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  • From: Joe Garden <joegarden AT yahoo.com>
  • To: monkeywire AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [monkeywire] Monkeys Hate Flying Squirrels
  • Date: Mon, 2 Aug 2010 04:00:29 -0700 (PDT)

http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2010/0730/Monkeys-hate-flying-squirrels-report-monkey-annoyance-experts



Monkeys hate flying squirrels, report monkey-annoyance experts
Japanese macaques will completely flip out when presented with flying
squirrels, a new study in monkey-antagonism has found. The research could
pave
the way for advanced methods of enraging monkeys.


By Adam Hadhazy, LiveScience Staff Writer / July 30, 2010
Researchers have observed small monkeys called Japanese macaques going
bananas
at the sight of a flying squirrel.



This riled-up response is probably just a false alarm, with the monkeys
mistaking the squirrel for a predatory bird. On the other hand, male
macaques –
some of whom give chase and even attack a harmless rodent – might be trying
to
impress females in their troop.

Although this tough-guy motive was not proved in a new study, "it is
possible
that adult or sub-adult male monkeys may be 'showing off'their fitness" as
potential mates, said Kenji Onishi, an assistant professor of behavioral
sciences at Osaka University and lead author of the paper being published in
the current issue of the journal Primate Research.



Biologists and psychologists have long studied macaques' complex social
interactions for insights into human evolution and behavior.

However, much remains unknown about how macaques get along (or not) with
other
creatures. Better documentation of such encounters could reveal more about
macaque societies as well as that of our shared primate forbearers.

"Human evolution occurred alongside primate evolution from a common mammalian
ancestor," Onishi told LiveScience. "Therefore, it is important to learn the

evolution of primates in understanding the previous steps in human
evolution."



Intruder alert!
When Japanese giant flying squirrels glided over to a tree in the monkeys'
vicinity, adults and adolescent macaques started hollering at it
threateningly,
the researchers report. Young macaques screamed and mothers scooped up their

infants, while adults and high-ranking males in particular went and
physically
harassed the offending squirrel.

Onishi said other researchers have observed macaques responding in a
similarly
aggressive manner to birds that prey on the monkeys, such as the golden
eagle
and mountain hawk eagle. These raptors glide and swoop much like the flying
squirrels.

Upon closer inspection up in a tree or on the ground, however, the squirrel
is
clearly no bird of prey. Yet the animal still raises the hackles of the
macaques.

Other woodland creatures, including hares, deer and wild boars, barely
elicit a
response from macaque groups, said Onishi, though dogs and people will
sometimes instigate alarm calls and a fleeing from the immediate area.



Meet the macaques
After humans, macaques are the most geographically dispersed primate on the
planet, living across southern Asia and into North Africa. The rhesus macaque
is
also perhaps the most familiar monkey to Westerners, common both in zoos and
as
lab animals.

The Japanese macaques in the study are well-known for a group of them that
hang
out every winter in the Jacuzzi-like Jigokudani hot springs when it gets too
cold and snowy outside (no wonder the species is also nicknamed "snow
monkey").

The adult male Japanese macaques range in size from about 20 to 24 inches
(50
to 60 centimeters) tall and females about 19 to 22 inches (4.8 to 5.5
centimeters).

This gives the monkeys a clear size advantage over their flying squirrel
antagonists, if one does not count the squirrels' tails. The squirrels
documented in the study were typical for their kind, about 12 to 15 inches
(30
to 40 cm) long and with a bushy tail of about equal length.



Show of (non)force?
When chasing macaques did succeed in getting close to these infringing
squirrels, the monkeys tended to look on "in fear and hesitated to attack,"
Onishi said.

In rare instances when the bolder monkeys did physically assault their
quarry,
Onishi said the squirrels were neither harmed nor eaten and eventually
escaped.

Though clearly not interested in eating each other, the diets of the animals
do
cross when it comes to fruits, nuts and other delectables. But a territorial

defense of food resources is not the motive of these militant monkeys, as
there
are "low levels of food competition between macaques and the squirrels,"
Onishi
noted

It is more likely that a simple misunderstanding about the squirrels' nature
underpins the melee.

Mewa Singh, a professor of psychology at the University of Mysore in India
who
has studied macaques, pointed out that the flying squirrels are generally
nocturnal, whereas the monkeys are active during the day.

"The interactions between monkeys and a flying squirrel, therefore, are not
expected to be frequent and the monkeys may not "know" whether the squirrel
is
a predator or not," said Singh, who was not involved in the study.



All in the game
Nevertheless, the fact that adult males had a greater tendency to be the
ones
beleaguering the flying squirrels led Onishi and his co-authors to speculate
that a measure of flaunting biological fitness to the females is in play.

At the same time, a generic "battle stations!" response to raptor-like
behaviors from any sort of animal, whether featured like a bird or not,
might
prime the macaques for when real danger glides into town.

This hair-trigger might increase the possibility that macaques in the troop
"survive when true predatory threats emerge," Onishi said.
>From josh.greenman AT gmail.com Thu Aug 19 18:00:57 2010
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From: Josh Greenman <josh.greenman AT gmail.com>
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Subject: [monkeywire] Dodge removes Suzie the chimp from its Tent Event
commercial
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http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/unleashed/2010/08/invisible-dodge-monkey.html
[with video]

by Tony Pierce

Dodge removes Suzie the chimp from its Tent Event commercial

August 19, 2010 | 7:51 am

A few weeks ago Unleashed broke the story about the curious case of a
Dodge tent event commercial starring Suzie, the young chimpanzee,
which was pulled after the car manufacturer received complaints from
animal activists about their use of such an animal to hawk cars and
trucks.

"Most top ad agencies in the country won�t even consider producing an
ad featuring a great ape these days given the well-documented abuse
that young chimpanzees and orangutans suffer in the entertainment
industry," PETA's primatologist, Julia Gallucci, told The Times.

Dodge acknowleged that they heard and understood the complaints, and
promised to change the commercial to appease the outraged groups. "The
ad was an innocent act only trying to be humorous," Kristin Starnes,
head of Dodge car brand communications, wrote us in an e-mail. "In no
way did the brand intend to promote any questionable practices. With
the planned modification, we are simply taking some sound advice and
altering direction in respect of PETA's initiatives."

So how would they modify a tv commercial? To refresh your memory, here
is the original spot ...



  • [monkeywire] Monkeys Hate Flying Squirrels, Joe Garden, 08/02/2010

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