The National Academies Press: Techniques For The Study of Primate Population Ecology (1981)

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Techniques for the Study of Primate Population Ecology

(1981)
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ISBN 978-0-309-03179-0 | DOI 10.17226/18646
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Techniques for
the Study of
Primate Population
Ecology
Subcommittee on Conservation
of Natural Populations
Committee on Nonhuman Primates
Division of Biological Sciences
Assembly of Life Sciences
National Research Council
DEC 1 ' 1�81

NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
Washington, D.C. 198 1
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

81-0I7(p
c ,,
NoncE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Goveming Board of
the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the Councils of the National
Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering. and the Institute of Medicine.
The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their spec:i&l compe
tences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors ac:c:ording to procedures
approved by a Report Review Committee cons.isting of members of the National Academy of
Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was established by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916
to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of
furthering knowledge and of advising the federal govemment. The Council operates in ac:c:or
dance with general policies detennined by the Academy under the authority of its congres
sional charter of 1863, which establishes the Academy as a private, nonprofit, self-governing
membership corporation. The Council has become the principal operating agency of both the
National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in the conduct of
their services to the govemment, the public:, and the scientifiC and engineering communities.
It is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. The National
Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine were established in 1964 and 1970, re
spectively, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences.
The primary support for development of this report was provided by Contract NOI·RS-9-2117
with the Division of Research Services, National Institutes of Health. Additional support
was provided by Grant RC-1W from the American Cancer Society, Inc:.; Contract APHIS SJ-
3294-9-2 with the U.S. Department of Agriculture; Contract DNA001-79-C-0087-POOOOI with
the Defense Nuclear Agency; Contract DE-AM02-76CH93000 (Task Agreement DE-AT02-
76CH930tt) with the Department of Energy; Contract N01-RR-9-2109 with the Division of
Research Resources, Animal Resources Branch, National Institutes of Health; Grant PCM-
7921163 with the National Science Foundation; Contract N00014·80-C-0162 with the OffiCe of
Naval Research; and contributions from pharmaceutical companies and other industry.
Main entry under title:
Techniques for the study of primate population ecology.
Bibliography: p.
I. Primates-Ecology. 2. Population biology-Technique. 3. Mammals-Ecology.
4. Mammal populations. I. National Research Council (U.S.) Committee on Nonhuman
Primates. Subcommittee on Conservation of Natural Populations.
QL737.P9T43 599.8'045 81-11345
ISBN 0-309-03179-6 AACR2
Available from
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS

2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20418
Printed in the United States of America

COMMITIEE ON NONHUMAN PRIMATES
NORMAN H. ALTMAN, Papanicolaou Cancer Research Institute,
Miami, Florida (Chairman )

BENJAMIN G. BRACKETI, Department of Clinical Studies at New
Bolton Center, University of Pennsylvania, School of Veteri·

nary Medicine, Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
ROBE RT w. GOY, Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Center,
Madison, Wisconsin
BERNADETTE M. MARRIOTI, Division of Comparative Medicine,
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore,

Maryland
ALBERT E. NEW, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of
Health , Bethesda, Maryland

JOHN w. SENNE R, Oregon Regional Primate Research Center,
Beaverton, Oregon
Subcommittee on Conservation of Natural Populations

JOHN F. EISENBERG (Chairman ), National Zoological Park ,
Smithsonian Institution , Washington , D . C .
WOLFGANG P. J . DITTUS, Smithsonian Institution , Ceylon Primate
Survey, Kandy, Sri Lanka

THEODORE H. FLEMING, University of Miami, Coral Gables,
Florida
KENNETH GREEN, Howard University, Washington , D . C .
THOMAS STRUHSAKER, New York Zoological Society, The Rocke·
feller University, New York , and Makerere University, Kam·

pala, Uganda
RICHARD w. THORINGTON, JR., U . S . National Museum of Natural
History, Smithsonian Institution , Washington , D . C .
Staff Officers
NANCY A. MUCKENHIRN, 1979-1980
EARL W. GROGAN, 1980-1981
iii


Preface
The need for basic data on population densities and trends for
several species of animals has been increasing steadily as wild
lands have been under pressure for the extraction of mineral, tim
ber, and animal resources. The development of land for agricul
tural and industrial purposes has generally progressed without
any regional planning and has resulted in the degradation or loss
of native habitats, especially mature forests, and the fauna and
flora associated with these habitats. In some areas the remaining
tracts of wild land are becoming so restricted that management of
animal populations has become necessary to safeguard their fu
tures and to bring utilization of some of the species into line with
the capacity of the habitat to support them.
The assessment of the status of wild primate populations re
quires immediate attention if primates are to be protected and
managed as renewable wildlife resources. Little is being done to
assemble the needed information systematically. Export restric
tions imposed on primates over the past decade are in part a re
sponse to a concern for conserving wild populations. They are
v

vi Preface
likely to remain in effect until scientific data become available
that will justify changing them.
In the early 1970's a committee organized by the Institute of
Laboratory Animal Resources, of the Division of Biological Sci
ences, Assembly of Life Sciences, National Research Council, was
asked to study the status of wild primate populations. This was
the Committee on Nonhuman Primates.
Under the leadership of R. W. Thorington, Jr. , Chairman , and
C. H. Southwick, Vice-Chairman , the committee set in motion a
program of surveys, or censuses, to assemble data on primate
populations in Colombia, Peru, Guyana, and Bolivia. Funds for
supporting survey teams were provided by the Pan American
Health Organization, the National Institutes of Health, and the
U . S . Army Medical Research and Development Command.
When these surveys were compared with studies conducted by
other investigators, it was obvious that lack of standardized pro
cedures was causing serious inconsistencies in findings and that a
manual would contribute significantly to accuracy and uniformity.
The Subcommittee on Conservation of Natural Populations ,
Committee o n Nonhuman Primates, was organized t o produce
such a manual, and the present manual is the result of the sub
committee's efforts. It is hoped that the techniques and observa
tions presented here will lead to increased understanding of forest
ecosystems and will encourage worldwide efforts to develop con
servation and management programs.
10HN F. EISENBE RG , Chairman

Subcommittee on Conservation of Natural Populations
Copyright\ National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Acknowledgments
In addition to the basic contracts supporting this work , the Na

tional Institutes of Health and other institutions supported prep
aration of certain parts of the report. The institutions that pro
vided such support, the persons who received it, and the subjects
dealt with in these persons' contributions to the report are as fol
lows: National Zoological Park , John F. Eisenberg, habitat de
scription ; Smithsonian Institution , National Science Foundation ,
and National Institutes of Health , Richard W. Thorington , Jr. ,
habitat use and collecting and marking techniques; Smithsonian
Institution, National Science Foundation, National Institutes of
Health , and the Deutsche Forschungs-Gemeinschaft, Wolfgang
P. J. Dittus, sexing and aging animals, population analysis, and
determinants of population density and growth ; National Insti
tutes of Health, Howard University, Johns Hopkins University,
and National Zoological Park , Kenneth Green, remote-sensing
techniques (Dr. Green also prepared a draft of a censusing man
ual and a background discussion of censusing methods. ); and New
York Zoological Society, National Science Foundation, and Na-
vii

viii Acknowledgments
tional Institute of Mental Health, Thomas Struhsaker, censusing

methods.
The Subcommittee on Conservation of Natural Populations is
indebted to several persons who made suggestions concerning
preparation of various sections of the man uscript. Special thanks
are due Anne Baker-Dittus, T. Butynski, Lysa Leland, G.
Caughley, J. Ballou, J. Frazier, and J. Russell. Artwork was pre
pared by Sigrid James-Brlich and Figure 1 - 1 by Carrie Thoring
ton.

Contents
1 INTRODUCTION 1
2 SITE SELECTION 5
Maps and Photographs, 5
Faunal Lists and Floral Inventories, 6
Special Studies of Indicator Species, 7
3 HABITAT DESCRIPTION AND SPECIMEN

COLLECTION 10
Habitat Profile, 11
Characteristics of Habitats, 13
Species Maps, 23
Recording Climatic Data, 25
Collecting and Marking Specimens, 26
Phenological Patterns, 31
Satellite Imagery, 33
ix

X Contents
4 CENSUS METHODS FOR ESTIMATING
DENSITIES 36
Background for Calculations Derived from Transect

Censuses, 36
General Guidelines and Field Procedures, 45
Assessing the Impact of Human Activities, 48
Broad Surveys, 49
Applications of Line Transect Censuses in an African
Forest, SO
Nonlinear Density Plot Method, 65
Quadrat Censuses, 68
Specialized Census Methods, 71
Long-term Monitoring of Specific Groups, 74
Summary of Important Census Methods for Diurnal
Primates, 78
Extrapolation of Density Estimates from Census Area
to Other Areas, 79
5 TECHNIQUES FOR SEXING AND

AGING PRIMATES 81
Sexing, 83
Estimating Relative Age Classes for Censuses, 84
Direct Measurement of Chronological Age, 88
Indirect Measurement of Chronological Age, 90
Identifying Individual Primates by Natural
Markings, 1 10
Identifying Individual Primates by Artificial Marking
Techniques, 117
6 HABITAT USE 1 28
Time Budgets, 128
Use of Space, 130
Feeding Ecology, 132

Contents xi
7 PRIMATE POPULATION ANALYSIS 135

Data Requirements, 136
Births and Fecundity, 136
Estimating Rates of Population Growth, 145
Estimating Vital Statistics from a Stable Standing Age
Distribution, 147
Estimating Vital Statistics from Individual Life-History
Records, 163
Estimating Vital Statistics from Standing Age
Distributions Sampled at Yearly Intervals, 164
Deriving Vital Statistics from Fecundity and
Survivorship Schedules, 165
Dispersal, 169
Suggested Readings, 1 75
8 DETERMINANTS OF POPULATION
DENSITY AND GROWTH 1 76
Measures of Population Size in Relation to the
Environment, 176
Determinants of Population Size, 181
Food Supply as a Major Factor Determining Population
Size, 185
Population Regulation by Behavioral and Physiological
Mechanisms, 189
9 COMMENTARY 197
REFERENCES 205
APPENDIXES
A LANDSAT Data Distribution Centers Operative in

1979, 221
B Sources of Interpretive Service for Satellite Imagery in
the United States, 223
c Sample Data Sheets, 226
D Checklist of Essential Equipment, 233

Introduction
This manual deals with methods and techniques applicable under

field conditions often remote from the usual support facilities
characteristics of this last quarter of the twentieth century. Alter
nating electric current, with constant voltage, is not readily avail
able in areas that require the study of vertebrate ecology, espec
ially in remote areas where a faunal survey must precede the
establishment of a park or reserve. Thus, the technological sup
port for faunal surveys normal for more settled regions is often
lacking and one must fall back on techniques that to a large ex
tent have been forgotten by biologists in recent decades. The
compass, notebook, india ink pen, watch, scales, binoculars, and
tape measure are still the basic tools, augmented by calipers,
pliers, wire, camera, formalin for preservation of specimens, and
tape or tags for marking trees (see Figure 1 . 1).
This manual outlines the basic steps for conducting prelimi
nary studies of mammalian ecology. Several indirect census
methods are available for studying large terrestrial herbivores;
they are suitable for rapidly making rough comparisons of activ-

2 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O GY
FIGURE 1-1 Typical collection of f1eld equipment for undertaking primate

censusing.
ity levels in large areas. Thus, fecal pellets, dung piles, and ani
mal tracks can aid in estimating the abundance of a species being
studied. Indirect methods have also been used to determine age
classes and ranging patterns in some large terrestrial species and
have been valuable additions to direct observational techniques.
Although observers should be aware of the value of using signs
of activity to locate primates, no standardized methods are avail-

Introduction 3
able that allow extrapolations from the abundance of feces
around sleeping and resting trees, or from the amount of vegeta
tive matter (fruits, leaves, petioles) dropped around feeding trees,
to the number or species of primates that have progressed
through an area. There are other situations in which extrapola
tion is a satisfactory censusing procedure. One is estimating the
number of pygmy marmosets in an area by counting ttees that
have sap holes; another is estimating the baboon population by
counting rock-cliff sleeping sites. The censusing of arboreal
species, including most primates, continues to rely on standard
ized and relatively time-consuming visual counts of individual
animals by observers.
The objectives of various types of censuses are stated later in
this introduction. Chapter 2 discusses the selection of survey
sites, and Chapter 3 is concerned with methods for identifying
and describing characteristics of habitats that are essential to
support the target species.
It is seldom possible to count all members of an animal popula
tion directly. Consequently, sampling methods must be used. Al
though typically social and diurnal, most primate species live in
tropical forests where visibility is poor and movement by the ob
server is often impeded. Chapter 4 describes sampling techniques
most useful for counting primates, emphasizing forest species
because forested habitats contain the greatest number of species
and pose the greatest number of practical problems.
The sampling method selected will depend on the objectives of
the study; the characteristics of the study species; the habitat;
and the availability of time, money, and personnel. Objectives
often involve one or more of the following:
• Determining the presence (and abundance) or absence of

particular species in relation to geographic and habitat features.
• Estimating densities of animal and plant populations.
• Compiling data on group sizes and the age and sex composi-
tions of populations.
• Determining population trends.
• Determining microhabitat preferences of study species.
• Determining interspecific assoc iations.

4 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRI MATE POPU LATI O N ECOLOGY
These objectives are fundamental to the development of conserva

tion and management programs, as well as to the understanding
of the biology of the populations and ecosystems concerned.
Three techniques for estimating population densities are dis
cussed in this report: broad surveys, line transects, and detailed
study of specific groups. Broad surveys are used as pilot studies in
order to ·assess land uses, inventory species, and compare the
status of populations in large areas in a relatively short period
(Eisenberg, 1979; Scott et a/. , 1976b).
The method best suited for obtaining data on the relative num
bers of primate groups in forest habitats is the random compass
line transect. Because of its statistical reliability, this method pro
vides estimates that can be used for general management of
species.
The most accurate method of estimating primate densities is
the detailed study of specific groups. This method provides data
on home range size, group size, and age-sex composition over
time, and it provides a basis for intense species management and
hypothesis testing.
Accurate estimates of the composition and use of space by a
population are necessary before trends in population size can be
understood. Therefore, techniques for aging and sexing primates
are given in Chapter 5 and are followed by methods for evaluating
habitat use in Chapter 6. Collecting data on the use of space,
feeding habits, and time budgets is the most time-consuming part
of observational studies. The use of life tables for the analysis of
populations is described in Chapter 7. Finally, environmental
and other factors influencing population size are discussed in
Chapter 8.

