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The Bioenergetics of Reproduction in Prosimian Primates: is it Related to Female Dominance?

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Creatures of the Dark

Abstract

Primates have been characterized as having relatively low reproductive rates, as indicated by extended periods of gestation, lactation, and infant dependency (Sacher and Staffeldt, 1974; Martin, 1975; Eisenberg, 1981; Ankel-Simons, 1983; Harvey and Clutton-Brock, 1985; Rasmussen, 1986; Rasmussen and Izard, 1988). Nonetheless, among primates there have evolved diverse patterns of reproduction and parental care. For example, in some species care is provided solely by the mother, while in other species other members of the family are primary care-givers. Infants may be carried nearly continuously; or they may be left in a nest, in tree holes, or on branches for extended periods of time. Some species may exhibit communal care and nursing. Rearing patterns are especially diverse among prosimian primates. Patterns vary from those of the social, diurnal lemurs of Madagascar in which females of most species carry their dependent young, and in some species with the assistance of family members (Klopfer and Klopfer, 1970; Klopfer, 1974; Wright, 1990) to those of the small, solitary, nocturnal bushbabies and lorises of Asia and Africa in which females provide nearly all care, and frequently must park their infants to forage for food (Doyle et al., 1969; Rosenson, 1971, 1972; Harcourt, 1984; Rasmussen, 1986).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University, 3705-B Erwin Road, Durham, NC, 27705, USA

    Christopher D. Tilden

  2. Department of Zoological Research National Zoological Park, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20008, USA

    Olav T. Oftedal

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  1. Christopher D. Tilden
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  2. Olav T. Oftedal
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Clark College, Dubuque, Iowa, USA

    L. Alterman

  2. University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Gerald A. Doyle

  3. Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA

    M. Kay Izard

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© 1995 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Tilden, C.D., Oftedal, O.T. (1995). The Bioenergetics of Reproduction in Prosimian Primates: is it Related to Female Dominance?. In: Alterman, L., Doyle, G.A., Izard, M.K. (eds) Creatures of the Dark. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-2405-9_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-2405-9_8

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