Male takeover in Colobus vallerosus at Boabeng-Fiema monkey sanctuary, central Ghana

We describe a case of male takeover in the ursine black-and-white colobus (Colobus vellerosus). In April 2001, an all-male group attacked and eventually invaded our uni-male study group. Aggression increased following the takeover and the former resident male, severely wounded, became peripheral. Th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPrimates Vol. 46; no. 3; pp. 211 - 214
Main Authors Saj, Tania L, Sicotte, Pascal
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published 01.07.2005
Subjects
Biological anthropology
Competition
Ghana
Infanticide
Males
Old World monkeys
Primatology
Sexual reproduction
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Summary:We describe a case of male takeover in the ursine black-and-white colobus (Colobus vellerosus). In April 2001, an all-male group attacked and eventually invaded our uni-male study group. Aggression increased following the takeover and the former resident male, severely wounded, became peripheral. The youngest immature received severe aggression from the new males but survived. The immature's mother intervened in most instances of this aggression. Eventually, the former resident male re-established relationships with some of the females and concurrently intervened to protect the immature. Defeated males that stay in their group can contribute to the protection of infants born during their tenure from infanticidal males. The females mated with the new males. Takeovers may be a means by which males acquire groups of females in C. vellerosus. Reprinted by permission of Japan Monkey Centre and Springer-Verlag
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
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ISSN:0032-8332
DOI:10.1007/s10329-004-0118-4