Consortship and Mating Success in Chacma Baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus)

Chacma baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus) show a lower consortship take‐over rate and longer consortship duration than the other savannah baboons ( Bulger 1993 ). It has been argued that researchers have focused on atypically small troops with few adult males, resulting in low competition for access to oestrous females. Consortship data from two mountain baboon troops containing seven and four males, respectively, were analysed to determine whether the troop with the greater number of males showed a weaker correlation between mating success and rank due to an expected higher consortship take‐over rate. No consort take‐overs were observed in either study troop and mating success in both troops was correlated strongly with male rank. The distribution of days spent in consortship amongst the males could be explained by the priority‐of‐access‐model. The degree of cycle overlap determined the number of males observed consorting oestrous females, whereas the number of males did not influence the relationship between rank and consorting activity.     

Ontogenetic Scaling of Fore- and Hind Limb Posture in Wild Chacma Baboons (Papio hamadryas ursinus)

Large-scale interspecific studies of mammals ranging between 0.04–280 kg have shown that larger animals walk with more extended limb joints. Within a taxon or clade, however, the relationship between body size and joint posture is less straightforward. Factors that may affect the lack of congruence between broad and narrow phylogenetic analyses of limb kinematics include limited sampling of (1) ranges of body size, and/or (2) numbers of individuals. Unfortunately, both issues are inherent in laboratory-based or zoo locomotion research. In this study, we examined the relationship between body mass and elbow and knee joint angles (our proxies of fore- and hind limb posture, respectively) in a cross-sectional ontogenetic sample of wild chacma baboons (Papio hamadryas ursinus) habituated in the De Hoop Nature Reserve, South Africa. Videos were obtained from 33 individuals of known age (12 to ≥108 months) and body mass (2–29.5 kg) during walking trials. Results show that older, heavier baboons walk with significantly more extended knee joints but not elbow joints. This pattern is consistent when examining only males, but not within the female sample. Heavier, older baboons also display significantly less variation in their hind limb posture compared to lighter, young animals. Thus, within this ontogenetic sample of a single primate species spanning an order of magnitude in body mass, hind limb posture exhibited a postural scaling phenomenon while the forelimbs did not. These findings may further help explain 1) why younger mammals (including baboons) tend to have relatively stronger bones than adults, and 2) why humeri appear relatively weaker than femora (in at least baboons). Finally, this study demonstrates how field-acquired kinematics can help answer fundamental biomechanical questions usually addressed only in animal gait laboratories.     

Body Temperature and Physical Activity Correlates of the Menstrual Cycle in Chacma Baboons (Papio hamadryas ursinus)

We investigated the temporal relationship between abdominal temperature, physical activity, perineal swelling, and urinary progesterone and estradiol concentrations over the menstrual cycle in unrestrained captive baboons. Using a miniature temperature‐sensitive data logger surgically implanted in the abdominal cavity and an activity data logger implanted subcutaneously on the trunk, we measured, continuously over 6 months at 10‐min intervals, abdominal temperature and physical activity patterns in four female adult baboons Papio hamadryas ursinus (12.9–19.9 kg), in cages in an indoor animal facility (22–25°C). We monitored menstrual bleeding and perineal swelling changes, and measured urinary progesterone and estradiol concentrations, daily for up to 6 months, to ascertain the stage and length of the menstrual cycle. The menstrual cycle was 36 ± 2 days (mean ± SD) long and the baboons exhibited cyclic changes in perineal swellings, abdominal temperature, physical activity, urinary progesterone, and estradiol concentrations over the cycle. Mean 24‐hr abdominal temperature during the luteal phase was significantly higher than during the periovulatory phase (ANOVA, F_{(2, 9)} = 4.7; P = 0.04), but not different to that during the proliferative phase. Physical activity followed a similar pattern, with mean 24‐hr physical activity almost twice as high in the luteal than in the periovulatory phase (ANOVA, P = 0.58; F_{(2, 12)} = 5.8). We have characterized correlates of the menstrual cycle in baboons and shown, for the first time, a rhythm of physical activity and abdominal temperature over the menstrual cycle, with a nadir of temperature and activity at ovulation. Am. J. Primatol. 74:1143‐1153, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Factors Influencing the Ranging Behavior of Chacma Baboons (Papio hamadryas ursinus) Living in a Human-Modified Habitat

