PRIMATE SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN WINTER MEETINGThis event is sponsored by Primate Society of Great Britain Winter Meeting 2020 Napier Award Dr Robin Morrison Inter-group relationships

PRIMATE SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN

WINTER MEETING

1st & 2nd December 2020

~ONLINE~

This event is sponsored by

Primate Society of Great Britain

Winter Meeting

2020

Dr Ramesh ‘Zimbo’ Boonratana

Affiliation: Mahidol University, Thailand.

Asian Primates & Asian Primatology: Status, Issues, Constraints, Gaps, and

Options

Globally, we now recognized more than 700 extant non-human primate species and

subspecies. This is about 100 taxa (species and subspecies) more than what we

recognised in 2000. Also, we can still expect new taxa to be continually described. The

increasing number of taxa also means that we are required to re-visit what we already

know about their distribution, ecology and behaviour. In addition, despite the

excitement and importance of describing new taxa (and discovering new

subpopulations), many non-human primate taxa are increasingly threatened with

extinction. Hence, we are also required to re-analyse their conservation status and re-

think our conservation strategies and approaches if we wish to ensure their continued

persistence. In Asia, despite having made tremendous advances in our body of

knowledge on and conservation efforts for the non-human primates, they have been

often patchy. Moreover, developments in the field of primatology in Asia are often

wrought with numerous issues, constraints and challenges. Hence, in this plenary talk, I

shall provide a broad overview of the status of Asian primates and Asian primatology. I

shall also share a glimpse into a conservation practitioner’s perspectives on some of the

issues, constraints and gaps plaguing Asian primatology. Finally, I shall propose some

options and encourage a discussion on additional ones to address these obstacles.

Plenary Speakers



Winter Meeting

2020

Professor Jo Setchell

Affiliation: Durham University, UK.

Decolonising Primatology

The legacies of colonialism continue to influence every aspect of our lives, including

our work as primatologists. We live and work in structurally racist societies and our

acceptance of existing power imbalances affects who we listen to, who we trust,

whose work we value, and whose understandings we prioritise. To decolonise

primatology, we must acknowledge and confront the colonial history of research in

the tropics and the continuing influence of colonialism on the systems and societies

we work in. We must reflect on our own biases, question dominant discourses, and

interrogate the influence of dominant groups on our discipline. We must examine how

our policies, procedures and practices discriminate against, marginalise and exploit

people, and use the privilege we have to help dismantle systems of oppression. Not

doing so perpetuates inequities, impoverishes our discipline and leads to conservation

failure. Doing so will benefit primatologists by improving the experience of individuals,

primatology because attention to diverse perspectives, expertise and experience

enriches our knowledge and understanding; and primates because inclusive practice

is essential to successful conservation.

Plenary Speakers



Winter Meeting

2020

Napier Award

Dr Robin Morrison

Inter-group relationships influence territorial defence in mountain gorillas

Authors: Robin E Morrison1,2, Jean Paul Hirwa1, Jean Pierre S Mucyo1, Tara S Stoinski1,

Veronica Vecellio1, Winnie Eckardt1

Affiliations: ¹Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. ²Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour,

University of Exeter.

Many species show territoriality, in which territory owners have exclusive or priority use of a region

and space is defended against neighbours. In humans, tolerance of others within our space also

depends greatly on our social relationships with them. This has been hypothesised as one

potential driver of the evolution of long-term, inter-group friendships, through enabling shared

access of resources and easing disputes over space. However, extremely little is known about

the importance of social relationships between neighbouring groups in non-humans for how

space is used and shared. Using 16 years of data on the movement and interaction patterns of

17 mountain gorilla groups (Gorilla beringei beringei) in the Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda,

we investigated how the likelihood of aggression and affiliation during 170 inter-group

encounters was influenced by both their social and spatial context. We found evidence of

territorial defence, with rates of aggression increasing towards the centre of home ranges.