Site
Selection
MAPS AND PHOTOGRAPHS

Although most of the earth's surface has been mapped by foot
survey, aerial photography, or satellite imagery, information on
the distribution of vegetative cover in some tropical countries is
not well documented. Thus, when working in a new area it may
be necessary to spend time determining where the censuses
should be made.
If topographic maps are available, they provide the logical
starting point. Working from the best published map you can ac
quire, you should find the approximate position of the area you
intend to survey. Typically, your starting point will be some major
geographic feature (e.g., lake, river, mountain range). You may
find that a map has a scale that is too large to include features
such as tributaries, lagoons, hills, and outcroppings, which would
be perfectly obvious to you on the ground.
It is important to examine vegetation maps, which enable you
to become familiar with the range of habitats that can be ex
pected in the survey region . Broad classifications are available for
s

6 TECHNI Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C OLOGY
the neotropics in Holdridge (1967), for Asia in Purl (1960) and

Richards ( 1966) , and for Africa in Keay (1959).
If recent aerial photographs are available, they will augment
the maps and provide details on the status of vegetation at poten
tial survey sites. Such an analysis is cheaper than making an
aerial reconnaissance in a small plane. Selecting a site can also be
accomplished by ground travel, though this method is more time
consuming than the others. In areas for which detailed maps and
photos are not available, it may be necessary to expand the scale
of the preliminary mapping efforts described in Chapter 4 for es
tablishing grids.
Images from LANDSAT satellites are being used increasingly for
developing regional and national inventories of land-use patterns
and for monitoring changes in vegetation. The large scale of the
images makes them useful in selecting forested sites for surveys.
Detailed interpretation of sateUite photos depends on ground ver
ification or on classification of vegetation types based on visits to
the sites. Potential applications of sateUite imagery techniques for
the analysis of vegetation are discussed in Chapter 3.
FAUNAL LISTS AND FLORAL INVENTORIES
Most major geographic areas have at least provisional faunal lists

for the major vertebrate classe s . Before undertaking a survey in a
new area, you should make a provisional key based on published
reports and museum specimens. Since many areas that you may
wish to survey have strict regulations concerning specimen collec
tion , the key must utilize field characters that are readily identi
fied in an intact, living specimen. Of course, on occasion, it is
necessary to collect and preserve voucher specimens (Chapter 3).
The following field key for the primates of Guyana should suffice
as an example:
KEY TO THE ADULT PRIMATES OF GUYANA
1. Size small ( < 1 kg) and squirrel· like; tail bicolored 2

1 ' Size medium to large; tail color uniform 3
2. Face and body dark, with hands and feet reddish ;
tail reddish proximally, black distally Saguinus m idas

Site Selection 7
2' Contrasting black muzzle and light body ; tail like legs
and body golden brown, proximally with black tip Saimiri sciureus
3. Basic body coloration black 4
3' Body coloration brown, gray, or reddish 6
4. Large body size ( > 6 kg); prehensile tail Ateles paniscus
4' Medium body size ( - 1 .5 kg); non prehensile, bushy tail 5
5. Contrasting white fur on face; body pelage long Pithecia pithecia Cl
S' Typical body hair lengt h ; face dark and not contrasting
to body color; conspicuous beard ( Cl) Chiropotes sata11us
6. Tail bushy and nonprehensile; basic body color gray
to agouti brown Pithecia pithecia 9
6' Tail partially or fully prehensile 7
7. Basic adult body coloration reddish ; conspicuou s beard Alouatta seniculus
7' Basic body coloration light brown or brown 8
8. Conspicuous flat-topped black cap with tufts on head Cebus apella
8' Buff to brown cap ; basic body coloration gray-brown Cebus nigrivittatus
SPECIAL STUDIES OF INDICATOR SPECIES
A general knowledge of natural history is invaluable during initial

attempts to characterize forests. Parameters of habitat quality,
such as age of the forest, relative density of fruiting trees, and
persistence of standing water, can often be assessed by keeping
careful notes on other vertebrates present in the forest. Birds are
conspicuous by their diurnal activity, voice, and often brilliant
coloration . When you are transect walking, birds are often the
most frequently encountered vertebrates. You can often make
general statements by noting the frequency of bird sightings and
the species identity. Consider the case where primates are rare in,
or absent from, a forest block . If one has noted that large frugivo
rous birds, such as hornbills (in Asia), are present, there is reason
to suppose that the lack of primates is not tied to a lack of fruiting
trees.
A knowledge of frog calls can often aid in the assessment of the
availability of standing water. Amphibians often have strict limits
on their tolerance for aridity and temperature minima.
Trees may be useful as indicators of habitat quality. Certain
trees are of pivotal importance in primate feeding (e.g. , Ficus),
and the presence or absence of fig species may correlate with the
relative abundance of primates. Some species of trees are indica
tors of soil type or drainage patterns. For example, well-drained

8 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O PULATI ON E C O LOGY
soils in northern South America are typified by Saman, Pithecol

obium, whereas poorly drained soil may be dominated by ma
riche palm, Copemicia.
The presence of various rodents may also indicate the quality
and disturbance of forest habitats. Muul and Lim (1978) descnbed
the association of Malaysian flying squirrels with forest type .
They showed that 4 of 1 1 species of flying squirrels occur in pri
mary and partially cut forests; another 5 species occur in dis
turbed forests, which range from secondary forests to mixed fruit
and rubber plantations; the other 2 species occur frequently in
both primary and secondary forests, but rarely in plantation
areas. Similar correlations between habitat and species should be
discernible for diurnally active mammals and birds. An aware
ness of such correlations will provide additional insight into un
derstanding the community in which any censused species occurs.
During long-term studies, it is of great value to combine several
projects at the same study site. Interchanges between workers
who have concentrated on such diverse aspects of vertebrate ecology
as bird feeding, amphibian reproduction, and rodent population
dynamics often lead to the development of exciting new ap
proaches in data acquisition and analysis. Many mechanisms of
population biology are understood only for a few nonprimates.
Indeed, rodents can be studied with great profit to aid our under
standing of how tropical ecosystems function.
Rodent populations have been of interest to mammalian ecolo
gists for many decades, particularly in temperate latitudes. There
are several reasons why rodents and their population dynamics
should be of interest to ecologists. Fmt, rodents are common
members of virtually all terrestrial ecosystems, where they play an
important role as ..key industry" animals in the transfer of energy
from primary producers (plants) to secondary consumers. Sec
ond, rodents can have a considerable economic impact on human
food supplies, particularly in tropical countries, where their
destruction of crops and stored grain can run into millions of
dollars annually. Crop destruction by rodents and insects may be
many times greater than that caused by primates and birds.
Third, various rodent populations serve as reservoirs for a diverse
array of disease organisms that pose direct health threats to man .
Plague, scrub typhus, Lassa fever, and various types of encephalitis

Site Selection 9
and hemorrhagic fever are just a few examples of rodent-home
diseases that can affect the health of human beings and non
human primates. Finally, because they are ubiquitous and rela
tively easily studied, rodents and their populations can be used as
"model systems" for studying the adaptive strategies of mammals
in a wide variety of environments. Results of studies aimed at
determining the basic operation of rodent populations under dif
ferent environmental conditions have a direct bearing on our
theoretical understanding of the evolution and maintenance of
natural ecosystems.

3
Habitat
Description and
Specimen
Collection
Accurate and standardized ecological information should be

mandatory for any census or survey. A description of the physical
features, community structure, and vegetation in a survey area is
a necessary prerequisite for comparing densities of censused ani
mals in different areas or in different habitats in the same area.
The more detailed the habitat description , the more useful the
census results.
It is necessary to emphasize that habitat descriptions can be
either highly quantitative or just qualitative without very much
field measurement. The type of data, as discussed for census pro
cedures, will depend on the length of time available to conduct
the survey, the personnel involved, and the level of sophistication
desired. The methods for collecting habitat information should
be decided when the census is planned.
If a small area is to be surveyed, attention can probably be di
rected toward microhabitat differences, such as flat terrain, hilly
terrain, and flooded or unflooded areas. However, conducting a
survey in larger areas will not permit attention to such detail, and
10

Habitat Description and Specimen Collection 11

it is advisable to evaluate habitat types in relation to the way cen
sus transects have been selected (see Table 3-1).
Ecological communities are frequently obvious to the researcher
while conducting a census. For example, moist soil in a forest
along a river indicates flooding. In a montane forest, if sampling
covers a wide range of elevation, describe the habitat at every SO
m of elevation. Forests that have been logged or show signs of re
cent regeneration will require descriptions separate from those
for undisturbed forest. Often, broad ecological communities are
not apparent in the census zone, and the researcher may decide to
describe the habitat at noticeable changes or every hour along the
transect census. Whatever the choice, standardized descriptions
of the habitat must be an integral part of the census.
HABITAT PROFILE
A physiognomic or structural classification of habitat types sepa

rates vegetation according to height and interdispersion of height
classes. A sketch of a vegetation profile along transect lines has
proved to be useful in augmenting detailed notes. Composite hab
itat profiles for an entire study area have also been useful in sum
marizing the relationship between animal abundance (based on
sightings or signs) and habitat type (Figure 3- 1).
I n Sri Lanka, vegetation w as classified into three major classes:
(g) grass (and forbs), (Sc) scrub , and (T) trees. Mixtures of the
three classe s were indicated by the symbols (g, Sc), (Sc, T), (g,
T), and so on . By use of transect sampling, it was possible to esti
mate the relative proportion of vegetation classe s for the study
areas (Figure 3-2). Scrub was arbitrarily defined as being com
posed of woody plants less than 2 m in height (Eisenberg and
Lockhart, 1972) . In adapting this scheme to other areas (e.g. , the
neotropics), the researcher should designate special vegetation
categories, such as the palm (Copernicia) and savanna or tree
savanna composed of Pithecolobium , Acacia , and grasse s .
A habitat profile data sheet may help standardize observations
by blocking out the habitat characteristics according to a scale
that ranks the abundance of the feature from absent to rare,
moderate, or dense. Undergrowth, epiphyte load, and foliage
cover may be rated in this way. Information on such features as

12 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O L O GY
TABLE 3-1 Estimates of Time Required for Field

Work by Two Persons"
Type of Work 2
Area (km ) Days
Habitat survey
General description 2
10 10
Quantitative description b I 8
10 60
Density estimates (censusing)
Crude
Transect 6
10 10
20 20
Quadrat 6
10 14
20 40
Ecological
Transect I 6
10 JO
20 40
Quadrat 6
10 JO
20 60
" Does not include travel time to study areas; assumes work on foot ; as
sumes forested habitat and some trail construction ; assumes some fa
miliarity with identification of flora and fauna.
h Nonpermanent grid.
the number of layers (shrubs, understory, main canopy, emer

gents), the light penetration through the canopy, the clumping of
trees, and the presence of buttressed trees may also be listed. A
visibility or obscurity score may be useful in comparing ease of
observing primates between habitats. This may be as simple as
ranking visibility as excellent, fair, or poor, but a better proce
dure is to place a 5- or 10-m striped stick at standard distances
( 10 m, 20 m, or more) from the transect path and determine the
percentage of the stick that is obscured by the vegetation . A stick
can easily be prepared by painting on it conspicuous stripes 1 m
apart.

CHARACTERISTICS OF HABITATS
WATE R AND DRAINAGE
The presence of water bodies, such as streams, lakes, ponds, and

swamps, requires notation and brief description . Areas that re
tain standing water for prolonged periods, such as ponds and
swamps, may also show unique vegetative characteristics requir
ing separate habitat profile descriptions.
Water drainage and quality may be indicated by characterizing
a stream or river on the basis of color. Three major categories used
in the Amazon basin are "white," "black," and "clear" and are
important with respect to trace elements and suspended nutrients
( Fittkau et a/. , 1975; Soili, 1975) . The color of a stream or river is
not necessarily indicative of the soil and vegetation characteristics
immediately adjacent to it. The color tells something about the
dominant soil and vegetation in the major watershed feeding the
river. The pH can be checked quickly with litmus paper (Table
J-2). Current evidence suggests that black-and clear-water drain-
Relative abundance:
o low
0 intermediate
• high
FIGURE 3-l Primate abundance as a function of habitat type. A composite

physiognomic habitat profile is a rapid way of summarizing which habitats sup
port which species and whether all areas of available habitat are being exploited.
The relative abundance of two primate species is shown for nine habitats in Java.
Indonesia: l. open sand; 2. Barringtonia, mangrove and tropical swamp forest ; 3.
alluvial forest ; 4. plantations of coffee and rubber; 5. streambed vegetation ; 6.
bamboo/Ficus; 7. tropical rain forest ; 8. transitional forest ; and 9. bamboo/
grass. Redrawn from Seidensticker and Suyono, 1980.

14 TE C HNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATI ON E C OLOGY
Station No. Veoetotion Herbaceous Animal siohtinos

Type Cover (or sions)
0 90 °/o Elephant feces
2 0 80 °/o
3 0 so•t.
4 0 50%
5 Sc 50 °/o
6 Sc 3 0 °/o Axis deer (I)
7 Sc 40%
8 S c, T 20%
9 T < 10°/o
10 T < 10°/o Lonour Monkey (2)
FIGURE 3-2 Preliminary transect sample of vegetation types in a survey area.


age areas have lower productivity than white-water areas. Black
water may be caused by tannins and other compounds of plant
decay as well as by eroded material.
S OIL TYPES
Soil science is an extremely specialized and important discipline,

and in a survey of a new region only the most superficial notes can
be taken ; yet even brief descriptions can be of considerable value.
In a first-order description, soils are classified on the basis of
color and particle size. Most nutrients generally occur in the
humus and upper soil layers, which may be only centimeters in
thickness. Soils are generally layered over bedrock, which varies
in chemical composition . If a road has been cut through a hillside
or if a natural landslide has exposed a "profile," a sketch or
photograph with a scale can clarify soil depth, layers, and geolog
ical substrate. Color, depth, and layering are elementary data
( Figure J-3) . In addition, some note should be made of the rela
tive particle size. Claylike soils have extremely small particles and
when dried out will harden and often crack with a characteristic
hexagonal pattern . Sandy soils with intermediate particle size
rarely show the reduced porosity when drying that claylike soils
do. The presence of pebbles or rocks is important in understand
ing the nature of the overlying vegetational cover. Indeed, the
whole rooting pattern and subsequent vegetational cover result
from an interplay of soil type and duration of groundwater or
moisture in the soil.
VEGETATION
Beyond a characterization of the habitat based on physiognomic

features and a list of the common dominant plants, it is necessary
to relate species composition to different forms of topography,
drainage, and soil type. The frequency and dominance of species
can be determined by using plotless or plot methods (Pandeya et
a/. , 1968).
The field worker need not be an expert botanist to compile
quantitative floral data; however, in more detailed ecological
studies, it is important to be familiar with the names of the com-

-
a-
TABLE 3-2 Recording System for Water and Drainage"
Type of Map Water Surrounding

System Location Description Quality Substrate Vegetation
Lake 29° 40' -0° 10' 100 m X 1 50m pH 6.3 Muddy bottom Sandy bank to grass, brush ,
2 m deep Color brown trees -50m from water
Turbidity high
Stream 29° 40' -0° 1 1' SO m wide pH 5.2 Gravel and stone Trees with submerged roots
Slow flowing Clear water bottom to 20 m
1 .5 m deep Shorter stature with dis-
tance
Swamp 29°-0° 9' Sedges to 2 m pH 5.0 Muddy Tangled brush before trees
"Headings are intended to suggest kinds of data to be recorded; entries are hypothetical.

}
}
Sedimentary rock
Metamorphic
rock
FIGURE 3-3 Profile of soils and underlying rocks.
mon dominant plants in the area. Common names are useful but
in a final description Latin binomials should be given. It may be
necessary to make a collection of each plant species, including
leaves, flowers, and fruits, and then seek aid from a forestry offi
cial or botanist at a local museum. Equipment and materials use
ful for descriptions of vegetation include a tape measure, sur
veyor's tape, stakes, tree tags, paints, compass, and knife.
Three measurements are especially useful in preliminary stud
ies of vegetation . These are the trunk diameter at breast height
(dbh), tree height, and crown volume. Regardless of the vegeta
tive sampling technique used, all trees above a dbh of 12 em are
usually identified. The measurement of dbh is useful in determin
ing the maturity of a forest. Crown volume is an important mea
sure of potential productivity if one is estimating the production
of fruit or leaf crops. The dbh is positively correlated with the
height of a tree within a given species and is the easier of the two
size variables to measure.
Either a standard tape or a forester's tape may be used to de-

18 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P OPULATI O N E C O L O GY
tennine the tree diameter. The circumference obtained in using a

standard tape is divided by r = 3.14 to record the diameter. One
scale on a forester's tape shows the diameter directly. Heights are
visually estimated to the nearest meter. Tree height can be mea
sured with a range fmder, but pacing distances and angular mea
surements suffice in a preliminary description (Figure 3-4).
Crown volume is estimated with two pieces of information : the
diameter of the crown and the general shape of the crown. Crown
diameter may be determined by pacing and the shape by deciding
whether the crown is best represented as a sphere, hemisphere, or
some other shape (Figure 3-5). By dividing the crown diameter by
2 to obtain the radius, the volume of spherical canopies can be
calculated from the equation V = 413 r r3. This volume is then
divided by a fraction determined from inspection of the whole
crown and determination of its approximation to a theoretical
sphere (Figure 3-5).
Cover is the space occupied by all the individuals of a species or
physiognomic class of vegetation . It is usually expressed as a per
centage. Two types of cover are usually measured: canopy cover
and ground cover. Canopy cover expresses the degree of closure
or shading by adjacent trees. In a closed canopy where all crowns
tan - a h/d
height a h + 2m
Paced distance (d)
RGURE 3-4 Measurement of tree height and diameter at breast height (dbh).
Trigonometry is used to estimate the height of a tree from measurements of one
angle and one leg of the triangle.