The introduction and eradication of alien invasive plant species potentially alters feeding and spatial ecology of wild primates. We investigated whether the removal of an important dietary resource for wild chacma baboons (Papio hamadryas ursinus), black wattle (Acacia mearnsii), from a nature reserve would result in longer daily path lengths (DPLs) and greater movement toward other resources, specifically alternative black wattle stands outside the reserve, agricultural plots, and sleeping and geophagy sites. We fitted a juvenile male baboon with a self-releasing GPS collar to track the focal troop’s movements on Wildcliff Nature Reserve and adjacent properties, located in the Western Cape, South Africa, from January 25, 2010 to January 18, 2011. During this time, Working for Water, an environmental conservation initiative of the South African Department of Water Affairs, removed black wattle from the baboons’ home range. We estimated monthly home range (5.30–20.58?km²) and DPL (1.7–11.7?km) and quantified the baboons’ use of five dominant vegetation types. Our vegetation use-availability analysis indicated that the troop preferred black wattle, Afromontane forests, and, to a lesser extent, pasture, but used agricultural plots and fynbos less than expected by availability. With increasing black wattle removal in the core area, the troop traveled further toward distant sources of black wattle, using sleeping sites out of their core area to accommodate such long day journeys. A general linear model indicated that movement to black wattle stands, as well as changing sleeping sites, day length, and both spring and winter seasons all significantly increased DPL. We suggest the influence that alien invasive species and their eradication has on ranging behavior should be a consideration in primate conservation and management policies.     

Demographic consequences of a food and water shortage to desert Chacma Baboons,Papio ursinus

The age-sex composition of a chacma baboon (Papio ursinus)population changed following a 5-month interval of extreme food and water shortages. Mortality was significantly greater among adult females, juveniles, and infants than among adult males. The probable basis of 19 of 22 deaths during the interval of food and water shortage was starvation caused by drought conditions which localized water sources, reducing access to food resources. This resulted in a long-term (> 6-year) shift in adult sex ratios within this three-troop population, from 1.04 to 1.42-1.58 adult and subadult males per adult female. Patterns of intertroop interaction were also influenced by food scarcity, which determined which troop was most seriously affected.     

Digit Ratios and Dominance in Female Baboons (Papio hamadryas and Papio ursinus)

A growing body of literature suggests that the ratio between the second and fourth digits of the hands (2D:4D ratio) is associated with exposure to prenatal sex hormones in a variety of animals including primates. Female baboons form dominance hierarchies composed of matrilines of related individuals, and the social mechanisms contributing to the structure of these hierarchies have been well studied. We here investigated the relationship between inferred prenatal androgen effects (PAE) and female rank in a captive troop of Hamadryas baboons (Papio hamadryas) with a typical social structure and three captive groups of chacma baboons (Papio ursinus) made up entirely of unrelated orphans. Low 2D:4D ratios (high inferred PAE) were associated with higher-ranking females and high 2D:4D ratios (low inferred PAE) with lower-ranking females in both focal species. This negative correlation between 2D:4D ratio and rank suggests prenatal androgens are linked with the maintenance of female ranks within matrilines in troops with a natural social structure and to the ranks acquired by orphan females.     

Socioecology Explains Individual Variation in Urban Space Use in Response to Management in Cape Chacma Baboons (Papio ursinus)

International Journal of Primatology - The presence of wildlife adjacent to and within urban spaces is a growing phenomenon globally. When wildlife’s presence in urban spaces has negative...     

A-B-O groups of Chacma baboons (Papio ursinus, Kerr) in South Africa

The blood and saliva groups of 51 Chacma baboons (Papio ursinus, Kerr) were determined. The ABO blood group frequencies differed significantly from another subspecies (P. u. ursinus) but they gave a close agreement with the Hardy-Weinberg estimates. Thus the data are compatible with the hypothesis that the saliva groups of baboons are the products of two allelic genes A and B that are inherited in a similar manner to the A and B genes of humans.     