Groups which had previously split from each other showed higher levels of affiliation during

encounters with each other and experienced lower levels of aggression when within the other's

peripheral home range. However, encounters within core areas of the home range consistently

elicited higher aggression, regardless of the groups' history. Our findings indicate that not only

are social relationships between individuals maintained after a group splits, but that these

relationships enable groups to access certain areas with a reduced risk of aggression. This

suggests that reduced aggression when accessing areas within neighbours' home ranges may

be an advantage for the maintenance of inter-group relationships and a potential driver in the

evolution of long-term, post-dispersal relationships and complex multi-level societies.

Award & Medal

Winners



Winter Meeting

2020

Osman Hill Memorial Lecture

Professor Leslie C. Aiello, FBA

President Emerita, Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research,

Professor Emerita, University College London

Reflections on the Expensive Tissue Hypothesis

2020 is the 25th anniversary of the publication of the Expensive Tissue Hypothesis (EHT).

In this Osman Hill Memorial lecture I reflect on the development of the ETH as well as on

its fate over the years. Twenty-five years ago, interest in the early stages of human

evolution centered on the plethora of fossil material coming out of eastern Africa as well

as on the use of primate models to provide insight into the remarkable evolution of the

human brain. The ETH took a different approach. Building a then nascent interest in the

application of human biology and physiology to human evolution, it aimed to explain

how we could support a large brain, not why it evolved. An attraction of the hypothesis

was the clear energy trade-off in humans of the large brain size and small gut size.

Because a smaller gut requires high quality food such as an increased reliance on

animal-based resources, it fit well with what was then known from the archaeological

record and with the more human-like Homo erectus body form. Over the years, the

most contentious part of the ETH has been its general application beyond human

evolution. Tests of the hypothesis have focused on animals as disparate as fish, frogs,

bats and birds, where a brain/gut trade-off is frequently found in cold-blooded animals

while trade-offs with other energetically expensive organs or activities are more

common in warm blooded animals. The main lesson is that a simple organ trade-off is

only part of a much more complicated system of energetic balance. Perhaps the most

lasting significance of the ETH is that it helped to generate interest in the role of

energetics in evolution, which has produced significant advances in our understanding

of the course of human biological and behavioural evolution.

Award & Medal

Winners



Winter Meeting

2020

Workshop One: Use of technology to analyse video footage.

The workshop will start with a short presentation (~15 minutes) on the various

automated methods that can be used to analyse video footage of

primates including animal detection, individual recognition and tracking.

This will be followed by a practical on using a particular piece of free

software deeplabcut (http://www.mousemotorlab.org/deeplabcut) to try

finding landmarks such as eyes, nose and ears in your own videos using

preexisting primate, cat or dog models. Attendees will need access to

google chrome and one or more videos of primates, cats or dogs (or similar

animals).

Workshop Two: Careers in Primatology and Beyond.

The workshop allows participants to discuss and explore careers in

primatology or where starting a career in primatology can lead to! Joining

the workshop will be: Ben Garrod discussing public engagement/science

TV; Zanna Clay discussing academic research; Simon Husson founder of

Orangutan Tropical Peatland Project; Director of Borneo Nature

Foundation; Andrea Dempsey discussing captive care and conservation

work and Lewis Dean discussing research policy.

Workshops



Winter Meeting

2020

Intercommunity interactions and killings in central chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes

troglodytes) from Loango National Park, Gabon

Laura Martínez-Íñigo

Authors: Laura Martínez-Íñigo, Pauline Baas, Harmonie Klein, Simone Pika, Tobias Deschner

Affiliations: At the time of research, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6,

04103, Leipzig, Germany.

