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Long-Term Field Studies of Primates pp 185–212Cite as

The Group Life Cycle and Demography of Brown Capuchin Monkeys (Cebus [apella] nigritus) in Iguazú National Park, Argentina

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Abstract

This study reports demographic and social changes across 20 years in a population of brown capuchin monkeys living in Iguazú National Park in northeastern Argentina. Three sets of results emerge that are critical to understanding the evolution of social behavior in this population. First, patterns of age-related mortality clearly highlight certain periods of increased mortality (postnatal 6 months, onset of reproduction, late senescence) and near-perfect survival (2–6-year-old juveniles, young adult females). Second, tracking the migrations and rank-related reproductive strategies of males helps to uncover the causes and consequences of long male reproductive tenures that average 5 years. Finally, observations of relatively rare male takeovers of the alpha breeding position reveal a predictable sequence of stages in a group’s life cycle that tie together female fecundity, infanticide, group size, and kinship-based group fissions. These coordinated aspects of demography and kinship in different stages set the context for understanding differences between groups in social structure and organization.

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Acknowledgments

This work could not have been completed without the kind permission of the Delegacion Regional Nordeste Argentina of the Argentine National Parks Administration, especially Paula Cichero. Over 20 researchers contributed observations to the long-term database; the most important of these were Paula Tujague, Fermino Silva, Brandon Wheeler, Barbara Tiddi, Clara Scarry, and Patricio Ramirez-Llorens. Major financial support for various portions of the long-term study was provided to CHJ by a Fulbright scholarship, a grant from the Committee on Research and Exploration of the National Geographic Society, NSF grants BNS-9009023, IBN-9511642, BNS-9870909, and BCS-0515007, as well as CONICET predoctoral fellowships to MDB and MCB.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA

    Charles Janson

  2. CONICET, Instituto de Biología Subtropical, Universidad Nacional de Misiones, Puerto Iguazú, Argentina

    Maria Celia Baldovino & Mario Di Bitetti

Authors
  1. Charles Janson
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  2. Maria Celia Baldovino
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  3. Mario Di Bitetti
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Correspondence to Charles Janson .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Dept. of Behavioral Ecology, University of Göttingen, Kellnerweg 6, Göttingen, 37077, Germany

    Peter M. Kappeler

  2. Dept. Anthropology, Yale University, Sachem Street 10, New Haven, 06511, Connecticut, USA

    David P. Watts

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Janson, C., Baldovino, M.C., Di Bitetti, M. (2012). The Group Life Cycle and Demography of Brown Capuchin Monkeys (Cebus [apella] nigritus) in Iguazú National Park, Argentina. In: Kappeler, P., Watts, D. (eds) Long-Term Field Studies of Primates. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-22514-7_9

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