CROWN VOLUME
Anumtd lltmispllttt
} .. """"'"• ""'
....,____ 01 ----t
FIGURE 3-5 Measurement of tree crown volume. The volume of a tree crown
may be estimated as that geometric shape that most closely approximates its
shape, usually a sphere or hemisphere. The formulas for the volume (V) of a
sphere and hemisphere require an estimate of the diameter (D1, D 2 ) of the crown ;
1r s: 3. 14.
touch, the cover is 100o/o. Ground cover is estimated by sampling

an arbitrary area (1 m 2) and estimating the amount of soil exposed.
This is a useful measure in savanna habitats. In estimating
ground cover a rating scale may be developed. For example, if
one were estimating the amount of herbaceous plant growth
within a 1-m quadrat, it could be expressed as 60% , 20% , or
some other percentage. Usually one establishes a series of cover
classes : one series for 0-24% , two for 25-49% , three for 50-74% ,
and four for 75-100% . For ground cover, a 1-m2 area should be
sampled at each 10-m interval.
Three methods frequently used to characterize vegetation are
the strip, quadrat, and quadrant methods.
Strip Method
The strip method of vegetation analysis is commonly used by for
esters and variations are used by primatologists (Dittus, 1977b ;
Struhsaker, 1976). This method is convenient because the vegeta
tion sample strips are run along the animal census transect and
are reliable samples of habitats (see Chapter 4). The analysis usu
ally includes descriptions of trees and estimates of cover.
One problem is how much of the censused habitat should be

20 TECHNI Q U E S IN PRIMATE POPULATION E C OL O GY
vegetatively anaJyzed. Foresters using the strip method regularly

sample 10%, but Struhsaker (1975) found that a sample repre
senting about Jo/o of the home range of his main study group was
adequate to characterize the forest composition.
Two procedures may be followed if a transect aJready exists.
One is to sample aJI trees within a fixed distance of each side of
the transect (5 m would be acceptable). However, sampling a
transect longer than 3 km in this way would be difficult unless the
observer had plenty of time. Therefore, where longer transects ex
ist or there is considerable variation in vegetation, it is best to es
tablish a sample swath every 100m. Swaths 10m wide are made
through the study area.
Quadrat Method
The term "quadrat" generaJly refers to a sample area of a given
shape and size used for anaJysis within a community. Sample
plots should reflect the range of habitat types under study. By
placing each sample plot at random within the study area, the
data will be representative of the plant community as a whole.
For example, if the area under study is divided into a grid and the
plot squares are numbered consecutively, a table of random num
bers can be used to select a sample of 10 from a grid of 100
squares.
A variation of this method is to divide the community into a
series of rectangular plots and then sample at random within
each of them. The total area of plots will not cover the entire com
munity to be studied and may often be arranged in strips so that a
certain proportion of the community is anaJyzed. In this way, one
usuaJly attempts to sample 5 or 10% of the totaJ habitat.
The number of quadrats used depends on the variation within
the vegetation and the degree of accuracy required. As a rule of
thumb, it is far better to analyze many smaJler quadrats than a
few large ones in a community. The "grain" of the analysis is im
portant. If one is studying a community of smaJI plant species, a
quadrat may be as smaJI as 1 m square. But larger quadrats are
required in a study of tree distribution. For a discussion of quad
rat sampling applied to sampling primate populations, see "Quad
rat Censuses" in Chapter 4.


In a preliminary analysis, when all quadrats have been sam
pled, the number of times each species was present in each quad
rat is tabulated. This figure is then divided by the total number of
quadrats sampled to give the observed frequency of each species.
This value is often expressed as a decimal or a percentage. Find
ing the frequency of occurrence is a quick way to determine rela
tive composition over a wide area.
The density of a given plant species is expressed as the number
of individuals of that species per selected unit area. It is one of the
best measurements for a precise description of habitat. The num
ber of individuals of each species in each quadrat is recorded and
the average number per quadrat is then calculated.
Quadrant Method
In the analysis of tree communities, plotless sampling is frequently
employed. This technique, which may be carried out rapidly, is
called the quadrant method. Basically, one establishes a series of
transect lines running in a given compass direction (e.g. , north
south or east-west). Referring to a table of random numbers, one
measures random distances along these lines, thus locating a
series of random points. From each of these random points, one
draws an imaginary line perpendicular to the transect line and
thus establishes four quadrants. Next one measures the distance
to the nearest tree or to the nearest tree of selected species in each
of the quadrants. In general, the aim is to identify the species,
measure the distance from the sample point to the nearest tree,
and record the dbh and the area of ground covered by the base of
trees. In any transect sampling of this nature, the worker must es
tablish at least 100 points that yield measurements for 400 trees.
After completion of the sampling, analysis can be made on the
basis of individual species or for the set of trees as a whole. One
can calculate the mean distance (il) of trees or species from the
point by summing all distances (d) and dividing the total by the
number (n ) of distances measured. The equation becomes d =
din .
One can convert the plotless method into a grid for calculating
the density of a species by treating the distance from the random
point to the nearest tree as the hypotenuse of a right triangle or as

22 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O G Y
the diagonal of a rectangle that i s twice the size of the triangle .

The density is calculated as the reciprocal of the mean distance
squared times a reference area to convert the densities to a uni
form area (e.g. , individuals per hectare). Thus, for species A.
whose mean distance between the random points and the nearest
2
trees is 4 m, the density = 1 1 cf2 ( 100 ) or 1 / 1 6 ( 10,000) = 625
trees/hectare of species A. Figure 3-6 portrays the quadrant
method.
The relative density and relative dominance of different tree
species can be calculated after the basal area of the trees and
their densities are known.
number of individuals of a species

The relative density = X 100
number of individuals of all species
total basal area of a species

The relative dominance = X 100
total basal area of all species
a) b)
0
oo 0 0 • O n:
I n I e
Oo 0 0 0 0
oO o
0 0 � 0
o ''
/.o
/
/
�
0 /
0 0
0 o• 0
0
o o 0
0
nz: m nz: m
RGURE 3-6 Plotless quadrant method for estimating relative tree densities.
Random points are set along the vertical transect line. A perpendicular line is then
drawn dividing the area into four quadrants, I, II, Ill, IV, that are numbered
clockwise. (a) The distance (arrow) is measured from the random point to the
nearest tree in each quadrant when an estimate of the relative density of all trees
of a minimum dbh is desired. (b) The distances to specific tree species (solid and
open dots) are measured when an estimate of the relative density of differe nt
species (in a two-species community) is desired. Adapted from Phillips, 1959.

OTHER INFORMATION
Certain other information pertaining to the status of the habitat,

such as hunting and trapping pressure and history of land use, is
important. This information is acquired by interviewing local in
habitants and government officials and consulting published rec
ords. The kind and degree of human influence in the habitat is
evaluated by evidence of disturbance. Such evidence includes
human settlements and agricultural and lumbering activities.
This information is especially important for evaluating the pres
ent and future status of primate populations. (See Neville et a/.
( 1976). An unpublish ed report by K. M. Green is also useful; to
borrow a copy, write to K. M. Green , National Zoological Park ,
Washington , D . C . 20008 . )
Photographs of the vegetation along the transect and several
meters off the transect in the vegetation are useful. Black and
white ftlm is sufficient, but color film will provide more detail.
SPECIES MAPS
The preparation of species maps of large trees is a method for

recording resource distribution . Mapping large areas of the study
site or census zone is not always possible. Nonetheless, smaller
vegetative sample plots or shorter transects will provide data from
which rudimentary, but useful, profiles of habitats or forests can
be prepared (Figure 3- 1 ) .
I n study sites without existing transects, o r if the researcher
desires to sample larger areas, a compass and measuring tape are
the basic tools to be used . Random directions are selected and
followed with a compass and, by using a measuring tape or by
pacing along a straight line, the desired distance is established .
Surveyor's tape, blazes, or stakes can be used to mark the vegeta
tion sample plots. For permanent identification of individual
trees (which can be useful for future studies of phenology, succes
sion , and animal resource utilization patterns), aluminum tree
tags, numbered blazes, or paint are used. This permanent identi
fication of each tree is. mandatory to develop a vegetation map for
long-term ecological studies. For an example of an elaborate veg
etation map, see Figure 3-7.

24 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P OPULATI O N E C O L O G Y
RGURE 3·7 Species vegetation map with projected physiognomic vegetation

profile. Vertical structure of the rain forest in Gabon along a portion of transect
90 X 5 m. Trunks shown by dotted lines are outside the transect width but sup
port crowns included in the section. The horizontal structure is shown by the pro
jection of the canopies and trunks in a wider sample area of 90 X 10 m. Canopies
with lianas are represented by hatched areas on the profile. Identifications of tree
species may also be labeled in these illustrations. Redrawn from Hladik , 1978.
Many study areas require vegetative analysis of shrub or grass

in addition to the taller trees. This is particularly true for sa
vanna-dwelling terrestrial primates in Mrica and some Asian
Colobinae and Cercopithecinae . For example, Dittus ( 1 977b) an
alyzed shrub associations in Sri Lanka.
Struhsaker ( 1975) found that the strip-enumeration method is
preferable for estimating the density of particular species in a
large study area. He also found that, because of the aggregated

dispersion pattern of many forest species, the quadrat method is

better for evaluating densities in a local part of the forest, such as
the home range of a group. In Struhsaker's strip method, all trees
within 2.5 m ofthe trail and 10 m or more in height were identi
fied; the taller trees were identified because the leaf-eating mon
keys he was studying fed in those trees. Data from several strips
through the home range of his red colobus study group were
summed to obtain a strip that exceeded 2,800 m in length and 5
m in width . This strip corresponded to a sample area of 1 .4 ha,
with 469 trees and 51 species.
The diversity of a forest can be expressed by the Shannon Index
of information content or uncertainty, H' (Pielou, 1969). The
raw data for such an estimate are: S, the total number of tree spe
cies; N;, the number of trees for each (ith) species; and N,, the
total number of trees in the sample of all tree species (N, = Ef= 1
N;) where Ef= t = the sum values of N; from 1 to the total, S.
The relative abundance (p;) of the ith species is calculated as P; =
N;IN,, and diversity H ' = - Ef= t p;lnp;, where ln = natural
logarithm to base e = 2. 718 . . . .
The measure of diversity takes into account both the number of
tree species and their relative abundances. H ' measures the de
gree of uncertainty that an individual drawn at random from the
population will belong to a particular species. H ' increases with
the number of species and, for a given number of species, will be
greatest when all species have an equal number of individuals,
i.e . , when the distribution of trees among species is even. H' will
be zero with only one species. H' can be applied equally well to
estimating the diversity of primates or to estimating food items in
the diet.
RECORDING CLIMATIC DATA
During a short survey the best that one can do is to record tem
perature, relative humidity, and frequency of rainfall. A maxi
mum-minimum thermometer and a sling psychrometer will suf
fice. Long-term studies require a rain gauge and daily recording
of the precipitation. If one has records for an annual cycle of daily
rainfall and maximum and minimum temperatures, it is possible

26 T E C HNI Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O PULATI O N E C O L O GY
to plot these data on a single graph according to the method de

veloped by Walter and Leith ( 1 967); see Figure 3-8.
When an annual plot of precipitation and temperature is estab
lished, the drought periods are clearly delimited. When the pre
cipitation curve falls below the temperature curve, this method of
plotting reflects a drought in which plant growth is retarded .
Average months of continuous drought are important; the longer
the annual drought, the lower the annual plant productivity. The
diversity of sympatric primate species clearly declines as the mean
annual drought period increases over a range of geographic areas
(Eisenberg, 1979).
COLLECTING AND MARKING SPECIMENS
Part of a habitat description may involve the assembly of plant

and animal specimens. To be useful such collections must be ade
quately labeled and documented.
LABEUNG GUIDELINES
When collecting specimens it is important to get into the habit of

keeping good notes and cross-references between the notes and
the specimens. For this purpose it is useful to have tags that can
be tied to the specimens. If specimens are being collected only
sporadically, it may be adequate to number the specimens by
date, since your notebook will probably be arranged chronologi
cally. Specimen 7/11/79-2 would be the second specimen col
lected on the seventh of February 1979. Turning to the notebook
for that date, one would find a description of the specimen and a
note on where it was collected.
When specimens are being collected regularly or intensively, it
is highly desirable to maintain a field catalog. The specimens
should be numbered consecutively, preceded by your initials
(e.g. , RWT 735 or JFE 562). Never duplicate numbers. Keep the
same series year after year. In both botanical and zoological col
lections, it is common to refer to the collector's numbers under
the presumption that each applies uniquely to one specimen.
Fruits and leaves bearing the same number are presumed to come
from the same plant. The same would be true for a skull and leg

a ) Horton Ploins b ) B o t t icoloo

5
1
00 500
v["
e
......_j
250
!
! ·,::
100
�·c;
c; 0: 50 �0.
s
�
:t '
0
a: 0 0
1 " " " 1 11 1 1
....
�
50 Jon Dec
0.
Month
E
..
....
0
I I I I I I I I
I
Jan Dec
Month
• Wet
0 T r o n ! ition o l
Q Dr y
c ) Baltica loa
500
250
e
� 100
�c; t
�:
50
a: 0
0
rr
rmrn-m-rrlf-rrmTrrn-rrlli'fmTTTl !
Month Jan Jul Jon Jul Jan Jul
Year 1967 1968 1969
RGURE 3-8 Climatic diagrams. This figure presents a rapid method from
Walter and Leith ( 1967) for characterizing the seasonal variation in rainfall for
two areas in Sri Lanka. In these diagrams, the temperature as a monthly mean is
plotted in centigrade up to so• on the left-hand ordinate. The scale is in to• in
crements that correspond to increments of 20 mm of precipitation on the right
hand ordinate. Precipitation is plotted as the monthly total, and when the total for
any month exceeds 100 mm the scale is altered to 200 mm in months. The abscissa
is scaled in months.
The diagrams illustrate the differences between the climates of a wet-zone cloud
forest at Horton Plains, which averages 2,000 mm of rainfall annually (Rudran,
1973a), and a coastal dry-zone forest at Batticaloa, which averages 1 ,699 mm of
rainfall annually (McKay, 1973). The influence of monsoon s on the amount and
patterning of rainfall between years is striking in dry-zone habitats. This variabil
ity is illustrated in b and c, which contrast the data from individual years with
30-yr averages recorded by the Meteorological Department of Sri Lanka.

28 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O L O GY
bones, all bearing the same collector's number. Examples of field

catalogs, journals, and specimen labels are illustrated in many
texts and pamphlets on mammalogy (e.g. , DeBiase and Martin ,
1974; Hall, 1962; Hall and Kelson, 1959; Setzer, 1963).
COLLECTING PLANT SPECIMENS
There are two main reasons for collecting plants used by the ani
mals one studies. First, this enables one to identify the species of
the plants. Second, it enables one to demonstrate that the identi
fications are correct. Thus, even if one "knows" what the plants
are, it is desirable to have voucher specimens. Since most speci
mens will be examined by a botanist and deposited in a herbar
ium, it is important to collect and press specimens carefully .
Botanists are far more helpful if one's specimens a re well p re
pared. Herbaria appreciate being given specimens identified by
their staffs , so duplicates should be collected if one wishes to re
tain an identified series. The herbaria of the world are listed by
Holmgren and Keuken ( 1974).
The basic material needed is a plant press and the means to dry
specimens. A plant press can be made from strips of wood fas
tened together to make a lattice. Two of these with straps around
them constitute the press. Two boards and two pieces of light
rope could also be used, as could a board and a big rock , but such
presses make it harder to dry the specimens. The plants are placed
between pieces of absorbent paper, such as folded newspaper, so
that each sample, consisting of material from no more than one
plant, is within its own fold. These are placed in the press be
tween blotters, newspapers, or pieces of cardboard. Some sort of
corrugated material, such as corrugated cardboard , is needed so
that dry air can pass through the press. The corrugations should
run the width of the press so that when the press is tightened and
put on its edge over a source of low heat, the drier warm air will
pass upward through the press.
When the specimens are collected, they should be numbered
and an entry should be made in the field catalog. Note the size of
the plant; describe the colors of flowers and sap, texture of bark ,
and so on. If you have numbered and labeled the trees in your
study site, be sure to note these numbers also.