The Effects of Permanent Injury on the Behavior and Diet of Commensal Chacma Baboons (Papio ursinus) in the Cape Peninsula,South Africa

Primates may suffer injury from both natural (fights with conspecifics, predators) and human-induced (snares, power-lines and guns) causes. Though behavioral flexibility may allow primates to compensate for injuries, permanent disabilities, such as the loss of a limb, may adversely affect both foraging and locomotory efficiency and ultimately the survival and fitness of individuals. In the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, members of the chacma baboon population (Papio ursinus) experience chronic levels of conflict with humans that manifests in high levels (15%) of disabled baboons in groups that overlap with residential areas. In this study we investigate the potential impact of such disabilities by comparing the behavior and diet of disabled baboons with uninjured baboons matched closely for age, sex, and social status from groups of a similar size and composition for 8 mo, from May to December 2005. Disabled baboons spent more time resting and traveling and less time feeding than uninjured baboons. Disabled and uninjured baboons had similar diets but the former consumed fewer food items with high handling costs and fed more on high return foods than the latter. There was no difference in the frequency of grooming or social vigilance behaviors, as might be expected if disability had compromised either competitive ability or predation risk. Further, there was no difference in the survival of disabled or uninjured individuals in each group. Together these results suggest that while permanent injury may affect the behavior and diet of Peninsula baboons, that these constraints may be offset by access to anthropogenic food sources and the lack of natural predators. Disability in baboons may lead to obligate raiding of high-return anthropogenic foods, which is an important challenge for the ongoing management of this population.     

A Low-Cost Manipulation of Food Resources Reduces Spatial Overlap Between Baboons (Papio ursinus) and Humans in Conflict

Competition over food and space is a primary driver of human?Cwildlife conflict. In the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, chacma baboons (Papio ursinus) have adapted to a human-modified environment, sleeping on the urban edge and raiding anthropogenic food sources on a daily basis. Human monitors, who herd baboons away from residential areas, are currently the preferred method of conflict mitigation. However, this method is costly and suffers from short-term interruptions, wherein the unexpected absence of monitors may lead to unprepared residents using lethal force to deter raiding baboons. Elsewhere in the chacma baboon distribution (in nonconflict areas), artificial food patches have been shown to alter troop movements drastically by eliciting consistent leadership behavior from alpha males. We investigated whether an artificial patch could be used to draw baboons away from the urban environment in the absence of monitors. First, we introduced an artificial food patch into natural land within a troop??s range and monitored movement and activity patterns. Although the troop utilized the patch, there was not a significant decline in use of the urban space as they continued to favor food in urban waste sites. Maintaining the patch, we then restricted access to these waste sites using wire-mesh fencing and observed a significant reduction in the time the troop spent within the urban space. In both experimental phases we observed consistent leadership, with dominant individuals arriving first at the patch and monopolizing food items thereon. Thus, we recommend the combined strategy of reducing raiding incentives in conjunction with provisioning as a short-term, cost-effective strategy to alter a baboon troop??s movement patterns and raiding frequency.     

Body Temperature Changes in Free-ranging Baboons (Papio hamadryas ursinus) in the Namib Desert, Namibia

We surgically implanted temperature sensitive telemeters intraperitonealy in free-ranging baboons. Thereafter, we recorded body temperature changes while the baboons were free-ranging and under visual observation. Two distinct patterns of daily body temperature fluctuations occurred; they were related to the availability of drinking water. Core body temperature fluctuated by as much as 5.3°C and regularly exceeded 41°C. Behavioral adaptations of the baboons, notably sandbathing, appeared to be associated with the regulation of body temperature.     

Osteosarcoma in Baboons (Papio spp)