Intercommunity competition in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) has been widely studied

in eastern (P.t.schweinfurthii) and western (P.t.verus) communities. Both subspecies show

hostility towards neighbouring communities but differ in rates of lethal attacks and

female involvement. However, relatively little is known about the territorial behaviour of

central chimpanzees (P.t.troglodytes). Here, we present the first insights into

intercommunity interactions of individuals of a community of central chimpanzees,

Rekambo, living in the Loango National Park in Gabon. The presence of individuals of

neighbouring communities in the Rekambo home range was assessed using 27 camera-

traps and compiling information on intergroup interactions recorded before (2005-2016,

N=4) and after (January 2017-June 2019, N=21) the habituation of the community.

Individuals from neighbouring communities repeatedly entered the core area, where

intercommunity encounters were frequent. Males were the main participants in

territorial patrols and intercommunity aggressions. Nevertheless, female participation in

patrols was often observed, with females frequently accompanied by dependent

offspring, and actively participating in intercommunity aggression. While the

intercommunity encounter rate was lower than that reported across most other long-

term chimpanzee sites, the annual intercommunity killing rate was the highest. These

results suggest that the frequency of lethal attacks at Loango is comparable to that

reported for the eastern subspecies. In contrast, the frequency of female involvement

mirrors those of the western subspecies.

Presentations

Session One



Winter Meeting

2020

Integration of semi-automated methods for welfare assessments in group-housed

rhesus macaques used in neuroscience research.

Rhyanne Heppenstall

Authors: R Heppenstall¹, S Minano², A Fisk¹, M de Vos³, R Austin¹, M Bonsall², CE Bergmann⁴

Affiliations: ¹Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford. ²Department of Zoology,

University of Oxford. ³Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford. ⁴Department of Biomedical

Services, University of Oxford.

Assessing welfare in rhesus macaques used in neuroscience research relies on obtaining

physiological and behavioural measures to optimise and implement the 3Rs: Replacement,

Reduction and Refinement. Through effective welfare assessment, potential refinements to

laboratory practices may be highlighted. Measuring behaviour and physical activity can offer key

insight into animal welfare. Traditional methods of behavioural assessment are limited by resources

and observer influence. We aim to quantify activity and behaviour using compact, uniaxial

accelerometers. Accelerometers are placed inside individually designed soft, microfiber neck

collars. This provides non-invasive, continuous measurements of activity in freely moving, group-

housed, research macaques. Data has been collected intermittently over 5 years, when opportunity

allowed, from a total of 47 individual macaques enrolled in long-term neuroscience studies at the

University of Oxford. Non-invasive collar fitting and continuous data collection, in parallel with

ongoing neuroscience protocols, provides opportunities to explore changes in macaque activity

throughout their neuroscience careers. Accelerometers collect data before and after potentially

welfare compromising events, e.g. neuroscientific procedures. We investigate multiple analyses of

this data to explore activity and behaviour. Preliminary analysis shows individual variation in activity

budget; factors such as age, weight and social structure appear to contribute to individual activity

patterns. Additionally, preliminary results show change in macaque activity in response to significant

events. Numerous methods are explored to assess behaviour using this data. One approach, a

knowledge-based method, classifies behaviour by comparing accelerometer and expert-scored

video data (n; 4 different animals, 2-4 hours of video analysis per animal). This method differentiates

between behavioural categories such as resting, foraging and locomotion. Other methods also

explored, including logistic regression and Hidden Markov models, use exclusively accelerometer

data. Accelerometery is a powerful method, providing a non-intrusive, convenient measure of

animal welfare in order to keep advancing the 3Rs.



Winter Meeting

2020

Impact of forest protection on the ecology of red-collared brown lemur (Eulemur

collaris) in the littoral forests of southeast Madagascar

Elena Račevska

Authors: Elena Račevska¹, Catherine M. Hill¹,², Giuseppe Donati¹

Affiliations: ¹Department of Social Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Gypsy Lane, OX3 0BP Oxford, UK.

²Centre for Anthropology, Geography and Environment (CAGE), Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UK.

Protected areas are an essential conservation strategy of many developing countries,

so it is important to investigate their effects on the wildlife they are expected to protect.

