Primates Zoo Activity - Essay Example

Zoo Activity at The.......... Introduction A behavior profile is an evaluation technique that allows two or more animal species to be compared in a zoo environment. In this regard, the paper will discuss the physical characteristics and types of behaviors, as well as frequency of behaviors of three types of primates: the white-handed gibbon (Hylobates lar), lemur (Lemur catta) and Bolivian gray titi monkey (Callicebus donacophilus) that I saw at the…………….zoo. Discussion Prosimian: Lemurs – Lemur catta (ring-tailed lemur) Lemurs are believed to have evolved from the anthropoid primates, but studies have evidenced otherwise and that they only share the behavioral as well as morphological traits with the basal primates. The ring-tailed lemurs are known for their NOCTURNAL habits and slow pace. Lemurs have low metabolic rates and show dormancy (Ankel-Simons 78). At the zoo, each lemur weighed between 2 to 4 kilograms. This light-weight makes them ARBOREAL QUADRUPEDAL walkers, but it runs QUADRUPEDALLY on the ground. They show marked SEXUAL DIMORPHISM (Campbel et al., 70). At the zoo, the family group comprised of one large male, 3 females and 4 offsprings. They are gentle and we joked about its huge eyes acting like a binoculars. Generally, lemurs are more social and communicate more with VOCALIZATIONS and scents as compared to visual signals. When we tried to separate them, the male made a cohesion call that sounded like a cat’s ‘meow.’ Olfactory communication is also crucial for the ring-tailed lemurs, though I did not observe it. At the zoo, the ring-tailed lemur was dormant for 17 minutes resting and GROOMING. They then FORAGED on leaves for 3 minutes. One distinctive behavioral CUSP was the staring bared-teeth. Its eyes and mouth were wide open with mouth corners drawn back so that the teeth and gums are revealed (Campbel et al., 72). This display showed that the lemurs were frightened when a student threw a stick at them. Another behavioral cusp is that during mating most of them change their facial expressions. Sadly, I did not see them mate. I was very disgusted by the miss. Ape: White-handed gibbon (Hylobates lar) White-handed gibbons are DIURNAL, natural aerial acrobats and are fairly awkward on the ground. They have long fingers and limbs, special thumbs and strong arms are SPECIALISED to the arboreal life in their forest home. Stewart and Harcourt (16-19) shared the view that as the white-handed gibbons swing from limb to limb, they usually hook their fingers lightly over the branches. Their INTELLIGENCE in locomotion makes them quick and efficient when moving from feeding to escaping from predators. About its MORPHOLOGY, for 5 minutes I recorded that the white-handed gibbon lacks a tail and has a throat sac located beneath the chin. Its color ranges from dark brown to beige. When we entered the……………zoo, we found the white-handed gibbon sleeping huddled together. However, our jubilant entry and the gibbons’ high sense of smell and hearing made it to wake up. Suddenly, its growling sound made us to jump up in fright. I also observed that its movement was quadrupedal. Gibbons show true BRACHIATION with their specialized elongated hands, curved fingers, extremely long arms and relatively short legs (Brandon-Jones, 112-115). The primate exhibited SENSORY MODALITIES which enable good interaction instinct with others through social grooming where they remove dead skin and parasites from the hair of another. They groomed each other for 10 minutes. With regard to vocalization of the white-handed gibbon, it was through DUETTING. The Lar gibbons have seven basic vocalization note types, including “hoo,” “wa,” “leaning wa,” “sharp wow,” “oo,” and “waoo” (Gron). After 2 minutes, I did not hear any sound. Besides, the primates were not eating since they were resting for about 12 minutes, even though their foraging is mainly fruits, insects, buds, and leaves. For 1 minute, I observed no facial expression from the primate. However, when one of the visitors tried to disturb the male, it opened its mouth indicating an agonistic threat. We moved back impulsively. They spent 2 minutes moving among the tree branches and we left. Monkey: Bolivian titi monkey (Callicebus donacophilus) The last animal was the Callicebus donacophilus commonly known as the Bolivian titi monkey a species of the new world monkey of the CERCOPITHECIDAE species. Their trait is the broadly flaring nose with nostrils facing