One should collect specimens with flowers and fruits whenever

possible. The specimen should be large enough to show leafing
and branching patterns, but remember that herbarium sheets are
generally 1 1 " X 16" and the pressed specimens must fit. Small
plants may be collected whole-don't forget the root s. Large
specimens may be folded, as long as important features are not
obscured.
Press the plants as soon as possible, while they are fresh and
unwilted. Under some circumstances specimens can temporarily
be kept in plastic bags, preferably one specimen per bag so that
they do not become mixed. When pressing specimens, arrange
them so as to show the major features (e.g. , both sides of leaves).
Make sure the catalog numbers are with the plants in the press.
To prevent molding, dry the plants as rapidly as possible in the
press, but do not scorch them. Change wet blotters or newspapers
as necessary, but do not remove the plants from their newspaper
folders. It is best not to remove the plants from the folds of news
paper in which they are pressed until they are mounted on her
barium paper. The plants may be stored in newspaper, or they
may be sent to a herbarium in newspaper.
Any arrangement simulating a warming oven may be used as a
plant drier. Plants are often dried in a box. Make a series of small
(0.5 em in diameter) openings in the bottom and top of the box so
that heat can rise. Place the box over a small light bulb (25 watts)
or other heat source.
Each specimen sent to a botanist or a herbarium should have
the following data included: data collected, collector's full name
and his catalog number for the specimen , locality from which the
specimen was collected, habitat (e.g. , forest, savanna, swamp),
and descriptive characteristics of the plant.
Fruits are commonly preserved dry. They may also be preserved
in fluid: 70% alcohol or FAA (5% formalin , 5% acetic acid, in
70% alcohol). Large fruits may need to be lanced or sectioned to
ensure rapid fixation . They can be stored in wide-mouthed mason
jars. For shipping they can be wrapped in cloth dampened with
the preserving fluid and sealed in plastic bags.
Botanists' collection techniques are described in more detail
and illustrated in several books and pamphlets (e.g. , Fosberg and
Sachet, 1965; Shetler, 1%3 ; Smith , 1971 ).

30 T E C H N I Q UE S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O G Y
SCAVENGING ANIMAL REMAINS
During field work one occasionally finds dead primates or skele

tal material. These specimens constitute a "graveyard sample ..
and can be very valuable. They can provide information on the
ages at which animals die, data on nutritional stress, frequencies
of fractures, and even the causes of sickness and death . These
materials should therefore be saved and cataloged. The date, lo
cation, and state of decomposition should be recorded when the
carcass is first encountered.
A smelly, maggot-ridden monkey cadaver is not an attractive
acquisition . In some areas you can leave it until it has dried and
then take possession ; but in others it must be taken promptly
before it is removed by scavenging animals or birds. You can
hang it from a tree to discourage vultures and small scavengers
from dragging it away, but if it starts to fall apart, important
parts may be lost. If wire screening is available, you can make a
cage to put it in . Make sure that vultures cannot reach into the
cage and pull parts of it out. If the cage excludes vertebrates b ut
not invertebrates, the skeleton will soon be cleaned, but it may be
necessary to soften the skin in water and cut it off the skeleton.
Less desirably, the carcass can be buried for a few weeks, then ex
humed. In some localities a cadaver can be left in slowly moving
water, where invertebrate scavengers will clean it efficiently. If
the cadaver is fresh , or one's stomach is strong, one can "rough it
out" by removing the skin, viscera, and major muscle masses.
Frequently this job is not as bad as anticipated if the viscera are
first removed and disposed of. The skull should be separated
carefully from the atlas, the eyes removed from their sockets, and
the brain removed through the foramen magnum. The last can be
done with a long-handled scoop, or a stick , or by injecting a jet of
water inside the skull, as with a syringe. The "roughed out" car
cass can then be dried, later prepared with dermestid beetles, or
it can be boiled. The former is preferable .
Since the skull is generally the most valuable part, it should
always be saved. Be careful not to loose the teeth , which can be
used for estimating the age of the animal. The weight of the eye
lenses also is frequently used to estimate ages of dead mammals.


In some areas and with some species of primates, there may be
a risk of disease assoc iated with handling dead animals. The risk
is probably greatest among primates most closely related to man ,
and the risk probably decreases rapidly with the length of time
that the animal has been dead. With freshly dead animals, one
should take care not to be bitten by any of their ectoparasites.
With all cadavers one should take reasonable precaution to avoid
viral and bacterial contamination of oneself and one's colleagues.
The preparation of mammal skeletons for study is described in
more detail by Anon . (1967), Hall and Russell (1933), Hoff
meister and Lee (1963), and Russell (1947).
PHENOLOGICAL PATTERNS
Phenology is the study of periodicity in the production of plant

parts by individuals at a defined site and time. Typical pheno
phases that are discriminated include the vegetative parts
(shoots, flush or young leaves, and mature leaves) and the repro
ductive parts (buds, blossoms, and unripe and ripe fruit). Fruit
frequently changes color as it ripens. The period of leaffall is also
monitored.
Plants differ in the seasonal periodicity and sequential pattern
ing of their phenological activity. Trees may be ranked from ev
ergreen to brevideciduous, semideciduous, or deciduous; the
ranking depends on the type of leaf renewal and the extent and
duration of leaffall. Evergreen species produce new leaves as they
lose old ones. At the other extreme, deciduous species tend to be
highly seasonal, and some renew their canopies only after a
period of dormancy. These patterns are usually given operational
definitions at each site. Plants may produce flowers and leaves si
multaneously, alternately, or with some overlap of these activities.
Reproductive patterns are equally variable. Trees may flower
continuously, seasonally at a regular period of the year, aperiodi
cally, or gregariously; in gregarious flowering, neighboring indi
viduals show the same rhythmicity. Trees may also remain inac
tive reproductively for extended periods (up to several years) until
a critical stimulus is present or until a required dormancy is satis
fied. Several tree species have separate male and female individ-

32 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P OP U LATI O N E C O L O GY
uals. Care should be taken to select female individuals of dioe

cious species in order to develop an estimate of fruit availability.
A tree species may maintain continuous activity of a particular
phenophase through continuous production at certain sites, by
asynchronous behavior between branches of an individual, or by
asynchronous behavior between individuals in a population . As
many as 27 types of reproductive patterns have been described for
species of plants in a seasonal rain forest in Panama (Croat ,
1975). The patterns of dispersing or concentrating resources over
time and space have been considered adaptive strategies through
which plant species attract pollinators and dispersal agents and
augment chemical defenses for avoiding seed predators. The
focus of attention on the interaction between plant and animal
species has led to a new examination of phenological patterns
that are only partly explained as responses to limiting climatic
factors-for example, rainy seasons and dry seasons, and
changes in temperature and day length . The strategies of differ
ent plants directly affect the daily ranging patterns of primates;
these patterns include not only their foraging times but also spac
ing within groups during foraging and the distances they move
between resources. For example, it may be advantageous for a
tree to attract arboreal herbivores if they are also seed dispersers,
but advantageous to discourage them otherwise. A number of
phenological patterns have been described in recent studies con
ducted both in the New World tropics (Croat, 1975; Daubenmire,
1972; Frankie et al. , 1974a,b ; Monasterio and Sarmiento, 1976)
and in the Old World tropics ( Hladik, 1978; Koelmeyer, 1959,
1960).
Phenological data are useful because they can be compared
with observations on feeding in order to develop a picture of the
availability and utilization of different food items. Therefore ,
plant species selected for monitoring should be important food
items of the primate under study or common plants in the area.
Many plants are eaten seasonally at restricted periods and may
represent important food items at those times. Mapping of plant
species and monitoring phenology with the grid established for
vegetation analysis and within the home range of the main pri
mate group increase the likelihood of observing the actual utiliza-

tion of plants in the phenological sample. It is often necessary to

use a sequential numbering system to identify the plants selected
for the phenological sample prior to obtaining taxonomic identifi
cations of voucher specimens ( see Chapter 6). The more frequently
selected plants are trees and shrubs; those less frequently selected
are vines, epiphytes, and herbs.
Several individuals of each tree species are marked with num
bered tags or tape for recognition at each sampling period.
Mature individuals that do not show obvious signs of disease are
selected. A sample consisting of 5-10 individuals per species may
be as large a sample as can be recorded on a monthly basis. (You
might be working with, say, 30 species, and you would have a
sample of 300 trees if you selected 10 individuals for each
species. ) More frequent monitoring is necessary for some species.
Each phenophase is estimated as a percentage of the canopy.
Percentages may be estimated broadly on a scale of 10 with each
number representing 10% of the canopy. The data are recorded
rapidly on prepared checksheets that provide columns for each of
the phenophases (buds, blossoms, unripe and ripe fruits, young
and mature leaves, leaffall) and a list of the identifications of the
trees or other plants in the sample. The results are then tabulated
or graphed and are contrasted with climatic variables that in
fluence them (e.g. , rainfall).
SATELLITE IMAGERY
Satellite analysis of land resources has been an expanding area of

study in forestry, agriculture, and geology since 1972, when the
Earth Resources LANDSAT Satellites began transmitting data col
lected by multispectral optical sensors to ground receiving sta
tions worldwide. Photographic enlargements are made for study
from the images, which were obtained at scales ranging from 1 :3,
369,000 to 1 : 250,000 from the early LANDSAT satellite and are ob
tained at a scale of 1 : 125,000 from the current ( 1980) LANDSAT 3
satellite. The resolution at this scale means that 1 em of the
photograph represents 1 . 25 km on the ground and thus is much
less than that available from recent aerial photographs or topo
graphic maps.

34 T E C H N I Q UE S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O GY
Different surfaces on earth reflect characteristic amounts of

light that can be discriminated as intensity differences in images.
These reflective differences can be used to discriminate and clar
ify forests, crops, water bodies, and geologic features. Seasonal
changes in maturing vegetation of well-known crops and changes
in species composition within large forest tracts can be detected
by using these methods. These classifications are developed in
conjunction with observations at selected sites that provide
"ground truth" for extrapolations to larger areas. The standar
ized Forest Survey Information Data Sheet is illustrated in Ap
pendix C. It provides a means of describing habitats and has been
used by the Royal Thai Forest Department for interpreting LAND
SAT data.
Potential applications for satellite imagery increase as the tech

nology moves from an experimental stage to one where the infor
mation can be used in evaluating changes in land-use patterns
and in managing resources (National Research Council, 1977).
Studies of tropical forests using remote-sensing techniques and
guidelines for gathering ground truth information have been de
scribed at recent international symposia (International Sympo
sium on Remote Sensing of the Environment, 1978, 1980). These
studies include vegetation classifications and forest inventories in
Brazil, Mexico, the Peruvian Amazon , Nigerian Forest Reserves,
Thailand, the Philippines, and Indonesia. Initial applications of
satellite imagery to primate studies may be in classifying forest
types and in detecting and monitoring habitat loss for forest pri
mates through deforestation. NASA has recently published a
volume on monitoring forest canopy in tropical countries using
LANDSAT imagery.
Data acquired by the LANDSAT satellite is transmitted to three

receiving stations in the United States (located at NASA facilities
in Greenbelt, Maryland; Goldstone, California; and Fairbanks,
Alaska) to two stations in Canada and to one each in Brazil, Italy,
Japan, and Sweden . Additional tracking and receiving stations
are planned in Argentina, Australia, and China. The principal
distribution facility in the United States for remotely sensed data
is the EROs Data Center, Geological Survey, U . S . Department of
the Interior, Washington, D . C . The Resource Planning Unit of

the World Bank and the Remote Sensing Program of the U . S .

Agency for International Development are important sources of
information on remote sensing. Tropical countries that have
LANDSAT programs include Bolivia, Brazil, India, Indonesia,
Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, Tanzania, and Thailand . In

quiries about the service offered and price lists for satellite images
can be obtained from LANDSAT data distribution centers (see Ap
pendix A). Private firms and academic institutions in the United
States have also begun to provide image processing and inter
pretive series (see Appendix B).

4
Census
Methods for
Estimating
Densities
BACKGROUND FOR CALCULATIONS DERIVED FROM

TRANSECT CENSUSES
MEASUREMENTS FOR TRANSECT METHODS AND CALCULATION

OF DENSITY
The aim of a census is to estimate the density of a sample popula

tion in a defined area so that the total population of a larger census
area can be estimated. The basic formula for calculating density,
which is the number of animals per unit area, is
Estimated animal Number of animals seen

population, N in sample area, n
= -----""--��--
Census area, A Sample area, a
When utilizing a transect, the area censused is found by multiply

ing the length by the width (A= lw ). For sample areas based on
transects, I = the length of the transect line and 2w = the strip
width , which is twice the transect width-that is, the width Jo-
36

Census Methodsfor Estimating Densities 37
cated on one side of the transect line. The above relationship is

usually solved for N, and the basic fonnula for estimating the
number of animals in a population of census area a = 2 · lw
becomes
nA
N = ,
2 · /w
where A is measured in the same units as the distance measure

ments. Several types of density estimates are recognized, and
these are discussed in Chapter 8.
Transect width is estimated from the following measurements,
which can be collected when an animal is sighted along a transect
line:
P = the perpendicular distance, that is, the shortest distance

from the detected animal to the transect line. It is often
called the animal-to-transect distance.
S = the animal-to-observer distance, or sighting distance
from the observer to the animal at the moment of detec
tion .
fJ = the sighting angle, or the angle between the transect line
and the animal-to-observer line at the moment of detec
tion .
The angle fJ may be measured with a field compass.
On the basis of the trigonometric relationship P = S sin fJ, any
two of the three measurements shown in Figure 4- 1 can be taken
for convenience. Estimation errors can sometimes be caught
when all three measurements are taken by using trigonometry to
check accuracy. Usually a measurement is made only for the per
pendicular distances or for both the sighting angle and the sight
ing distances from which the perpendicular distances can be com
puted.
Different methods for detennining a valid transect width have
led to a variety of fonnulas, usually through the substitution of w
by some specifically defined value. The transect width has been
variously defined as the maximum sighting or perpendicular dis
tance, as the mean distance, and as some distance between the
maximum and mean that is considered an effective strip width .

38 TE CHNI Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O G Y
T
p
or
FIGURE 4- 1 Measurements for per·
pendicular and sighting distances. Three
Group
measurements may be taken when an s
animal is sighted from a transect line: P,
the animal-to-path distance; S, the ani·
mal-to-observer distance; and 9, the sight·
ing angle. The length of the transect line, O b s e r ve r
T, is a measured distance; the transect
width, w, may be established as a ftxed
or variable distance.
These intermediate widths have been attempts to estimate a

100% detection distance or a distance at which observations be
come markedly less frequent.
It is obvious from the initial equation , N = nA /2 · /w , that de
creasing the size of the sample area relative to the sample popula
tion, n , has the effect of decreasing the denominator and thereby
increasing the population estimate, N. Thus, formulas that util
ize mean sighting or perpendicular distances will produce smaller
estimates of the sample area and larger population estimates than
will equations that utilize maximum values for these estimates of
transect width . Formulas that are used to derive some estimate of
effective strip width will provide intermediate estimates of
population size. The latter formulas often rely on establishing a
fixed width and excluding from analysis those sightings that lie
beyond this fixed width. These estimates are made to avoid one of
the problems encountered when using the maximum distance:
the possibility that the maximum record represents an extreme


value that is beyond the distance within which one could nonnally
detect animals.
Burnham et a/. ( 1 980) reviewed census methods and tested
several probability functions under the assumption that the prob
ability of detection can be best expressed by a family of probability
curves. Their estimates depend on use of a computer to generate
probability functions and on access to a statistician . Although
their methods will probably be used increasingly as census meth
ods and analysis become more accurate and statistically robust, it
is assumed that the investigator using this manual will not have
access to a computer and will therefore be obliged to use the sim
pler analytical methods even though these may depend on some
assumptions that only approximate the real situation .
A variety of methods were reviewed by Burnham et a/. (1980)
and Robinette et a/. ( 1 974), and additional discussions can be
found in the references cited by them. Several of these methods
are mentioned below. Selected methods that have been useful in
censusing primates are discussed later in this chapter.
Robinette et a/. (1974) reviewed several strip census methods
that use either sighting or perpendicular distances. They con
ducted field tests in which they used stationary objects (blocks
and carcasses) and found that all but three methods overesti
mated the actual numbers by more than 10% . Fonnulas based on
sighting distances could be ranked by the size of the population
estimates that they produced from lowest to highest as follows:
King's method, which uses the arithmetic mean for the sighting
distance; Gates Ill , which is based on a geometric mean ; Hayne's
method, which uses the hannonic mean of the sighting distance;
and Gates II , which substitutes 2n -1 for n and uses the
arithmetic mean for the sighting distance. The Gates II method
gave population estimates that were almost twice that of King's.
Robinette and his colleagues found that several methods based
on perpendicular distances also overestimated the population of
stationary objects. These included Webb's method, the Gates I
method, and Leopold's method. Webb's method uses the mean
sighting distances and mean sighting angles to detennine perpen
dicular distances; the other two methods use the mean perpendic
ular distances. The Gates I method also uses n - 1 for n . Meth-