Before protected areas were established in the early 2000s historic anthropogenic

pressures had led to a heavy degradation of many of the littoral forest fragments in

southeast Madagascar. Previous studies showed a large discrepancy of red-collared

brown lemur (Eulemur collaris) habitat use between the more degraded and the more

intact areas. As littoral forests on sandy soils regenerate slowly, we examined whether

two decades of protection were enough to see a similarity in the ecology of brown

lemurs inhabiting two areas of different past levels of forest use: the historically more

degraded Mandena, and the more intact Sainte Luce. We hypothesised that lemur

home range sizes and diet will now be more similar between the two areas. We

collected data on feeding and ranging behaviour focusing on three lemur groups

during all-day and all-night follows conducted between August 2017 and August 2018.

We used focal-animal instantaneous sampling during the day, and auditory group

sampling at night, both at five-minute intervals. We collected spatial data every 30

minutes using a handheld GPS unit. We found that Mandena lemurs’ home ranges were

similar in size to those of Sainte Luce lemurs, as well as less fragmented than previously

reported. Lemurs remained predominantly frugivorous year-round in both Sainte Luce

and Mandena, but their fruit consumption and dietary diversity were higher in the period

of abundance. While their activity budgets were similar in both areas, lemurs spent more

time feeding in the lean period. Our results show that two decades of forest protection

allowed a degraded forest to recover enough to sustain the largest lemur species in the

littoral forest habitat



Winter Meeting

2020

Authors: Miarisoa L. Ramilison1, Bertrand Andriatsitohaina2,3, Coral Chell 4, Romule Rakotondravony 1,

Ute Radespiel 3, Malcolm S. Ramsay3,5*

Affiliation: 1Faculté des Sciences, de Technologies et de l’Environnement, Université de Mahajanga,

Mahajanga, Boeny, Madagascar. 2Ecole Doctorale sur les Ecosystèmes Naturels EDEN, Université de

Mahajanga, Mahajanga, 12 Boeny, Madagascar.3 Institute of Zoology, University of Veterinary

Medicine Hannover, Hannover, Lower-Saxony, Germany. 4 University Centre, Bishop Burton College,

United Kingdom. 5 Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Habitat loss and fragmentation affect species occurrence and distribution in rapidly changing

ecosystems. These issues are especially relevant on the island of Madagascar where modern

deforestation has been widespread and is ongoing. Here we investigated the occurrence of the

Critically Endangered Coquerel’s sifaka (Propithecus coquereli) in an anthropogenically modified

landscape: the Mariarano region of Northwestern Madagascar to fill in gaps in species knowledge.

We surveyed four large forest sites from 500 to 5,000 ha and 16 forest fragments ranging from 1.5 to

19.2 ha in size, across two consecutive field seasons in 2017 and 2018. We recorded various

attributes of the sites such as area, distance to nearest large forest, and anthropogenic

disturbance, which was quantified by measuring various signs, including cut trees, maciba (wild

yam) holes, old/new paths and zebu carts. Overall, we encountered sifakas in 10 of 16 fragments

and in all large forest sites, with most encounters occurring in habitat edge zones. Furthermore, we

encountered 19 sifakas in the matrix such as in villages and fields. Finding that neither human

disturbance, area, nor distance to a large forest predicted the presence of sifaka in the Mariarano

region. Results suggest that Coquerel’s sifaka are able to persist in highly degraded and small

forests fragments, however further research is needed in order to assess the long-term viability of

this species in anthropogenically modified landscapes. The Mariarano area also presents an

intriguing example of location-specific conservation, showing remarkably different patterns in

biogeographical distribution when compared to Ankarafantsika National Park, where Coquerel’s

sifaka can also be found. Mariarano also presents many cultural and socioeconomical differences,

including the strict adherence to local fady. Further research should also look to investigate the

factors leading to the adherence of this fady and its link to the presence of Coquerel’s sifaka within

the area.

