Author : Elizabeth Helen Peters
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 272 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (981 download)
Book Synopsis Vocal Communication in an Introduced Colony of Feral Rhesus Monkeys (Macaca Mulatta) by : Elizabeth Helen Peters
Download or read book Vocal Communication in an Introduced Colony of Feral Rhesus Monkeys (Macaca Mulatta) written by Elizabeth Helen Peters and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Vocal communication in a free-ranging group of rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) was examined in order to provide baseline data on the social use of vocalizations in a complex environment. The subjects were a natural troop of feral monkeys inhabiting the banks of the Silver River near Silver Springs, Florida. Vocalizations were recorded and accompanying behavioral data collected using both ad libitum and sequence sampling. Spectrograms were made of representative vocalizations and a catalogue was constructed delineating both the physical characteristics of the sounds and their social usage. Functional, as well as acoustic, criteria were used to distinguish calls, analogous to the manner in which phonemes are distinguished. The present catalogue was compared with other catalogues previously published for rhesus monkeys and other species of macaque. Both the stereotypy of some calls and the graded nature of other calls were noted. It was suggested that all calls could best be understood as the result of position along a series of form gradients, with stereotypic calls occupying relatively invariant positions and "graded" calls occupying variable positions along one or more gradients. The possibility that meaning may be the result of position along multiple form-meaning gradients was also suggested as a constrast to the standard assumption that meaning is categorically coded. Evidence for individualization was examined for the call designated the "basic coo." Although usually referred to as a contact call, the individualized nature of this call suggests that it may function to provide a maintenance level of individualized interaction between group members, necessary to inhibit xenophobic aggression within the group.