Two cases of mother–infant cannibalism in orangutans |
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Authors: | David Fenwick Dellatore Corri D Waitt Ivona Foitova |
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Institution: | (1) School of Social Sciences and Law, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, OX3 0BP, UK;(2) Sumatran Orangutan Society, Jl. Sei Bohorok Baru No. 79, Medan, North Sumatra, 20154, Indonesia;(3) Department of Zoology, Oxford University, Oxford, OX2 8QJ, UK;(4) Department of Botany and Zoology, Masaryk University, 61137 Brno, Czech Republic |
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Abstract: | Observations of ape cannibalism have to this point been limited to chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) where it is associated with infanticide and consumption by unrelated individuals (Watts and Mitani, Primates 41(4):357–365,
2000). Here we report for the first time observations of two unrelated female Sumatran orangutans (Pongo abelii) cannibalizing the remains of their infants on different occasion, a behavior never before reported in any ape species. The
two orangutans were wild-born rehabilitated individuals, and had been reintroduced to an area hosting a largely unregulated
primate tourism industry and experienced restricted ranging conditions. Though it is possible that this is a strategy to regain
energy and nutrients or a result of individual history, comparative data suggest that this is an aberrant behavior which may
be linked to environmental stressors within the area.
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. |
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Keywords: | Cannibalism Orangutan Reintroduction Stress Primate tourism |
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