outwards commonly referred to as PLATYRRHINE. They live in small territorial groups and are usually thought to form monogamous pair-bonds (Kinzey, 217). For the Bolivian titi monkey, their locomotion usually varies from arboreal to terrestrial quadrupedalism to acrobatic leaping to semi-brachiation. At the …………..zoo, there were three of them: a male, female, and an offspring. PRIMATOLOGISTS assert that both sexes of the Bolivian grey titi monkeys have thick and long fur, which make them look bigger and fluffy. As their name suggests, their fur is often grey. They feed on insects, fruits and leaves. The titi monkeys are FRUVIGOROUS since in the zoo they were feeding on fruits and leaves. Bolivian grey titi monkeys usually rest during the middle of the day. The monkeys rested for about 20 minutes. They are diurnal, since they feed during the day: in the morning and afternoon. At night they are inactive. In the afternoon they were fed for 5 minutes. They had powerful PREHENSILE tails for suspension while eating. When sleeping, monkeys huddle together and twine tails (Campbel et al. 63). Their locomotion varied from arboreal to terrestrial quadrupedalism to acrobatic leaping in the zoo for about 3 minutes. In 7 seven minutes, I recorded the Bolivian titi monkey making vocalizations ranging from a bird-like chirping to an echoing long call. This is why it had varied facial expressions. I was joyful with the way it made the sounds. With its PLAY FACE, the monkey has been found to interact well with humans compared to other species. We played with it, but we were not allowed to give it any food even after it POUTED (Kinzey 219-220). Generally, it was wonderful and ecstatic visiting the zoo since I physically saw animals that I only see on television. Conclusion The major evolutionary trends that have distinguished primates, such as the white-handed gibbon, lemur, and bolivian grey titi monkey and their generalized form came due to their adaptation to arboreal life (Larsen 56). Although the other placental mammals had a tendency to live in grasslands, marine and other environments, the adaptive niche for the white-handed gibbon, lemur, and Bolivian grey titi monkey was trees. According to the ARBOREAL HYPOTHESIS, this provided numerous challenges and opportunities, such as depth perception and binocular vision, climbing by utilizing prehensile hands and feet instead of claws, varied diet resulted in OMNIVOROUS adaptation and a longer life span, increased their intelligence and more elaborate social system which they are required to cope with. The other similarity is that all the three primates are foragers. The white-handed gibbon is the largest, followed by lemur, while the gray titi monkey is the smallest. While the white-handed gibbon and lemur spend most of their resting and sunning, the Bolivian gray titi monkey spent most of its time playing and foraging. The other difference is that all the primates had different vocalizations. All the primates have their locomotion varied from arboreal to terrestrial quadrupedalism. Of all the three primate species, the Bolivian gray titi monkey and lemurs were the most interactive. I was able to apply the concepts I learned in class during the tour. Works Cited Ankel-Simons, F. Primate Anatomy (3rd ed.). New York: Academic Press, 2007. Print. Campbell, C. J., Fuentes, A., MacKinnon, K. C., Bearder, S. K., and Stumpf, R. M. Primates in Perspective (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. Print. Brandon-Jones, D. “Asian primate classification,” International Journal of Primatol. 2.4(2004): 97-164. Groves, C. P. Wilson, D. E., and Reeder, D. M. Mammal Species of the World, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. 2005. Print. Gron, Kurt. Primate Factsheets: Lar gibbon (Hylobates lar) Behavior, http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/lar_gibbon/behav>. Web. 2010. Accessed 2015 March 4. Larsen, Clark Spencer. Our Origins: Discovering Physical Anthropology. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2014. Print. Kinzey, W. G. "Synopsis of the new world primates: Callicebus". In Kinzey, W. G. New world primates: ecology, evolution, and behavior. New York: Aldine De Gruyter. pp. 213–221. 2007. Print. Stewart, K.J. and Harcourt, A.H. Gorillas: Variation in Female Relationships. In Primate Societies. B.B. Smuts, D.L. Cheney, R.M. Seyfart, R.W. Wrangham, and T.T. Struhsaker. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.1999. Print. Read More