40 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATION E C OLOGY
ods developed by Kelker and Anderson and by Pospahala gave

mean estimates within lOo/o of the actual numbers; in this way
they were like King's method. Kelker used an estimated perpen
dicular threshold distance within which all animals were probably
observed but beyond which some animals were probably missed,
and he used an n in his formula that is equal to the number of
animals seen within twice the threshold distance. Anderson and
Pospahala also developed a correction factor for animals not
observed.
ASSUMPTIONS FOR LINE TRANSECT SAMPLING
The theory of line transect sampling depends on four assump

tions outlined by Burnham et al. ( 1980):
1 . Animals directly on the line will never be missed. It is also

understood that all of the animals in the sample area will not be
detected, and the farther an animal is from the line, the less likely
it is to be detected.
2. Animals are fixed at the initial sighting position; they do not
move before being detected and none are counted twice.
3. Distances and angles are measured exactly, thus avoiding
both measurement errors and rounding errors.
4. Sightings are independent events.
The investigator attempts to design the study and the data

analysis to minimize violations of these assumptions.
It is assumed that a plot of the sighting data, like the frequency
of many classes of measurements, approximates a normal distri
bution. Figure 4-2 illustrates a normal distribution fitted to a fre
quency histogram. The value x is the mean or the sum of all
values divided by the number of individual measurements, x =
Ex/En . The standard deviation, s, indicates the dispersion of the
values for the measured variable around the mean. The usual no
tation for the mean plus or minus the standard deviation is x ± s .
One calculates s b y the formula: s = .../7 where s2 i s variance.
The variance is calculated from the following formula:

E(x - x)2
n - 1
where x is any measured value in your sample, x is the mean, and

n is the number of observations. In practice, the term (x - i)2 is
reduced to:
(Ex)2
E(x - x)2 = Ex2 -
_
-
s2 =
(Ex)2
Ex2 - --- n - 1
f
n
s =
.J (Ex)2
Ex2 - --- n
f - 1
n
A census method that can be used for data that are not normally
distributed but follow a Poisson distribution is given on p. 65.
A good census is one that avoids bias and is both accurate and
precise. The introduction of bias due to terrain, vegetation , or
human activity is avoided by selecting transects in a way that ran
domly distributes them in the census area. The use of existing
roads as transects strongly biases the counts because a road sys
tem almost never randomly traverses an area. Roads are generally
constructed along rather than across contours. In addition, roads
affect the exposure of animals and habitat to human activity by
providing an access to nearby areas for hunting, cutting for fire
wood, and lumbering. Lastly, road or river edge habitat is very
different from nonedge habitat because of the increased light
penetration and prevalence of secondary growth species. There
are a few special situations, e.g. , the flat agricultural plains of the
upper Gangetic Basin in India, where roads provide valid tran
sect routes for surveys of primates in rural areas (Southwick et
a/. , 1965).
An accurate census is one in which the estimate of a population
closely approximates the true value; a precise census is one in
which repeated measurements or replicates of the same quantity

42 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P OPULATIO N E C O L O G Y
Q)
..0
0
'-
0
>
Q)
�
�
-
0
>-
0
c
Q)
;:)
c:r
Va l u e s f o r t h e m e a s u r e d va r i a b l e
Q)
�
FIGURE 4-2 A normal distribution. The diagram shows the
observed frequency of a variable in the form of a histogram
(rectangles) together with a fitted normal distribution (smooth
curve). Data may show some variation from a bell-shaped
curve and still be considered as normally distributed. The i =
the mean, the s = one standard deviation.
(in this case, the number of animals present) are close to each
other. To obtain a census that is both accurate and precise, it is
necessary to determine the sample size, the number or length of
transect lines, and the number of sightings (sample points) from
inspection of preliminary data drawn from the sample area. Ex
amples are given in subsequent sections of this chapter. Tables of
random numbers can be found in general statistics texts, and an
elaboration of these statistical concepts can be found in discus
sions of population estimates in Burnham et a/. ( 1 980), Caughley
(1977), Norton-Griffiths ( 1 975), and Overton ( 1971 ).
Several examples of primate censuses illustrate that there can
be considerable variability in the results, but the estimates tend to
increase in accuracy and precision with replication . Thus, Neville
(1976) showed that counts of a population of howler monkeys in
Venezuela doubled between the 50th and 80th hours of observa
tions. Altmann and Altmann ( 1970) found a clear-cut tendency
for censuses to become more accurate with time when they mea
sured the amount of sampling error by matching the results of
censuses against the true composition of groups of baboons deter-


mined by independent methods. MacKinnon (1974a,b) calcu
lated the density of orangutans as 0.8 individuals per km2 on the
basis of a count of nests along a transect, but increased the esti
mate to 4.6 organutans per km2 after making a more detailed
count of aU nests in a plot within the same census area.
Not aU census methods have high accuracy or precision but
represent compromises between size of survey area, cost, time,
and manpower. Southwick et a/. (1965) "calibrated" roadside
surveys by repeating runs over 168 km of Indian roadside. The
counts, based on 10 replications of the trip , ranged between 3 and
11 groups with an average of 7. Later they found that 14 groups
lived in the census zone, indicating that for small sample sizes
roadside surveys of rhesus macaques have low accuracy and, on
the average, underestimate actual numbers by half.
Assumption 3 emphasizes the theoretical importance of esti
mating distances to the nearest unit of measure, such as a meter,
because grouping distance measurements into classe s , as the data
are taken, sets the limits for data analysis and requires that the
data be analyzed as frequency counts rather than as a set of con
tinuous measurements. Thus, an observation should be recorded
as a sighting at 36 m rather than as one in the interval between 30
and 40 m. Burnham et a/. (1980) point out that there are valid
statistical methods for estimating densities on the basis of
grouped perpendicular distances, but none have been developed
for analyzing grouped sighting distances and angles.
Assumption 2 presupposes that animals do not move before
they are detected. Movement away from an observer by animals
initiaUy close to a transect line has the effect of increasing width
estimates (such as means) and thereby decreasing density esti
mates. Such bias is suggested in graphed data (Figure 4-3) when
ever the number of close sightings is less than the number of in
termediate sightings (Janson and Terborgh , in press). Figure 4-3
also illustrates a method for determining a reliable detection dis
tance by using the graphed data to identify the distance at which
the frequency of detections drops sharply. Where there is no
sharp separation between a plateau and a decline in observation
distances, it is useful to compute density estimates for more than
one possible maximum cutoff distance and to present the range of
resulting density estimates.

44 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O PU LATI O N E C O L O G Y
10
en 8
z
Q
t-
<( 7
>
a:
w
en 6
II)
0
u. 5
0
a:
w 4
II)
2
;j
z·
3
7 14 21 28 35 42 49 56 63
DI STANCE (M)
FIGURE 4-3 Distribution of perpendicular sighting distances for Cebus.

Redrawn from Janson and Terborgh (in press).
Burnham et a/. (1980) recommend the use of perpendicular

distance data and believe that when sighting distances are used
they should be used with sighting angles. Robinette et a/. (1974)
also recommend the use of methods based on perpendicular dis
tances but note that there are some conditions, such as uneven
terrain , in which sighting distances are useful because measure
ment of perpendicular distances from the transect lines is dif
ficult. Thomas Struhsaker reports finding a high frequency of
sightings over the transect line. In such instances, the use of
methods based on sighting distances is preferred over those based
on perpendicular distances because the latter underestimate the
area (the perpendicular distance overhead is a "zero" width) and
overestimate the number of animals.


The fundamental problem in utilizing the perpendicular dis
tance from the transect line derives from the fact that primate
habitat space is three-dimensional. We are in effect attempting to
estimate density in terms of area rather than density within a
volume. The problem becomes critical when the sample size is
small and the area surveyed is restricted in size. Large sample
sizes over wide areas reduce the vertical dimension relative to the
transect length and width and thus reduce apparent variability,
but the problem is a genuine one in small transect survey opera
tions. Density expressed as numbers of animals per volumetric
units are common in fisheries but have seldom been applied to
terrestrial vertebrates. In most primate surveys of limited scope,
the observer-to-animal distance will probably yield the most use
ful results for estimating density per unit of area, but the record
ing of perpendicular distances as well as sighting distances and
angles will provide the greatest flexibility in later statistical analy
ses of the data.
GENERAL GUIDELINES AND FIELD PROCEDURES
Standardization of methods is essential to minimize the variables

and thereby allow comparisons between investigators and study
sites. Unless distances are to be measured with a tape, an ob
server should develop experience and confidence in pacing and
visually estimating metric distances prior to starting a census.
Pacing is an effective method for determining horizontal distance
provided the terrain is relatively level and unobstructed. A pace
may be empirically determined by counting one's steps along a
straight line premeasured by a metric tape and then dividing the
paces into this linear distance. A person can accurately determine
his average pace or step by pacing the measured line several times
and by using care in regulating his stride.
Experience and interobserver reliability also are gained by esti
mating horizontal and vertical distances in the habitat where the
census will be done and by making visual estimates along mea
sured distances. The trick is to think in multiples of known dis
tances and heights, whether the basis of comparison is an imag
ined 90-m football field or an 8-m two-story building. An 18-m

46 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULAT I O N E C O L O G Y
tree can be considered simply as a tree that is 12 times the height

of your 1 .5-m-tall partner, who is standing at its base. Measuring
treefalls is another way of developing a sense of scale. After mea
suring a few 50-m treefalls with a metric tape, it becomes easier to
recognize the standing height of comparable emergents and to
estimate the height of smaller trees as a fraction of the tallest
tree s in the forest.
Censuses should be made at about the same time of day. The
first 4 to 6 h and the last 3 h of the day are recommended because
these periods are usually coincident with peak activity of pri
mates. Published surveys show that primates are easier to detect
when they are active than when they are resting (Freese , 1975;
Green, 1978a,b). It is not possible to census during rainstorms or
win dstorms.
During a census the observer moves along a transect line and
stops frequently (every few minutes or meters) to listen and scan
the surrounding area. The optimal walking pace is about 1 km/h .
By noting in your notebook the distance paced at every stop or
every hundred meters, or by punching a number counter, you can
accumulate an accurate record of the total distance paced. It may
be advisable to work a transect line alone in order to reduce the
noise from the movement of other people, but under some condi
tions the eyes and ears of a partner increase the chance of detect
ing primates.
When a primate group is seen, a standarized time should be
spent observing it (10 min is recommended). It is suggested that
the observer remain on the census route and not follow the ani
mals away from the predetermined line.
When beginning each transect, the observer should record se
veral standard items including the location , date and starting
time, weather, census method, and participating personnel.
These items can be recorded on a data sheet modified as neces
sary from the sample provided in Appendix C for all types of tran
sects, from broad surveys to random compass line transects. Each
time an animal or group of animals is encountered, the observer
should record the following information :
• Species.
• Number of individuals actually counted. In addition, the


group size should be estimated when conditions prevent a com
plete count.
• Mode of detection (whether by sight, vocalization, or sound
produced by the animal moving through the vegetation).

• Time sighted.
• Observer's location along the transect.
• Animal-observer distance. This is the distance from the ob
server's position to the animal when it is first detected. It is fre

quently referred to as the sighting distance.
• Shortest transect-animal distance. This is the perpendicular
distance from the transect line to the animal. Both the sighting
distance and the perpendicular distance should be checked by
measuring or by pacing until confidence and reliability in esti
mating distances are built up through experience.
• Height of the first animal sighted.
• Activity when first detected.
• Age (body size relative to adults) and sex of individuals in
each group. Since one is rarely able to make a complete group

count of forest species within 10 min, in the final analysis one is
concerned primarily with the number of social groups and soli
tary animals encountered.
• Vocalizations. Tabulating bouts of loud calls may be useful
in evaluating relative abundance in study sites.

• Time encounter ended.
Carbon copies of field notes are a cheap form of insurance

against loss when the original is held by the observer and the copy
is sent back to the institution supporting the study. Blank sheets
and notes of the day are best carried in an aluminum loose-sheet
holder, which are available in a variety of sizes from most Ameri
can forestry suppliers. Daily field notes should be cataloged on
summary census sheets at the end of each day and summarized at
the end of each week or month . Catalog entries should include
date, location, species sighted, number of individuals, page num
ber of the entry in the daily notes, and a brief description of what
the specific entry contains. Daily cataloging permits rapid refer
ence to specific events and greatly facilitates data analysis. The
catalog entries can be stored in ring files (looseleaf notebooks).
The catalog entries are greatly expanded in long-term studies to

48 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P O P U LA TI O N E C O L O G Y
include whatever behavioral topics are the focus of attention,

such as interactions between specified age and sex classes or in
dividuals, feeding observations, vocalizations, progressions, or
group encounters.
ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF HUMAN AcriVITIES
In conducting initial surveys, investigators will fmd that interviews

with local inhabitants, government officials, and biologists help
determine the amount and selectivity of hunting pressure, the
utilization of forest products, and the extent of recent land clear
ing. In many parts of both the New and Old World tropics, mon
keys are hunted for food for local consumption and for markets,
which can be visited to verify interview reports. Where primates
have been subjected to continuing hunting pressures, their
detectability will be seriously altered. A field investigator should
keep in mind that more precise methods of data gathering and
analysis can be used in protected areas than in hunted areas
where reliable estimates of depleted populations may be beyond
the scope of an initial survey.
When entering an unprotected census area in which animals
are hunted, investigators will want to know what species are
hunted, for what purpose primates are hunted, and about how
many animals are killed each year. This information is usually
available from local inhabitants. Several interviews may be neces
sary. If hunters are active in the area, it may be a good idea to ac
company one of them.
The value of the interview method is illustrated by the results of
a survey that J. F. Eisenberg (1976, unpublished) conducted in an
area of Territorio Amazonas in Venezuela, where six species of
primates were known from museum collections to have occurred
15 yr previously. It quickly became apparent from interviews that
local hunters had removed great numbers of primates to support
a population of colonists. The bearded saki (Chiropotes) was
rated as extremely palatable, as were the spider monkey (Ateles)
and howler monkey (Aiouatta). The hunters confessed that the
capuchin monkey (Cebus) was very unpalatable and that the
squirrel monkey (Saimiri) was too small to be profitably hunted


with a rifle. The night monkey (Aotus), because of its noctumal
ity and difficulty of detection, seemed not to be worth the effort
for sustained hunting. Again its small size made it somewhat un
economical. As could be predicted from this information, the only
primate species seen during diurnal boat surveys were the less
favored species Saimiri and Cebus . The other larger species and
the highly prized bearded saki were not detected by normal sur
vey techniques.
BROAD SURVEYS
The broad survey attempts to cover large geographical areas in a
relatively short period of time (Scott et a/. , 1976a,b). When deal
ing with forest habitats, the most one can hope for in this kind of
survey is data on geographic distribution, relative abundance in
different areas of habitats, and limited information on age and
sex composition of the populations. In open-savanna habitats
and certain types of rural and urban settings, one may be able to
collect relatively accurate data on group size, age and sex compo
sition, and density, but it is difficult to collect these data in most
situations (Southwick and Siddiqi, 1977; Struhsaker, 1976).
For broad surveys in forests and with little time available, ob
servations are usually made along existing roads, trails, or foot
paths. In special situations, counts may also be made from ca
noes along streams and in swamps. If time permits, a rough trail
can be cut through the forest, preferably in a straight line and 4
km or more in length . No attempt should be made to census the
same day that rough trails are cut.
For broad surveys in open habitats and along river edges, vehi
cles and boats or canoes greatly expand the area that can be cen
sused, but the detectability of animals may be reduced in areas
where animals move back from the edge in response to motor
noise.
Vehicles have been used extensively in India (Mukherjee and
Mukherjee, 1972; Neville, 1968; Southwick and Siddiqi, 1966;
Southwick et a/. , 1961 , 1965) to survey primates along rural roads
and canal banks. Modifications of this procedure have also been
used in Malaysia (Southwick and Cadigan, 1972), Indonesia

50 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O PULATION E C O L O G Y
(Wilson and Wilson, 1974), Bangladesh (Green, 1978b), and