Bone neoplasms in baboons (Papio spp) are rare, with only one confirmed case of osteosarcoma previously described in the literature. Over a 12-y period, 6 baboons at a national primate research center presented with naturally occurring osteosarcoma; 3 lesions affected the appendicular skeleton, and the remaining 3 were in the head (skull and mandible). The 6 cases presented were identified in members of a large outdoor-housed breeding colony. The subjects were not genetically related or exposed to the same research conditions. Diagnoses were made based on the presentation and radiographic findings, with histologic confirmation.Neoplasia remains a highly prevalent condition across the majority of species. A recent survey of a large baboon colony identified 395 neoplasms among 4297 animals.⁶ The most common neoplasms documented in NHP include lymphosarcoma, adenocarcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma.⁸ Tumors involving the musculoskeletal system are much rarer than are the other previously mentioned types. The musculoskeletal neoplasms reported most prominently in the literature are osteoma, osteosarcoma, odontoma, and various types of myxoma, with Macaca spp being the NHP affected most often.⁵ However, this apparent prevalence may be artifactual due to the use of far more animals of Macaca spp compared with other NHP species.Osteosarcoma is an infrequently documented neoplasm among NHP, and it is particularly rare in baboons (Papio spp.). Combined-type osteosarcoma in a rhesus macaque,⁴ extraosseous osteosarcoma in a rhesus macaque,¹⁷ and osteoblastic osteosarcoma in a gray mouse lemur have been reported.¹⁸ Among 4 reported cases of bone tumors in baboons, only one was confirmed as osteosarcoma and involved the mandibular ramus of a male baboon.^8,12,24 Another neoplasm, identified on the distal aspect of the right ulna of a baboon, initially was described in a review article as a giant cell tumor²² but was later referred to as a fibrosarcoma²³ and then as an osteosarcoma,¹⁹ thus making the confirmed diagnosis unclear. The remaining 2 known cases of bone tumors in baboons were osteomas present in the tibia and femur.^8,12 Three other osteosarcomas were included in reviews of pathology from the Southwest National Primate Research Center (San Antonio, TX), but detailed clinical and pathologic information was not described.^6,7,9     

Natal Attraction in Adult Female Baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus) in the Moremi Reserve, Botswana

Mammalian females are strongly attracted to infants and interact regularly with them. Female baboons make persistent attempts to touch, nuzzle, smell and inspect other females’ infants, but do not hold them for long periods, carry them, or provide other kinds of care for them. Mothers generally tolerate these interactions, but never initiate them. The function of these brief alloparental interactions is not well understood. Infant handling might be a form of reproductive competition if females’ interest in infants causes distress to mothers or harm to their infants. Alternatively, infant handling might be the product of selection for appropriate maternal care if females who are highly responsive to infants are the most successful mothers. We test several predictions derived from these hypotheses with data collected in a free‐ranging group of baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus) in the Moremi Reserve of Botswana. Infants were most attractive when they were very young. Mothers of young infants were approached by other adult females on average once every 6 min, and other females attempted to handle their infants approximately once every 9 min. By the time infants were a year old, their mothers were being approached only once every 30 min and infants were being handled only once every 5 h. Females were more strongly attracted to other females’ infants when they had young infants of their own, and their interest in other females’ infants declined as their own infants matured. Females seemed to be equally attracted to all infants, but had greater access to offspring of their relatives and subordinate females. Females nearly always grunted as they handled infants. As in other contexts grunts are a reliable predictive signal that non‐aggressive behavior will follow, the use of grunts before handling suggests that these interactions were not a form of deliberate harassment.     

Isospora papionis n. sp. (Eimeriidae) of the Chacma Baboon Papio ursinus (Kerr, 1792)

SYNOPSIS. Isospora papionis n. sp. is described from the chacma baboon Papio ursinis (Kerr, 1792). Histopathologic examination revealed 3 of 20 baboons to be infected, but no organisms were found on examination of the feces. Macrogametes and sporulated oocysts were observed in the small intestine, mainly in the jejunum and ileum, invariably in an epithelial or subepithelial location at the proximal portions of the crypts of Lieberkühn. Intact sporulated oocysts averaged 17 by 11 μ and had very thin walls which were often partially collapsed between the sporocysts. The sporocysts were somewhat flattened on one side and averaged 11 by 8.5 μ. A large sporocyst residuum was present.     

The brachial plexus in the chacma baboon (Papio ursinus)

Abstract: The brachial plexus in each of ten embalmed, mature chacma baboons was dissected to document the structure and branching pattern of this nerve plexus in this increasingly used research animal. In general, the brachial plexus in the chacma baboon was similar to the plexuses in the vervet and other Old World monkeys. However, several aspects were comparable to those observed in domestic animals. Thus the bipedal and quadrupedal abilities of the chacma baboon were reflected in the structure of its brachial plexus.     

Atrio-ventricular block in a baboon (Papio ursinus)

Atrio-ventricular (A-V) block occurring in an anesthetized chacma baboon (Papio ursinus) is analysed. Hemodynamic, 12-lead electrocardiographical (ECG), hematological and biochemical parameters were monitored and data before and after block are compared. Though biochemical and other abnormal values were encountered, no conclusive evidence of the cause of the block was found.