Distribution of the Critically Endangered Coquerel’s Sifaka (Propithecus coquereli)

across a fragmented landscape in NW Madagascar.

Coral Chell



Winter Meeting

2020

Call combinations in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii)

Maël Leroux

Authors: Mae ̈l Leroux¹ ² ³, Katie E. Slocombe⁴, Anne M. Schelَ⁵, Klaus Zuberbühler² ³ ⁶ ⁷,

Simon W. Townsend¹ ³ ⁸

Affiliations: ¹Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.

²Budongo Conservation Field Station, Masindi, Uganda. ³Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of

Language Evolution (ISLE), University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland. ⁴Department of Psychology, University

of York, York, UK. ⁵Animal Ecology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands. ⁶Department of Comparative

Cognition, University of Neuchâtel, Neuchâtel, Switzerland. ⁷School of Psychology and Neuroscience,

University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK. ⁸Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Warwick, UK

A key feature of language argued to distinguish it from other animal communication systems is

its compositionality: meaningful words are combined into larger structures with a derived

meaning (Hurford, 2011). By searching for core features of language in the communication

systems of our closest-living relatives, particularly the apes, it is possible to elucidate whether

these are de novo-evolved traits in humans or whether they have their origins rooted in the

primate lineage. Using a high-density data approach, we are currently investigating candidate

compositional structures in chimpanzees. Preliminary data collected in the Budongo forest,

Uganda, indicate combinations of pant-hoots (long-distance contact call) with food calls might

represent a potential relevant candidate with compositional-like structure. Ongoing analyses

are exploring this call combination further by investigating its underlying structure and the socio-

ecological contexts accompanying its production. Moreover, predator presentations suggest

chimpanzees combine calls (alarm-hoos + waa-barks) when encountering snakes, specifically

when other individuals are present, potentially to recruit group members in a dangerous

situation. Ongoing playback experiments aim to further investigate the meaning and function

of this call combination and test whether chimpanzees process it as a compositional-like

structure. Preliminary analyses of playback responses suggest the alarm-hoo-waa-bark

combination is meaningful to receivers and, critically, is related to the individual meaning of the

comprising calls. Ultimately, this work will help clarify whether one of the core building-blocks of

language, compositionality, also exists in the communication systems of our closest relative and

therefore is evolutionarily more ancient.

Presentations

Session Two



Winter Meeting

2020

Twenty-five monkeys from DR Congo confiscated in Zimbabwe, with the aim of

reintroduction

Gregg Tully

Affiliation: Pan African Sanctuary Alliance

There is increasing evidence of trade in African primates through South Africa, including

18 chimpanzees that were exported to China in 2019, representing a significant threat

to the conservation of Africa primates. In September 2020, 25 monkeys that were

recently poached from the wild in the Democratice Republic of Congo (reported as

two lesulas (Cercopithecus lomamiensis), 12 golden bellied mangabeys (Cercocebus

chrysogaster), two L’Hoest’s monkeys (Allochrocebus lhoesti), two grey-cheeked

mangabeys (Lophocebus albigena), five putty-nosed monkeys (Cercopithecus

nictitans), and two Allen’s swamp monkeys (Allenopithecus nigroviridis)) were

confiscated in Zimbabwe en route to South Africa, likely to be exported from there. This

is the largest primate confiscation known to PASA. After the monkeys spent two months

in cages at a border checkpoint, JACK (a PASA member sanctuary in Lubumbashi, DR

Congo) obtained approval to accept them, with the intent to reintroduce as many as

possible. This rescue was pivotal for disrupting wildlife trafficking between DR Congo and

South Africa. If the monkeys had not been transferred to JACK, they were expected to

go to a tourist attraction or be sold back into the international wildlife trade, with no

opportunity to be reintroduced. PASA has formed a working group of primatologists with

experience rehabilitating and reintroducing related species of monkeys, who will work

with the leaders of JACK. The presentation will describe the process of negotiating with

government agencies in Zimbabwe and DR Congo, providing veterinary care,

establishing social groups for the monkeys at JACK, identifying release sites for each

species, and beginning to assess each monkey for suitability of being reintroduced.