Mrica (Taub, 1977; Altmann and Altmann, 1970).
In most forest regions, suitable roads are limited in their extent
and distribution and may be impassable during the wet season.
Also, noisy vehicles reduce auditory cues from the animals. The
practicality of counts from vehicles is therefore restricted. Favor
able conditions include good visibility, accessibility, and reason
able tolerance of vehicles by primates. Vehicles may be the only
reasonable method for surveying large land areas, and they are
well suited for surveying in savannas and agricultural areas.
Researchers have censused by canoe or motorized boat areas
not otherwise accessible. Flood plains that can be surveyed by
foot during dry seasons may be passable only by water transport
during the rains. Therefore, censusing in different seasons may
require two survey methods.
The approximate distance traveled on a river can be computed
by determining the time required to travel a measured distance
along a shoreline (e.g. , 1 km), both upstream and downstream;
computing the speed (km/h) at which the measured distance is
traveled; and multiplying this speed by the total travel time.
APPLICATIONS OF LINE TRANSECT CENSUSES IN AN

AFRICAN FOREST
Many of the data identified in the previous section can be used in
a comparison of relative abundance of animals in study sites.
However, because results of primate censuses along the same
route are extremely variable from one day to the next, the data
from broad surveys cannot give an accurate estimate of the ab
solute density. To reduce variability in transect censusing, a large
number of censuses must be made over the same census route and
over a long period of time (usually a year or more). But this is
beyond the scope of the broad survey.
The number of transects established and the distance between
transects depend on the size of the study area, the heterogeneity
of the habitat, and the distribution of the primate community
within the study area. Although there is no fixed rule on this
point, the following discussions of the number of censuses to be
made and of estimating densities are relevant to planning an ac-


curate census program. Clearly, more research needs to be done
on this aspect of censusing forest primates. The same methods
and precautions listed in the preceding sections of this chapter
should be followed.
In the line transect census, the trail should be of predetermined
length and established randomly within the study area. It should
not be biased according to terrain, vegetation, or other factors
(e.g. , hunting) that may affect primate abundance along the
transect. One usually establishes a transect along an arbitrary
compass bearing and assumes that the area included will be rep
resentative of the vegetation types of the site. For instance, if the
forest encompases 800Jo forest, lOOJo grassland, and lOo/o swamp,
then ideally the transect will reflect this.
Straight-line transects are preferable to routes following a cir
cle, square, or rectangle because they reduce the chances of inad
vertently counting the same animals more than once. A transect
of about 4 km is appropriate for a morning's census.
ZONATION
If the vegetation along a transect varies in type (e.g. , forest and

swamp, woodland and savanna), it is important to divide the
transect into zones or strata within which the vegetation is homo
geneous. Censuses and density estimates are made for each zone
(habitat type) and weighted according to the proportional repre
sentation of each zone in the study area. This technique, called
zonation or stratification, is intended to reduce variability be
tween samples and thereby increase precision . Although developed
and used most extensively in aerial counts of large mammals, in
principle it should be applicable to any kind of line transect cen
sus (Caughley, 1977). Use of this method usually requires prior
knowledge of the habitat types, their abundance, and the habitat
preferences of the animals.
In most cases the technique has been of limited value in cen
suses of tropical forest primates because this kind of information
has not been available. Observers should keep accurate notes on
the exact locations of sightings along the transect line and the
type of vegetation so that it is possible to zone the census transect
after the censuses have been completed.

52 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O PULATI O N E C O L O G Y
Zonation techniques are most applicable when dealing with a

mosaic of strongly contrasting vegetation types in which one can
quickly form impressions about primate densities from prelimi
nary walks through the study area. For example, this technique
would be employed when comparing low-stature swamp forest
with contiguous upland tall forest or a block of undisturbed
mature rain forest with an adjacent forest that has been selec
tively felled for timber. One can, of course, zone the census tran
sect after it has been established and after the cenuses have been
completed as long as accurate notes are kept on the exact location
of each sighting and the vegetation is described accordingly. In
this way one can combine segments of the transect that are simi
lar in vegetation. Such zonation would not only increase the pre
cision of density estimates by reducing variability between cen
suses for each zone but would also reveal habitat preferences of
the primates being censused.
Two outstanding problems are posed by the line transect
method: ( 1 ) determining the appropriate sample size (length) and
(2) estimating densities (width) from the data. As mentioned
earlier, the extreme variation in counts from one day to the next
makes it necessary to conduct several counts along the same tran
sect.
SAMPLE SIZE DETERMINED BY 95 o/o CONFIDENCE LIMITS
How many censuses should one make along a particular transect?

This will depend on the precision required, which in tum depends
on the variability of the censuses. Although, basically, the larger
the sample size, the more precise the results, a point is usually
reached where more samples will not reduce variability signifi
cantly. Since this point cannot be determined before the study
has begun , one must analyze the data as the study progresses so
that the results and estimates of precision can be monitored. As
outlined by Norton-Griffiths ( 1975, pp. 34-36), the precision of
an estimate is the 95% confidence limits expressed as the per
centage of the estimated mean. In the case of censuses of primate
groups, precision can be expressed as the 95% confidence limits
divided by the estimated mean number of groups per census mul
tiplied by 100. The lower this percentage, the more precise the


estimated mean. One then plots this estimate of precision against
the cumulative number of censuses completed. The point on the
curve where any further increase in effort is not repaid by a pro
portional increase in precision can either be calculated exactly or
found where the curve begins to flatten out.
An example from the Kibale Forest, Uganda, demonstrates the
value of computing estimates of precision (Table 4- 1). A total of
44 censuses were made over an 18-mo period on a single 4-km
census transect that traversed relatively mature tropical rain
forest. No samples were made in 4 mo, and 2-4 censuses were
conducted during each of the remaining 14 mo.
TABLE 4- 1 Results from 44 Ce nsu se s of Red Colobus Along

the Same Transect
Number of Red Number of Red

Census Colobus Groups Census Colobus Groups
Number Seen (x) Number Seen
I 7 23 3
2 3 24 4
3 5 25 4
4 2 26 3
5 3 27 0
6 5 28 3
7 2 29 3
8 2 30 3
9 3 31 3
10 5 32 I
II 6 33 3
12 4 34 6
13 8 35 4
14 7 36 2
IS 4 37 3
16 3 38 3
17 6 39 5
18 3 40 0
19 4 41 6
20 3 42 3
21 5 43 4
22 6 44 5

54 TE C H NI Q U E S IN PRIMATE P OPULATI O N E C O LO G Y
Confidence limits were computed for the mean number of

groups seen per census for the two most common primate species
(red colobus and redtails). Although this could have been done at
the end of each census, for simplicity the censuses were divided
into units of 10.
Calculating the standard deviation (s) was the first step in cal
culating the 95% confidence limits. An example of the calcula
tions for the s of the first group of 10 red colobus samples is
shown below from the original census data provided in Table 4- 1 .
s=
n - 1
(37) 2
163 -
s=
9
10
= J¥- = .../2.90 = 1 . 7029.
In the present example of two species selected from Kibale, the

95% confidence limits and the percentage precision are given in
Table 4-2. For illustration, the first value for the 95% confidence
limits in . the table was obtained by using the following formula:
s
95 o/o confidence limits = t o os (n - 1 ) X _ r •
vn
·
where t = the critical values of Student's t-distribution obtained

from two-tailed t table (used when dealing with small samples of
fewer than 100) found in any standard statistical textbook (e.g. ,
Sokal and Rohlf, 1969), n = the number of censuses, n - 1 =
the degrees of freedom, and s = the standard deviation of the
mean number of groups per census. Thus, the 95% confidence
limits are:
1 . 7029
= 2 . 26 X
.JIO

Census Methods for Estimating Densities 55

1 . 7029
= 2_26 X
3. 16
= 2.26 X .538
= 1 . 218.
The 95% confidence limits are computed cumulatively in units

of 10; thus, they were computed for each species for the first 10
censuses, then the first 10 and second 10 censuses were combined
for the next computation and so on until the final computation
included all 44 censuses.
95% confidence limits

�,o prec1s1on
The 01 • •
= X 100
Mean number of groups
seen for that unit of
census
1 . 218
- -- X 100
3.7
= 32.9% .
The results are graphed in Figure 4-4 and clearly show that for
both species precision began to level off after the first 20-30 cen
suses.
To account for seasonal variation , one should conduct censuses
u niformly throughout the year, preferably during every month .
The number of censuses per month will again depend on the vari
ability of the results. In most cases it will not be possible to con
duct enough samples every month to demonstrate statistically sig
nificant differences between months, unless the differences are
very pronounced.
How many censuses are required to make comparisons with
other areas or with the same transect in different time periods?
Through modification of a formula presented in Sokal and Rohlf
(1969), Janson and Terborgh (in press) suggest that the minimum
sample (N) necessary to distinguish with 95o/o confidence a given

56 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O PULATI O N E C O L O GY
TABLE 4-2 Estimates of Precision for 44 Censuses of Red

Colobus and Redtails Along the Same Transect
95"1o Mean
Census Confidence Number %
Species Number Limits Groups Precision
Red colobus 1 - 10 1 .218 3.7 32.9

1 -20 0.844 4.3 19.9
1-30 0.654 4.0 16.5
1-40 0.570 3.7 15.3
1 -44 0.532 3.8 14.0
Redtails 1-10 1 . 237 3. 1 39.9

1 -20 0.816 3.3 25. 1
1 -30 0.594 3.1 19.0
1 -40 0.501 2.8 17.7
1 -44 0.463 2.8 16.7
degree of difference between two means is roughly approximated

by
N-
_ ( 4 X C. V.
degree of difference between means
)2 + 1'
where C.V. = coefficient of variation, which is the standard devi

ation divided by the mean (six). For example (following Janson
and Terborgh), suppose we want to be able to detect at least a
25% change in the red colobus population at Kibale. From the 44
censuses we calculate a C. V. of the mean number of red colobus
groups seen per census, which is 0.46; thus, the minimum sample
size required would be
( 4 X 0.46 2 ) + 1 = 55 groups of red colobus,

0.25
which would indicate 15-20 censuses. Janson and Terborgh sug

gest, however, that because the data are usually not normally dis
tributed, the samples should be at least 10-20o/o larger than pre·
dicted from their formulas.


ESTIMATING DENSITIES BY USING DIFFERENT STRIP WIDTHS
The main problem in estimating group densities from line tran

sect samples is determining the size of the area sampled. The
length of the transect can be easily measured, but how does one
determine the width of the strip sampled? This will be affected by
the perceptiveness of the observer, visibility and audibility in the
0
2 40
X
.
:0
.
c
•
u
•
Cl.
.
Cl.
:0 30
0
;;.
�
u
0
.
g
....
"'
� 20
�
•
u
c
.
�c
0
(J
10 20 30 40
Cumulative number of censuses
FIGU RE 4-4 Precision of estimated mean number of social groups per census as
a function of number of censuses completed. Vertical axis is the 95o/o confidence
limits expressed as the percentage of the mean number of groups per census, i.e. ,
95o/o confidence limits divided by the estimated mean number of social groups per
census times 100. This is a measure of precision, and as this percentage decreases
the precision increases. The horizontal axis is the cumulative number of censuses
completed. Data were collected during 44 censuses along one 4-km transect in
mature forest ( compartment 30) ofthe Kibale Forest, Uganda, during 1970- 19n.
Adapted from Struhsaker, 1975.

58 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O L O G Y
habitat censused, and detectability of the animals. Animal de

tectability can, in tum , be affected by group size, group spread,
frequency of vocalization, activity at the time of census, sound
made in movement through the vegetation, and the hetght of veg
etation most frequently used.
Several methods for determining strip width are reviewed by
Caughley (1977), Janson and Terborgh (in press), and Robinette
et al. (1974). (K. M. Green discusses the subject in an unpublished
report; to borrow a copy, write to the National Zoological Park ,
Washington , D . C . ) . Selected methods are tested here by compar
ing census results with the known group densities obtained from
detailed, long-term studies of individual groups (see below).
There are two basic approaches to determining strip width :
Transect-to-animal distance is the estimated perpendicular dis
tance from the line transect to the first animal of each group seen .
Observer-to-animal distance is the estimated distance between the
observer and the first animal of each group seen.
Both of these estimates give some indication of visibility and
detectability. The first method, however, gives an estimate of
width regardless of the actual detection distance from the ob
server, whereas the second method is based on the actual detec
tion distance (see Figure 4-5).
Transect-to-Animal Distance
Mean Perpendicular Distance Several formulas use the mean
perpendicular distance of all first sightings to calculate the width
of the transect. The methods indicated in Table 4-3 were tested
with the red colobus census data (Struhsaker, 1975), but were re
jected because of unacceptably high overestimates of group den
sity. On the basis of detailed studies of individual groups, the red
colobus density in the cenused area of the Kibale Forest was esti
mated at 6 groups per km 2 •
Maximum Perpendicular Distance In this formula, the maxi

mum perpendicular distance of all first sightings of a particular
species is used to estimate transect width (unpublished report by
K. M. Green). This means that all groups detected will be within
this distance. In order to cover both sides of the transect, this


maximum distance is doubled and then multiplied by the transect
length to give the area censused. The number of groups seen is di
vided by the area to give the density.
Example: 44 censuses along a single 4-km transect was 1 76 km .

( 1 ) Maximum perpendicular distance from transect to a red
colobus group was 1 10 m or 0. 11 km .
(2) During all 44 censuses a total of 168 sightings of red col
obus groups were made.
sum of sightings on
[ ]
number of different or repeat
groups sighted transects
(3) Density = = ---- ��---
area censused 2 sides length X width
of of 1 side of
transect transect in km
168
= ------
2( 1 76 X 0. 1 1 )
= 4.34 groups/km 2 .
This figure of 4.34 groups/km 2 is an underestimate of 27. 7% .

The direction and magnitude of error were similar for redtails at
Kibale, but for blue monkeys at Kibale this method overesti
mated by around 22% .
Maximum Reliable Transect-to-Animal Perpendicular Distance

A more critical method was first set forth by Kelker ( 1945) and
modified by several others (see Robinette et al. , 1974, and Janson
and Terborgh , in press). In this approach, one plots the fre
quency distribution of all estimates of the perpendicular distance
between the transect and the first animal seen . On inspecting this
frequency distribution, one attempts to determine the distance
within which all groups were probably detected but beyond which
some were missed. This maximum reliable distance is most read
ily determined when the frequency distribution curve shows an
obvious plateau or asymptote that is followed by a sharp drop in

60 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PR I MATE P O P U LA TI O N E C O L O G Y
C o m p a r ison o f dis t a n c e from animal to I ) Observer 8 2 l T r a n s e c t
A • Animal
T
T • Transect
... .. 0 Observer
As
•
.. u
� ..
.. 100 A
4
.. c
..
.0 �
.. I
0 I
� � I
I
.. .. 80 I
u
0
u
c c I
E � � I
- - - - - -� - - - - - - - - - - - - -
·c .!! .!! I
ct 0 0 I
I
60 I
I
A' 100 100 I
I
.I
I .I
- - - � - - -- - - - -� - - - - - -- - - -----
A2 100 90 ;
40 I .I � ��
ll
I ; ��
A 100 70 I .I � .,
I ; ., �
/
I ; ., """
4 I / ,.,. "'
A 100 30 ,.,.
2 0 I .I �
/ ,. """'
I
5 I ;/ ., """
A 100 0
I ; ., ""
; "'
I ,
.1� � A'
0
20 40 60 80 100
FIGURE 4-5 Diagram illustrating distinction between animal-to-observer and

animal-to-transect distances.
frequency. The maximum reliable distance or cutoff point is

where the curve begins its sharp drop . In cases where the fre
quency distribution of transect-to-animal distances does not show
a clear plateau and sharp decline, one is faced with the problem
of deciding the maximum reliable distance. In such cases it may
be advisable to compute density estimates for more than one pos
sible maximum reliable distance and to present the range of re
sulting density estimates. Take, for example, the case of the red
colobus census data. Figure 4-6 suggests at least two possible cut
off points of maximum reliable transect-to-animal distances: 40 m
and 60 m. With these distances, Kelker's method allows us to
estimate group density as follows:
( 1 ) Length of censuses: 1 76 km (44 censuses along the same

4-km transect).

