Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
Interactions with humans are a daily part of the behavioral repertoire and
human-made structures constitute a substantial segment of the environment
of these macaques. This is not uncommon for populations of
M. fascicula-
ris
or
M. mulatta
(Agaramirasee, 1992; Fuentes,
2006
; Fuentes and Wolfe,
2002
) and therefore documenting the basic activities of such populations
is important for understanding the potential range of macaque behavioral
patterns.
Wheatley (
1999
) reports that between 39 and 81 percent of this popula-
tion's diet came from provisioning during 1990-1992. As provisioning was
less consistent and less diverse during that period, it is probable that the mean
percentage of provisioned food in the diet of all groups in this population is
above 50 percent, and probably closer to the 70 percent reported here. There
are a number of potential food items growing in the forest (Kriswiyanti and
Watiniasih,
1999
) and the macaques appear to exploit invertebrates more con-
sistently (7.5 percent of diet) between 1998-2002 than in the previous study
(1-9 percent for 1986,1990-1992) (Wheatley,
1999
). Given the high rate of
provisioning, the current relatively diverse composition of the provisioned
food and the lack of mortality tied to obesity or other diet-based health issues,
we propose that this population is not under nutritional stress. In fact, the
abundance of foods and the relative protection offered by the temple for-
est most likely combined to produce the rapid population growth observed
between 1998 and 2002.
Infanticide
Although male infanticide has been inferred in two groups of long-tailed
macaques in Sumatra, Indonesia, (van Schaik,
2000
) no infanticide by males
has been observed or inferred at Padangtegal either by Wheatley (
1999
), this
study, or in any other studies of this species. However, infant deaths did result
from female infant taking. This has been reported for two Balinese macaque
populations (Padangtegal and Sangeh, Wheatley,
1991
,
1999
, Chapter 10).
Wheatley (
1991
,
1999
) and Wheatley
et al
. (
1996
), report infant injuries
resulting in deaths occurred during inter-group aggression at the Padangtegal
site between 1986 and 1992. While we observed frequent inter-group aggres-
sion we did not record any consistent association between these conflicts and
infant injury at Padangtegal between 1998 and 2002. Wheatley (
1999
) also
reports four observations of infant taking resulting in infant death. He refers
to this behavior as “kidnapping.” Wheatley (
1999
) suggests that this is an
example of reproductive competition between females, with higher ranking
females taking and killing the infants of competing lower ranking females.
