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Tool use in wild spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi)

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Abstract

Tool use has been observed in a variety of primate species, including both New and Old World monkeys. However, such reports mainly address the most prodigious tool users and frequently limit discussions of tool-using behavior to a foraging framework. Here, we present observations of novel and spontaneous tool use in wild black-handed spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi), where female spider monkeys used detached sticks in a self-directed manner. We introduce factors to explain Ateles tool-using abilities and limitations, and encourage the synthesis of relevant research in order to gain insight into the cognitive abilities of spider monkeys and the evolution of tool-using behaviors in primates.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the Republic of Costa Rica for granting us permission to study and Hiner Ramirez for welcoming us to El Zota Biological Field Station. Jill Pruetz provided intellectual and logistical support, and Thomas LaDuke and Kimberly Dingess facilitated the research process. Thanks to Benjamin Beck, Dawn Kitchen, Janni Pedersen, Erik Otárola-Castillo, Kristina Walkup, Ellen Furlong, Matt Lattanzio and three anonymous reviewers for providing helpful comments on previous versions of this paper. Several institutions generously contributed to our research: Animal Behavior Society, Department of Anthropology at Iowa State University, DANTA: Association for Conservation of the Tropics, and Sigma Xi.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, Iowa State University, 324 Curtiss Hall, Ames, IA, 50011, USA

    Stacy M. Lindshield

  2. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Program, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, USA

    Stacy M. Lindshield

  3. Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

    Michelle A. Rodrigues

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  1. Stacy M. Lindshield
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  2. Michelle A. Rodrigues
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Correspondence to Stacy M. Lindshield.

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Lindshield, S.M., Rodrigues, M.A. Tool use in wild spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi). Primates 50, 269–272 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-009-0144-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-009-0144-3

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