exchanges in red-capped mangabeys (Cercocebus torquatus). Sci Nat 110, 2 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-023-01830-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-023-01830-3