Abstract
It is common that neighboring groups of the same species use some of the same areas, resulting in home-range overlap. Areas between the home ranges of neighboring groups not used by either group (no-use zone or NUZ) are rarely reported. Here, we report the existence of a NUZ between the home ranges of two Geoffroy’s spider monkey groups, and examine its spatial changes over time and the ecological and behavioral underpinnings of such phenomenon. Although its size and location changed between 2017 and 2022, the NUZ was always present. We did not find any differences in the vegetation structure and composition between the NUZ and the ranging areas and in the monkeys’ activity patterns between areas adjacent to the NUZ and the other parts of the ranging areas. The number of monkey vocalizations was lower and subgroup size was smaller (although the number of males did not differ) in areas adjacent to the NUZ than in the other parts of the ranging areas. Both changes possibly reflect the tendency to conceal their presence to the neighboring group. Our findings contribute to the understanding of primate space use and highlight the need to focus on the areas delimiting home ranges.
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The data analyzed in this paper are available from the authors upon request.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Cecilia Cahum Cahum, Romina María Yitani Medina, Michelle Adair Montalvo Cervantes, Samantha Lucrecia del Valle Ismael, Mónica Margarita Maravert Solano, Bac Yaroslab Becerril Vargas and Avelino Caamal for their assistance in data collection. We thank Los Árboles Tulum for permission and logistical and financial support to perform field work. Research complied with protocols approved by the Secretaría del Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (SEMARNAT: SGPA/DGVS/10405/15, SGPA/DGVS/03005/19, and SGPA/DGVS/07570/21). We thank the Secretaría de Educación Pública for a PRODEP postdoctoral fellowship to DS (511-6/18-1891). We are also thankful to the editors and the two anonymous reviewers for helpful discussions and constructive comments on the manuscript.
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Conceptualization: FA, AASS, DS, EP; Methodology: FA, DS, EP; Formal analysis and investigation: DS, EP; Writing-original draft preparation: AASS, EP; Writing-review and editing: FA, DS; Funding acquisition: FA, DS.
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Research complied with protocols approved by the Secretaría del Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (SEMARNAT: SGPA/DGVS/10405/15, SGPA/DGVS/03005/19, and SGPA/DGVS/07570/21). This study was strictly observational in nature and conforms to the International Primatological Society principles of good practice for field primatology. A minimum distance of 10 m was maintained between the monkeys and the observers at all times to minimize the chance of transmission of infectious diseases (Lappan et al. 2020).
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Pietrangeli, E., Saldaña-Sánchez, A.A., Spaan, D. et al. Let’s not use it! A dynamic no-use zone between the home ranges of two spider monkey groups. Primates 65, 173–181 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-024-01119-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-024-01119-7