(2) Width of transect: 80 m or 0. 08 km (40 m X 2, both sides

of transect).
(3) Total number of red colobus groups seen within 40 m of
transect: 138 (from Figure 4-6).
(4) Density: 138/ 1 76 X 0.08 = 9. 8 groupslkm 2•
This value represents an overestimate of 63. 3 % . If one uses 60 m

as the maximum reliable transect-to-animal distance, the esti
mate becomes 156 groups/1 76 X 0. 1 2 = 7.39 groups/km2 or an
overestimate of 23.3 o/o •
Janson and Terborgh (in press) applied a modification of this

method to their raw data from Manu, Peru , and found that it
gave enormous overestimates, usually of several hundred percent.
Only with a number of correction factors derived from their de
tailed studies of specific groups could this method give reasonable
estimates.
A fundamental difficulty with the transect-to-animal distance
is that many sightings will be made of animals directly over the
trail and ahead of the observer. In such instances, the distance
from trail to animal will be zero (see Figure 4-5). In the 44 cen
suses at Kibale, Uganda, referred to above, nearly 40% of the
166 sightings of red colobus were over the census transect and
were scored as zero meters from the trail, although usually they
were more than 20 m from the observer. Consequently, methods
employing transect-to-animal distances will usually overestimate
TABLE 4-3 Rejected Methods of Estimating Group Density

of Red Colobus Monkeys
Estimated
Number of
Groups per Overestimate
Method Source km
2
( o/o )
Leopold et a/. ( 1951 ) Robinette e t al. ( 1974) 22.0 266 7 .
Eberhardt ( 1968) Caughley ( 1977) 33.5 458.0

Emlen ( 1971) Emlen ( 1971) 2 1 .0 250.0

j �
TABLE 4-4 Estimates of Distances Between Observer and Animal When First Animal was Sighted, Together
with Number of Initial Sightings, Regardless of Perpendicular Distance from Transectu. h
Estimated distances (m) 0- 1 0 1 1 -20 2 1 -30 3 1 -40 4 1 -50 5 1 -60 61 -70 7 1 -80 8 1 -90
Number of initial sightings

at these distances:
Red colobus monkeys 8 16 8 13 3 4 3 ( Total: 55)
Redtail monkeys 8 10 8 3 2 2 (Total : J4)
Blue monkeys 5 7 3 5 3 ( Total: 24)
" Data from 1 7 censuses along same 4-km route in mature forest in Kibale Forest, Uganda, beginning in 1 974 and ending in 1 976. Only
social groups were considered-not solitary animals.
h Source: T. T. Struhsaker, unpublished data.


75
.
"'
,
0
to
.
,
..
�
<.>
50
..,
.
0:
0
25
0
z
20
10
0 � 10 11-20 2 1 - 30 31-40 4 1 - 50 � 1 - 60 61-70 7 1 - 80 8 1 - 90 9 1 · 100 101 - 1 1 0
Perpendic:ulor transe c t - animal distance ( m )
FI G U RE 4-6 Frequency distribution of initial perpendicular animal-to-transect

distance. Data are from the same 44 censuses that are dealt with in Figure 4-4.
Red colobus sightings total 166.
the density because they underestimate the size of the area cen
sused.
Observer-to-Animal Distance
Estimates of the initial distance between the observer and the first
animal seen overcome the problem of zero distance inherent in
the transect-to-animal method, although Janson and Terborgh
(in press) discuss some of the theoretical difficulties.
Mean Distance The King method (in Robinette et a/. , 1974) is

based on the mean value of such estimates. By applying King's
method to data from 17 censuses made in Kibale, Uganda, dur
ing 1974 and 1976 (when observer-to-animal distances were
recorded; see Table 4-4) one finds that it tends to overestimate by
a substantial factor: 80o/o for red colobus, 85o/o for redtails, and
nearly twice this for blue monkeys. Similar gross overestimates

resulted when Janson and Terborgh (in press) applied this

method to their raw data from Peru.
Maximum Distance Applying the maximum distance (90 m) of

all sightings of red colobus groups during the same 1 7 censuses to
the basic formula gives: 55 sightings/68 km (i.e . , 4-km transect
X 1 7) X (2 X 0.09 km, the width) = 4.49 groups/km2 or an un
derestimate of about 25% . The same method applied to the red
tail data gave an underestimate of 30.5% , but for blue monkeys it
yielded an overestimate of about 2-17.4 % .
Maximum Reliable Sighting Distance More accurate estimates

were obtained by inspecting the frequency distribution of ob
server-to-animal distances and, as with the Kelker method , deter
mining the cutoff distance or maximum reliable sighting distance
within which all animals were probably observed, but some missed
(e.g. , Ghiglieri, 1979). As discussed above, there may be a prob
lem in determining the cutoff point, and it may be necessary to
use more than one distance and to compute more than one den
sity estimate. In any case, when this method was applied to the
data from Kibale, Uganda (Table 4-4), the density estimates were
generally closer to those from the detailed studies than to any of
the other line transect analyses.
For the red colobus, the cutoff point would appear to be 50 m.
Applying the basic formula: 45 sightings within 50 m/(length =
17 X 4 km) X (width = 2 X 0.05 km) = 6. 6 groups/km2• This
represents an overestimate of only 10% when compared with the
estimate of 6 groups/km2 from detailed studies of specific
groups. A similar analysis for redtail monkeys in the same series
of censuses gave an overestimate of 20% when 40 m was used as
the maximum reliable sighting distance and 6.5% when 50 m was
used. In contrast, estimates for blue monkeys were too high .
With a 50-m cutoff, the results gave an overestimate of 47-67% ,
and with a 70-m cutoff an overestimate of 21-45 % . It would ten
tatively appear that this method is most useful for primate species
of generally high densities. For species of low density, it tends to
overestimate.
·"'..

Summary
In summary, it would seem that the observer-to-animal distance,
at least for the Kibale data, gives more accurate estimates in gen
eral than the transect-to-animal distance; that the mean distance
in both methods tends to grossly overestimate; that the maximum
distance tends to underestimate except for species of low density;
and that the maximum reliable sighting distance, depending on
the species and how one determines the cutoff point, gives the
most accurate density estimate.
NONLINEAR DENSITY PLOT METHOD

When time and resources are limited and information from inter
views has confirmed that the species of interest is not selectively
hunted, the first tasks in visiting a new area are to conduct a pre·
liminary exploration of the region, making notes on vegetation
height and quality and on soils and general topography During
.
the initial encounters with primates, attempts should be made to

estimate group size, to estimate the distance from which the
group was detected, and to determine what the animals were do
ing when detected.
After a few days of the initial survey, select a troop and attempt
to study it through an entire day. In this way one can begin to
focus on the number of animals in a group and the approximate
size of its daily foraging range. Of course, in so short a time it is
n ot possible to estimate the entire home range of group or to ob
tain a very accurate idea of the mean group size, unless the sam
p le is very large. However, this approach provides sufficient data
to permit one to estimate densities if the data are not normally
distributed. By contrast, so far as methods described earlier in
this section, it has been assumed that the data are normally dis
tnouted.
The data set approaches a Poisson distribution if the standard
deviation approximates or exceeds the value of the mean . This
simply means that the number of replicate samples (transects
walked) is insufficient to generate a normal distribution of the
variable that one is trying to measure: primate density.

One need not despair if this circumstance occurs. For example,

if the species of interest has a mean group size approximating the
size that has been noted in other areas, and if the preliminary in
vestigation indicates that its daily range-use pattern approaches
the value for the ranging of the same species studied in another
habitat, then the following technique may be used with con
fidence. Remember, however, that the method assumes that
there is more accurate knowledge of the density of the species in
question for another area and that there is reason to believe that
the physical conditions of the new area are similar to those of the
reference area.
Even though high standard deviations are found in the analysis
of the data, transect census data will positively covary with the
real density. The preliminary data are thus a useful indicator of
relative abundance. The number of transect samples may be in
creased or reanalyzed according to the following procedure: Set
each transect length so that for a known detection width one will
cover an area equal to 0.5 the average home range of the species
in question. Each transect will then be treated as a single plot.
Express the result of each transect as either the presence or ab
sence of a group or subgroup. Run transects until at least 10 sam
ples are available.
Since the transects are randomly placed in the habitat, one can
use a Poisson distribution for estimating the real density of
groups per unit area from the percentage frequency of groups per
sampling unit or plot. The proportion of plots with no groups will
be 1 - j = e -x (Caughley, 1977), where/ is the mean frequency
of sightings per plot and the proportion of plots containing one or
more groups will be f = 1 - e -x. The value of -x can be found
by using a table of exponentials. The relationship between the
frequency of sightings and density can also be approximated from
Figure 4-7. The transformed data can then be expressed as
groups per unit area, which can be converted to individuals per
unit area by multiplying by the mean group size.
In the example provided in Table 4-5, the average home range
of howler monkeys determined independently by following troops
at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama, was
found to be 10.5 ha, or 0. 10 km2 , in 1973 . A plot with a transect
width of SO m (a detection or strip width of 25 m) and a length of


+-
·c=
:::1
0
100
·=
0. 80
E
0
f/l
....
Q)
60
0.
>-
(.) 40
c:
Q)
:::1
0"
Q)
20
....
1.1.
�
0 0
2 3 4 5
Density per sampling unit

FIGURE 4-7 Nonlinear relationship between fre·
quency of sightings and density in plots that are one·
half the average home range of the species studied.
From Caughley, 1977.
1 ,000 m gave an area one-half the average home range of these

monkeys, or 0.05 km2 • Groups were sighted with a frequency (j)
of 10 sightings per 18 transects, or f = 0.55. The proportion of
transects with no troop s was (1 - f) = 0.45. A table of exponen
tials was used to find the value of - x for 1 - f of 0.45-0.8
group per plot. By multiplying by the mean group size ( 10) and
converting the density estimate for the 0.05-km2 plot to whole
numbers (20 plots/km2 ), the density was estimated to 0.8 X 10
X 20 = 160 howlers/km 2 • This density estimate was higher than
that determined from direct counts of groups or individuals. Note
that the standard deviation, s , approximates the mean in Table
4-5, indicating that the data set follows a Poisson rather than a
normal distribution.
The density estimates calculated by the plot method for 1973
were also higher than the overall estimate of 95 howlers/km2 dur
ing this year (crude densities) for the entire island. This is ex
pected because the above transect was made in the central part of
the island, which supported the highest number of howlers, and

68 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O L O GY
may be considered an estimate of the ecological density (see dis

cussion , Chapter 8).
This method was studied further in Venezuela and was found
to generate density estimates comparable with those estimated
from detailed studies (Eisenberg, 1979).
QUADRAT CENSUSES
This method involves covering a predefined area (the quadrat)
and counting all the groups within that area at one time . It is
most applicable to open habitats and areas with natural bound
aries , such as islands and forest patches where the animals are
necessarily confined. This method has seldom been used in cen
susing forest primates. Janson and Terborgh (in press) have used
a method termed ..synchronous sightings, " which is essentially a
combination of the line transect and quadrat methods.
Two or preferably more observers start at a baseline and each
follows different equidistant and parallel transects through the
quadrat. To ensure maximum coverage in a forest habitat, it
would seem that observers should walk in parallel at about 100-to
150-m intervals, or at smaller intervals when censusing inconspic
uous species. When groups are encountered the same data are
recorded as in line transects. The data are combined by plotting
all sightings on a common map and then tiying to distinguish dif
ferent groups. This will allow an estimate of the total number of
groups present in the predefined area, which in tum allows an es
timate of density. This method was used in censusing forest popu
lations of rhesus monkeys in northern India (Southwick et a/. ,
1961).
In addition to requiring several observers, transects, and rea
sonable maps of the study area, this method requires some
knowledge of the characteristics of each species. For instance, in
order to distinguish between groups and to avoid duplicate count
ing, one should have some idea of the distance over which social
groups of the different species can be spread and their rate of
trael. A widely spaced group may be considered two groups by
two observers if they see opposite edges of the group, even though
tbe distance between them may be more than 100 m. A fast-mov
ing group counted by one observer may be counted again, if

another observer happens to see it later. The crucial factors are

the time elapsed between the sightings and knowledge of how fast
the species can travel .
A major deficiency of this method i s that i t fails to resolve the
problem of individuals or groups living partly in the sample quad
rat and partly outside it. (This causes no difficulty where quad-
TABLE 4-5 Use of the Nonlinear Density Plot Method to

Estimate the Density of Alouatta pal/iata in Panamaa
Conditions: Transect length = I km; transect

width = SO m
Frequency of
Plot Animal Group Plots with
Number Counts Counts Sightings
I 7 2
2 3 I I
3 0 0 0
4 0 0 0
5 3
6 4
7 2 I I
8 0 0 0
9 3 I I
10 0 0 0
11 0 0 0
12 5 I I
13 0 0 0
14 4 I I
IS 0 0 0
16 5
17 3 I I
18 0 0 0
Total number of animals
per 0.90 km 2 39 11 10
Mean number of animals
per 0.05 km 2 2. 167 0. 6 1 1
s ± 2. 256 ± 0. 608
Estimated density of
2
animals per km 43 1 22 1 60
0 0ata from J. F. Eisenberg ( 1 974, unpublished).

70 TECHNI Q UE S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O LO G Y
rats consist of distinct forest patches. ) It is also probably inade·

quate for relatively cryptic species (Janson and Terborgh, in
press).
Modification of the block or quadrat sampling method may be
used for both small and large census areas. Figure 4-8 shows the
process of dividing the census area, which may be a province,
state, or country, into convenient sample units. Next, representa·
Quadrat samplino
X X
A B
I 6 X
2 7
3 X 8 X c
4 9
5 X 10
FIGURE 4·8 Quadrat sampling. Grids are drawn

on maps of very large areas to subdivide the areas
into quadrats until the sample quadrats represent
about IS"lo of the study area. Each choice of quadrat
is made randomly. In the illustration, four quadrats
(e.g. , Nos. 3, 5, 6, 8) are chosen randomly in each of
the fwe sampling units, A-E, giving a total of 20
quadrats to be surveyed in detail.


tive sample units are selected randomly. Five sample quadrats
( A-E) are shown in the example. Within each sample unit, sub
units are selected on a random basis (e.g. , Nos. 3, 5, 6, 8). One
tries to choose a sample space equal to about 15% of the total
area surveyed. In this figure, the sampling space consists of 4 of
10 randomly chosen subunits in each of the 5 sample quadrats.
All potential monkey habitats contained in those subunits are
censused. Calculations for population estimates using the quad
rat method are shown in Table 4-6.
SPECIALIZED CENSUS METHODS
FIXED-POINT COUNT
In this method the observer remains at one point and records all
primate groups seen or heard. It seems best suited for large, con
spicuous, diurnal primates that give loud calls at predictable
times of the day. Few primate studies have used this method
(e.g. , Chivers, 1969, 1 9 74 ; Green, 1978a; Pollock , 1975). Unless
the terrain is very steep and the lookout point is well positioned,
TABLE 4-6 Estimates of Population Based on a Random

Sample of Four Quadrats as Illustrated in Figure 4-8
Variable Total
Quadrat number I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 10
Sample quadrats 3 5 6 8 4
Number of groups/sample
quadrat 14 9 10 9 42
Number of animals 1 40 90 99 91 420
42 groups
Mean number of groups/subunit or sample quadrat = = 10.5 groups
4 quadrats
Estimated number of groups in lO·quadrat sample

grid = 10.5 groups X 10 quadrats
= 1 05 groups
Estimated population = 1 05 groups X 1 0
animals/group
= I ,050 animals

72 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C O LOGY
this method has limited use for enumerating primates by sight

alone. Counting the number of sources of loud calls assumes that
each source represents a social group and that all groups call.
Until further refinements have been made in this method, it is
best used to determine relative abundance only, rather than to ex
trapolate estimates of absolute density.
TRAP, MARK, AND RELEASE
Mark-recapture techniques have been used extensively in popula

tion studies of small mammals (particularly rodents), birds, and
fish (see Overton, 1971 , and Caughley, 1977, for review of
analytical methods). In such studies, one makes use of the pro
portion of marked-to-unmarked individuals in a series of catches
in order to determine population size and density. This method is
often inappropriate for estimating primate densities, particularly
for arboreal species, because it can be harmful to the animals,
time-consuming, and expensive.
Ahhough several studies of primates have involved capturing
by means of traps and immobilizing darts, marking, and releas
ing (e.g. , Brockelman and Kobayashi, 1971 ; Dawson, 1977; Fog
den, 1974; Neyman, 1977; Scott et al. , 1976a), this method has
not been used to estimate densities. In studies of nocturnal or
otherwise secretive species (e.g. , Charles-Dominique, 1977;
Thorington et al. , 1976), censusing by direct observation may be
inadequate. In such cases, marking in combination with radio
tracking may be the only way of estimating densities and home
range size. Methods for marking such species are included in
Chapter 5.
Small primates, such a s marmosets, may actually b e live
trapped and marked with a suitable tag. Other primates, such as
howler monkeys (Thorington et al. , 1979), have been successfully
darted and marked for long-term studies. When marking individ
uals for easy visual recognition, one can conduct censuses that
give an estimate of the population density. Suppose you have
marked 30 monkeys, and after a week you conduct a transect cen
sus through the same forest. During the transect you count 1 1 0
monkeys of the species under study an d of these, 25 are marked.