Winter Meeting

2020

Road crossing and roadkill in the Zanzibar red colobus (Piliocolobus kirkii)

Harry Olgun

Authors: Harry Olgun¹ ², Zoe E. Melvin¹ ², Mzee Khamis Mohammed³, Abbas Juma Mzee³, M.E. Landry

Green² ⁴, Graeme Shannon¹, Tim R. B. Davenport⁵ & Alexander V. Georgiev¹ ²

Affiliations: ¹School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor, UK. ²Zanzibar Red Colobus Project.

³Department of Forestry and Non-Renewable Natural Resources, Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar,

Zanzibar, Tanzania. ⁴Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of

Glasgow, Glasgow, UK. ⁵Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Zanzibar, Tanzania

Roads intersecting primate habitat are thought to be a significant source of mortality for

some primates. However, few studies have quantified the risk posed by vehicles or the

behavioural counterstrategies that primates may use in response. We examined 5 months

of direct behavioural observations of three Zanzibar red colobus groups and a four-year

opportunistic dataset on roadkill along a road intersecting Jozani-Chwaka Bay National

Park, Zanzibar. We hypothesised that (1) colobus can assess road risks and adjust their

behaviour to minimise this risk and (2) age-sex classes will be killed at different rates from

their availability in the population. Our five-month behavioural study documented 46 group

crossing events, with 473 individual crossings within them. We found male colobus crossed

roads slower and sat on the road more often compared to females. Females with infants

hesitated more often before crossing, compared to females without infants. Over the four-

year study, we recorded 29 colobus killed on the road. Although more female colobus were

found dead on the road than any other age-sex class, they were not killed more often than

expected, based on their representation in the local population. We estimate roadkill-

related mortality in this population could be as high as 3% annually. Historical data suggest

speed reduction measures on this road, specifically speedbumps, reduce the risk of roadkill

for this species, but current estimates of mortality show colobus could benefit from a

combination of additional speedbumps and other mitigation. Mortality from vehicle

collisions at Jozani, where the only potential predators are dogs and humans, were within

the range of mortality experienced by other primates from natural predation. However,

unlike natural predators, vehicles do not ‘selectively’ target their ‘prey’. The long-term

implications of this ‘predation regime’ remain to be established.



Winter Meeting

2020

Sharing habitats: the effects of anthropogenic disturbance on Geoffroy’s spider

monkeys in the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico

Anja Hutschenreiter

Authors: Anja Hutschenreiter¹ ², Ammie Kalan³, Martha Bonilla Moheno⁴, Jorge E. Morales Mavil¹, Salvador

Mandujano Rodriguez⁴, Margarita Briseño Jaramillo¹ ², Filippo Aureli ¹ ² ⁵

Affiliations:¹Instituto de Neuroetología, Universidad Veracruzana, Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico.

²ConMonoMaya A.C., Chemax, Yucatan, Mexico. ³Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology,

Former Department of Primatology, Leipzig, Germany. ⁴Red de Ambiente y Sustentabilidad, Instituto de

Ecología A.C., Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico. ⁵Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and

Palaeoecology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, L3 3AF, United Kingdom

Shared habitats between human and non-human primates have become a major

conservation challenge in the 21st century, demanding solutions for a successful co-

existence. Accurate determination of species distributions and monitoring of

populations are important requirements for successful conservation. In this study, we

evaluated the effects of different types of anthropogenic disturbance on the

abundance of Geoffroy’s spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) in a growing tourist hotspot

and priority conservation area in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Over the course of 18

months, 49 survey locations were sampled repeatedly to assess the presence of spider

monkeys, for a total of 98 hours of point-count sampling and 7,632 hours of passive

acoustic monitoring. Combining data from both survey methods, we used Royle-Nichols

models to test the predictions that human settlements, recreational areas, forest loss

and human noise pollution would negatively affect the abundance of Geoffroy’s spider

monkeys. Contrary to our predictions, our results show a higher monkey abundance in

locations with a higher degree of anthropogenic disturbance. Forest loss, recreational

areas with high tourist abundance and the distance to the nearest human settlement

were the main factors influencing monkey abundance. We discuss the surprising results,

derive appropriate conservation strategies for spider monkeys in human-modified

habitats and recommend passive auditory monitoring as a new approach for

conservation research on spider monkeys in challenging environments.

