Factors Influencing Choice and Social Utilization of Resting Places in Captive Pottos (Perodicticus potto M.)

Abstract

The selection and utilization of sleeping and resting places by nocturnal prosimians have been studied with particular attention to its role in territoriality and in protection against potential predators. Existing reports for the potto (Perodicticus potto) maintain that no regular sleeping places are sought out; rather pottos sleep at any immediately suitable location taken up as daylight breaks (Charles-Dominique 1975, 1977). Also it is reported that a potto usually sleeps alone (Blackwell and Menzies 1968, Doyle 1974, Charles-Dominique 1977). As our own and other investigators’ observations (Rahm 1960, Cowgill 1964, 1974, Ehrlich and Musicant 1972) made on a group of pottos kept in our laboratories contradicted the above field studies, we conducted a series of experiments pertinent to such behaviors. This was to clarify the following:

• 1. Which criteria are used by a potto in seeking out a sleeping place?

• 2. Is a sleeping place also used during the active period of the diurnal cycle? If so, then how is it utilized?

• 3. Do the pottos rest and sleep singly? If they do not, which individuals prefer to sleep together?

Offprint request to: D. Todt