Primates change their 'accent' to avoid conflict

[UngulateNerd92]

New research has discovered that monkeys will use the "accent" of another species when they enter its territory to help them better understand one another and potentially avoid conflict.

Published in the journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, the study is the first to show asymmetric call convergence in primates, meaning that one species chooses to adopt another species' call patterns to communicate.

The study, co-authored by Dr. Jacob Dunn of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), investigated the behaviour of 15 groups of pied tamarins (Saguinus bicolor) and red-handed tamarins (Saguinus midas) in the Brazilian Amazon.

Primates change their 'accent' to avoid conflict

 

[Onychorhynchus coronatus]

New research has discovered that monkeys will use the "accent" of another species when they enter its territory to help them better understand one another and potentially avoid conflict.

Published in the journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, the study is the first to show asymmetric call convergence in primates, meaning that one species chooses to adopt another species' call patterns to communicate.

The study, co-authored by Dr. Jacob Dunn of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), investigated the behaviour of 15 groups of pied tamarins (Saguinus bicolor) and red-handed tamarins (Saguinus midas) in the Brazilian Amazon.

Primates change their 'accent' to avoid conflict

Fascinating stuff, Callitrichids are always full of suprises !

Thanks for sharing !

 

[UngulateNerd92]

Fascinating stuff, pieds are such an interesting species !

Thanks for sharing !

You are welcome.

 

[Onychorhynchus coronatus]

It is really interesting because the species in question is the Midas tamarin and this is essentially an invasive species which has been introduced into the Manaus area and displaces through competition the native pied tamarin whose call it imitates.

This is a somewhat similar situation to the spread of invasive common and black eared marmosets in the South of Brazil which hybridize and compete with our native and endangered mountain marmosets.

We still do not know very much about the interaction between native and invasive marmoset species other than it does not appear to be agonistic (or at least this hasn't yet been observed) and it makes me wonder whether something similar may be occurring.