Presentations

Session Three



Winter Meeting

2020

Meaning and context in bonobo (Pan paniscus) gestures

Kirsty E. Graham

Authors: Kirsty E. Graham¹, Takeshi Furuichi², Richard W. Byrne¹

Affiliations: ¹School of Psychology & Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, UK. ²Primate Research

Institute, Kyoto University, Japan

In most languages, individual words can be ambiguous across several different

meanings, but through syntax and context the intended meaning of an ambiguous

word usually becomes apparent. Many nonhuman great ape gestures also have

ambiguous meanings, which poses the problem of how individuals can interpret the

signaller’s intended meaning in specific instances. Nonhuman great apes deploy a set

of over 60 gestures to communicate, and these gestures can be used flexibly for

different meanings and in different contexts. However, past studies have tended to

focus on either meaning or context, without examining them together. Here, we present

research on the gestural repertoire and meanings of two groups (E1 group, n=39; P

group, n=30) of wild bonobos (Pan paniscus) at Wamba, Democratic Republic of the

Congo. We tested the effects of sequence-order syntax and situational context on

gesture meanings. We found no effect on a gesture’s meaning from its presence and

position in sequence. However, two aspects of social context did affect meaning:

behaviour of the signaller immediately prior to gesturing, and relative age/sex of

signaller and recipient. The intended meaning of ambiguous gestures was almost

completely disambiguated by means of these aspects of context. Our findings suggest

that the use of contextual information to interpret ambiguous signals predates the

uniquely-human lineage and is not specific to language.



Winter Meeting

2020

Primates’ reactions to death: why do mothers carry the corpses of their dead infants?

Elisa Fernández-Fueyo

Authors: Elisa Fernández-Fueyo and Alecia Carter

Affiliations: University College London (UCL)

Infants’ corpses carrying by non-human primate mothers (ICC) is the most reported

response to the death of a conspecific. Despite its prevalence, quantitative analyses of

this behaviour is scarce and inconclusive. Drawing on published records, we compiled

the largest database of cases of primate mothers’ responses to their infants’ deaths to

test hypotheses proposed to explain between- and within-species variation in the

duration of the ICC behaviour. We used Bayesian phylogenetic regressions to analyse

416 cases across 50 different primate species. Five factors were found to influence ICC

occurrence: the age of the mother, the cause of death, the encephalization quotient

(EQ), the climate type and the habitat condition. Two factors were found to influence

ICC duration for those corpses that were carried: habitat condition and infant age. The

latter result may provide support for the mother-infant bond strength hypothesis to

explain ICC, which suggests that the behaviour is a by-product of the strong mother-

infant bond in mammals. Additionally, some causes of death possibly promote mothers’

detachment from the infants’ corpses or faster death detection. Finally, ICC is more likely

to occur in populations provisioned with food than in wild populations, suggesting that

ICC is an energetically costly behaviour. The results are discussed in the context of the

evolution of emotion and the awareness of death



Winter Meeting

2020

The IUCN Primate Specialist Group Section for Human-Primate Interactions: Working

toward inclusive and effective conservation practice

Sian Waters

Authors: Sian Waters¹ ² & Susan M Cheyne¹ ³

Affiliations: ¹IUCN Primate Specialist Group, Co-Vice Chair, Section for Human-Primate Interactions

https://human-primate-interactions.org/. ²Durham University, UK. ³Oxford Brookes University

The IUCN SSC PSG Section for Human-Primate Interactions (SHPI) was initiated in 2016.

One of our first tasks was to address the, often negative, issues arising from the

prevalence of images of a primate in contact with a human on social media. As

primatologists we take photos of our study animals, both in the wild and in captivity (zoos

and rescue/rehabilitation centres). We use these photos and videos across social media

(personal and public accounts), on websites and give them to TV and film crews, often

with the best intentions of highlighting the important conservation work being done.

Additionally, primatologists participate in films where we are often in close proximity to

primates. To assist primatologists to decide whether to publish such images SHPI is

working on Best Practice Guidelines for Responsible Images of Non-Human Primates. This

document will be accompanied by a pledge to refrain from publishing photos of

ourselves and other humans in close proximity to primates. We are confident we have

a document that can be adopted by primatologists globally and also be accessible to

non-primatologists to present a united and unambiguous approach to the issues around

primate imagery. In order to facilitate engagement and capacity building, our other

main focus has been the organisation of inclusive webinars about various aspects of

human-primate interactions. We ensure that invited early career primatologists are able

to showcase their work and our webinars are very accessible due to being livestreamed

via Zoom to our Facebook page. We present the results of these webinars in viewing

figures and qualitative feedback from viewers and participants which demonstrate the

efficacy of our inclusive approach.

https://human-primate-interactions.org/



Winter Meeting

2020

Kelly Desruelle Ontogeny of social grooming in wild infant

chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii)

at Ngogo, Uganda

Naomi L Mansell Human-primate interactions with Panamanian

white-faced capuchin monkeys (Cebus

imitator)

Rebecca Sweet Enclosure Use and Social Relationships of

Captive Western Lowland Gorillas (Gorilla

gorilla gorilla): The Influence of Sex, Age and

Hierarchal Position

Sergio Díaz Chimpanzee lateralization across multiple

behaviours

Anna Watkins Initial Evidence for Mimicry of the Cobra (Naja

spp.) in the Javan Slow Loris (Nycticebus

javanicus)

Brook Aldrich The Asia for Animals Macaque Coalition

João d’Oliveira

Coelho

Using fossil evidence to improve our

understanding of divergence estimates for the

Panini and Hominini lineages

Leslie Paige Evolution of a dispersed pair living social system

in the Javan slow loris (Nycticebus javanicus)

Please visit www.psgb.org for poster viewing. Posters will be displayed until 4th January

2021. Contact details for any questions are available.

Poster

Presentations

http://www.psgb.org/



Winter Meeting

2020

DAY ONE DAY TWO

10.00-

10.15

Welcome by PSGB President 10.00-

10.15

Welcome by PSGB

Secretary

10.15-

11.00

Plenary

Asian Primates & Asian

Primatology: Status, Issues,

Constraints, Gaps, and

Options

Speaker: Dr Ramesh ‘Zimbo’

Boonratana

10.15-

11.00

Plenary

Decolonising Primatology

Speaker: Professor Jo

Setchell

11.00 Coffee 11.00 Coffee

11.20 Napier Award

Dr Robin Morrison

11.20

Presentation Session Two 11.40 Q&A for Plenary & Napier

12.00 LUNCH 12.20 Poster Session

13.00

Presentation Session One 13.00 LUNCH

14.00

Osman Hill Lecture

Professor Leslie Aiello

14.20 Coffee

14.45 AGM

15.30 Workshop One: Use of

technology to analyse

video footage.

OR

Workshop Two: Careers in

primatology and beyond.

15.00 Coffee

15.20

Presentation Session Three

16.40 Closing remarks

16.45 Finish 16.45 Finish

17.30 Social: Quiz

Documents

PRIMATE SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN WINTER MEETINGThis event is sponsored by Primate Society of Great Britain Winter Meeting 2020 Napier Award Dr Robin Morrison Inter-group relationships