The "Lincoln Index" is used to determine a rough estimate of the
population size:
No. marked animals seen Total no. marked animals

=
Total no. animals seen Total population of animals
25 30
-
= -
1 10 X
X = 132
The above calculation assumes that the 30 marked animals are

from randomly selected groups. H, for example, all 30 animals
were from one large primate troop , the application of the index
would be invalid. The Lincoln Index was developed for species
that are not grouped into large groups of mixed-sexed adults, but
instead tend to have single individuals uniformly distributed in
space. Thus, the application of the method assumes that you have
selected animals randomly from within the area that you wish to
census.
The method assumes that there is no loss of marked animals
from the survey area and no immigration of unmarked animals
into the survey area; that the means of marking is permanent;
and that there is no differential observability between marked
and unmarked animals. These conditions are not often met in
practice (Caughley, 1977).
NEST COUNTS
Few primates build nests and only four species build nests large
enough to be readily counted: gorillas, orangutans, and two
species of chimpanzees. Several studies have used nest counts to
estimate population densities of great apes (Ghiglieri, 1979;
Kano, 1972; MacKinnon, 1974a; Schaller, 1961 , 1963; Yoshiba,
1964). The field method consists of counting the nests in a
predefmed area, usually a transect of known length and fixed

74 T E C H N I Q UE S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O LOGY
width. The total number of nests divided by the area searched

gives nest density. However, in order to extrapolate primate den
sity, it is necessary to refine the formula to take into accou nt the
age of the nests and the fact that some animals do not make nests
(e.g. , infants). Observer efficiency is also an important factor and
can be estimated by recounting nests along segments · of the
transect soon after the original census (Ghiglieri, 1979).
In his study of chimpanzees in the Kibale Forest, Uganda,
Ghiglieri ( 1979) derived the foUowing formula: No. nest-building
animals/km2 = no. nests/area sampled in km2 X 1 /mean nest
life span X 1 /observer efficiency X total no. animals/total no.
nest builders (excluding infants). The last factor depends on hav
ing some detailed information on the population age structure
based on a detailed study of at least a portion of the study popula
tion. This formula can be further refmed by computing a
weighted mean nest life span that takes into account differences
in nest life span. Life spans differ according to the kinds of trees
or other vegetation in which the nests are built.
According to Ghiglieri ( 1979), in order to gain a representative
sample of chimpanzee nest density for an area of 4-5 km2 it was
necessary to enumerate at least 9 km of transect that was 20 m
wide. Furthermore, since the chimpanzees' use of certain parts of
the forest was extremely variable and often at very irregular time
intervals, Ghiglieri recommended that each transect be sampled
at intervals of 4-6 months. The main advantage of the nest
enumeration technique is that it allows a single observer to collect
in 3 or 4 days a sample that will give a fairly reliable index of
animal density. Prior knowledge of nest life span and other fac
tors mentioned above are necessary for greatest accuracy.
WNG-TERM MONITORING OF SPECIFIC GROUPS

This method is the most accurate for determining densities; how
ever, it is also the most time-consuming. It requires an extensive
network or grid of trails, detailed maps of the study area, and nu
merous observations and counts of specific social groups, prefer
ably for several days of each month for at least 1 year. One usu
ally has time to study only one group intensively, but in order to

ensure greater accuracy it is advisable to follow one or two others.

Each group must be individually recognizable.
How long must one observe a group before it can be confidently
stated that the home range is known ? This, of course, will depend
on the species and the habitat. Species with large home ranges
will usually take a longer time to cover their whole range than
those with smaller ranges. Therefore, in order to determine sam
ple size, one must monitor the data as the study progresses. Monthly
samples (to cover seasonality) of 5- 10 days with 10-12 h of obser
vation for each day are recommended. One plots on a map at reg·
ular time intervals the location .of the group (or preferably indi·
viduals in the group). By dividing the map of the study area into a
grid of 0.25-ha quadrats, one is able to calculate the accumula
tion of new quadrats for each sample and to plot a cumulative
range curve against study time (Figure 4-9). As the study pro·
gresses, the group will continue to enter new quadrats until the
curve begins to level off. When a plateau or asymptote is reached,
one can be fairly confident that the entire home range is known .
In extremely seasonal habitats, however, one might anticipate a
cumulative area curve consisting of several steps (e.g. , Altmann
and Altmann, 1970, Figure 37). Because a long step might be
confused with an asymptote , caution should be taken in such sit·
uations.
Figure 4-9 clearly shows major interspecific differences within
the same study plot. A group of 15 mangabeys at the Kanyawara
study site in the Kibale Forest had an enourmous home range
some 400 ha. After more than 1 ,200 h of observation during 12
mo of study, the group was still entering new areas with no sign of
approaching an asymptote. In contrast, the smaller redtail mon
key, living in the same area in groups of 35 members, visited its
entire home range of some 28 ha after about 370 h of observation
during 10 monthly samples spread over a 12-mo period. Fifty per·
cent of its range was visited within the first 63 h of observation.
Waser ( 1976) emphasizes that the shape of the cumulative area
curve is influenced by the choice of the quadrat size: the larger
the quadrat, the sooner the leveling off of the curve.
To estimate densities it is critical to know not only the home
range of the study group , but also the extent to which other con-

76 TECHNIQUES I N PRIMATE P O P U LA TI O N E C O LOGY
300
81\let 25
200
100
100
00
100 000 1000
FIGURE 4-9 Cumulative increase in home range

size as function of hours of observation. Each curve is
for one social group. These three species are om
nivorous. The home range of the mangabey group of
15 completely overlapped that of the blue (24 in
dividuals) and redtail (35 individuals) groups, and
the range of the blue group overlapped the redtail
group. Home range increase was plotted in in
crements of 0.25-ha quadrats. Data are from com
partment 30 of the Kibale Forest, Uganda. Data
from Rudran, 1978; T. T. Struhsaker, unpublished;
Waser, 1976.

specific groups share this home range . Parts of the home range
used by more than one group must be apportioned according to
the number of groups using them (Janson and Terborgh , in
press). For example, if two groups share an area of 24 ha, each
group is allocated half, or 12 ha. The group density per km 2 can
be obtained by dividing 100 by the average home range of the
groups in hectares ( 1 km2 = 100 ha). This calculation gives a
density of 8.3 groups/km2 • If three groups use this same 24 ha,
then each is apportioned a third, or 8 ha (100 ha/km 2 /12
ha/group), giving a density of 12.5 groups/km 2 •
In reality, however, the situation is generally more complex.
Usually the home range of the main study group is only partly
shared, and the home ranges of neighboring groups are incom
pletely known . One can make a crude estimate of overlap by plot
ting the limits of incursion of these groups into the range of the
main study group. In the schematic diagram in Figure 4-10, the
main study group has a home range of 100 ha. Area A of 39 ha is
not shared with any other group and is apportioned entirely to the
main group . In areas B, C, and D, there is overlap with one other
group per area. This area of overlap , totaling 52 ha, is therefore
divided in half, giving a total of 26 ha to the main group . In area
E, consisting of 9 ha, there is overlap between the main group
and two other groups. Thus, the area is divided by 3 to give 3 ha
to the main group. Summing these figures gives a total of 68 ha
(39 + 26 + 3) to the main group , or a density of 1 .47 groups/
km2 • Partitioning areas of overlap between groups provides a
more accurate estimate of density than the estimate of 1 group/
km2 obtained if overlap between neighboring groups is not taken
into account.
Although this method involves an investment in time that is
considerably greater than that required by any of the others de
scribed , the results are far more accurate and the kinds of addi
tional data on the status of the population that can be collected
are much greater. The most accurate counts of group size and
composition are usually made during these studies. These counts
are, of course, imperative for extrapolation from estimates of
group density to estimates of numerical density, while composi
tion of age and sex classes gives an indication of the status of the
population in terms of fecundity and survivorship .

78 T E C H NI Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O G Y
G R O U P D E N S I T Y C OM P U T A T I O N F R O M H O M E
0.
�
l? R A NGE OV E R L A P
0
c
·s
;t E
2
0
.!:
.,
� "0
•
.. �
0. �
� 0
l? 0
0 100 ha. home range boundary o f main study group
0 0
. . •
�
.
4. · � -=- � .:t
A 39 39
8
B 24 2 12
c 16 2 8
0 12 2 6
E 9 3 3 A
6 8 ha. total c
A • area used exc lusively by

main group
0 E
B, C, 0, E • areas of overlap
with neighboring
groupe
FIGURE 4-10 Group density computation from home range overlap.
SUMMARY OF IMPORTANT CENSUS METHODS FOR

DIURNAL PRIMATES
When time to cover large areas is limited and replication of cen

suses along the same route is not plausible, emphasis should be
placed on obtaining indices of relative abundance of social
groups. These indices are usually expressed as numbers of groups
seen per kilometer of transect and per hour of searching . Some
indication of visibility, such as distance between the first animal
seen and the transect or observer (or both), permits more realistic
comparison of data between sites and habitats.
If time allows, many replications should be made along the
same line transects throughout the year. Determination of sample

size is outlined above . Comparative data from the Kibale Forest,

Uganda, demonstrate that the method of maximum reliable
sighting distance gives results most consistent with detailed, long
term studies of specific groups, especially for species of high den
sity that are frequently seen . In order to verify this conclusion,
however, there is clearly a great need for more case studies com
paring these various methods with detailed group studies of a var
iety of species in different habitats.
The most accurate method of estimating primate densities is
the detailed study of specific groups. It is also the method that
gives the best data on group size and age/sex composition .
EXTRAPOLATION OF DENSITY ESTIMATES FROM

CENSUS AREA TO OTHER AREAS
After determining estimates of density from the more accurate

methods of repeated line transects and detailed studies, one
would like to be able to extrapolate densities in similar habitats.
This would permit population estimates to be made for areas
much larger than the one studied. Unfortunately, such extrapola
tion has many shortcomings.
Within the same gross habitat type or even within the same
forest, one can find large differences in primate densities. An ex
ample is provided by two study sites in the Kibale Forest, Uganda.
These sites, which we will call A and B, differ significantly in pri
mate densities although they are only about 10 km apart in the
same continuous forest. At site A , blue monkeys are nearly 7
times more abundant than at site B; and at site B, mangabeys are
about 1 . 5 times more abundant than at site A (T. T. Struhsaker,
personal communication). Baboons were encountered on 10 occa
sions during 24 censuses at one site, but were not seen in any of
the 44 censuses at the other site. Although the two sites differ in
some of the predominant tree species, both are classified as
medium-altitude tropical evergreen forests. This is usually the
gross level of habitat classification that one must deal with when
extrapolating densities from a small study area to a district or an
entire country.
Even within the same small study area, one can find striking
differences in primate densities. For example, at the Kanyawara

80 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P OPU LATI O N E C O L O GY
study site in the Kibale Forest, within a linear distance of 2 km

and in an area of 3 km2 , the density of black and white colobus
ranges from 1 . 3 to 1 1 . 6 groups/km 2 (Oates, 1977, 1978; Strub
saker and Leland, 1979). Although the reason for this difference
is not understood, subtle habitat differences linked to nutritional
requirements may be involved (Oates, 1978).
When the forest is fragmented into relatively small blocks,
such as in East Mrica, northern Colombia, and India, differences
in primate communities and densities of particular species be
tween these forest patches can be very great. Even in large blocks
of continuous forest, such as in La Macarena National Park in
Colombia, one finds large differences in primate densities from
one part of the forest to another (Klein and Klein , 1976; Strub
saker, 1974).
What this means in terms of estimating populations over large
areas is that many study sites must be established to cover a wide
variety of habitat types and separate habitat blocks. At present,
there is no short and simple solution. Because those attempting to
manage primates for conservation or utilization are eager to have
the figures that best suit their purposes, it is important that any
density estimate be as accurate as possible. Census methods,
especially data analysis, still need much more study to improve
their accuracy and general applicability. Extrapolation can be a
dangerous guess.

5
Techniques for
Aging and
Sexing
Primates
The amount of information that must be known about the in

dividuals of a population depends on the questions being posed .
Simple distributional or density estimates, for example, can omit
information concerning the age and sex of the animals. If we wish
to ascertain whether a species has a monogamous or polygamous
social organization , distinctions between adults and nonadults
and between adult males and adult females will suffice. But if we
seek to understand the dynamics of population growth and pat
terns of mortality and natality, as in life-history analyses, knowl
edge of the age and sex of all individuals in a large population
sample is indispensable .
Knowing a few easy-to-recognize "key" animals is useful for
identification of a group for which most members are not identi
fied. The greater the number identified, the better-because
identifying a large number of individuals reduces the chances of
counting the same individuals twice in a population census.
Knowing the individual identities of animals is necessary for de
tailed studies involving individual life-history records; genealogi-
St

82 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O LO G Y
cal relationships among individuals in a group or population; and

detailed behavioral, ecological, and genetic analyses. Methods
for identifying and aging large numbers of primates individually
from natural markings were developed by W. Dittus while study
ing a population of toque macaques Macaca sinica at Polon
naruwa, Sri Lanka. These methods, which have been refined over
a period of 12 yr, are offered in this chapter in the hope that
others may find them useful. The artificial marking techniques
developed by R. W. Thorington and others are offered for use
with those species and in those studies for which identification by
natural markings is not feasible.
Primate species vary greatly in the ease, or difficulty, with
which the age, sex, and identity of individuals can be ascertained.
Difficulties arise because of cryptic genitalia, invariable indivi
dual morphologies, small body size, and nocturnal habits. Among
forest-dwelling primates there is the added problem of restricted
observability, especially among arboreal primates dwelling in
tall, dense rain forests. In areas where primates are hunted, the
investigator may have difficulty in getting close enough to his sub
jects to observe them, and habituation of the animals to the ob
server may be impossible or vary tedious and time-consuming.
The ease and reliability with which information concerning the
age, sex, and identity of individuals can be obtained under natu
ral conditions might affect the type of questions being posed and
determination of the species and habitat to be studied. A pilot
study to ascertain the feasibility of obtaining the information rele
vant to the research aims is a valuable investment, especially if
these aims require data concerning the age and sex of a large
sample of animals, as in demographic analyses.
A survey of morphological traits that are useful for aging, sex
ing, and identifying individuals belonging to all species of pri
mates is beyond the scope of this chapter. Indeed, establishing a
key for aging wild primates is impossible because accurate age
data for most species under natural conditions are lacking. In
stead, the aim of this chapter is to establish a methodology that
can be adapted to a wide variety of primates. The following dis
cussion provides guidelines for sexing and aging primates by dif
ferent methods and with different degrees of accuracy.

Techniques for Sexing and Aging Primates 83
SEXING
Among most sexually dimorphic primates, fully grown adult
males may be distinguished from females by their larger body
size, fuller musculature, larger canine teeth , and larger jaws and
muzzle. Species vary in the expression of other secondary sexual
characters. Adult male baboons, Papio and Theropithecus, de
velop long, thick mantles of hair around the shoulders. Adult
male howler monkeys, Alouatta , have an enlarged hyoid and
thick neck that may be accentuated by a beard. Adult male man
drils, Mandril/us sphinx, possess bright red and blue faces. Con
spicuous colors of the testes or of the perineal skin may be found
in adult males among several primates-for example, vervet
monkeys, Cercopithecus aethiops ; mandrills and drills, M.
sphinx and M. leucophaeus; and gray langurs, Presbytis entellus .
Adult females of chimpanzees, Pan , baboons, and many ma
caques periodically exhibit large, red tumescent swellings of the
perineum. The color and degree of swelling vary with the monthly
reproductive cycle. Adult females of many macaques have red
faces. In some species of gibbons, Hylobates, sexual dimorphism
is expressed by marked differences in fur color, and this may vary
geographically (Fooden, 1969) . Failing such conspicuous sex dif
ferences, the adult females in many primates are distinguishable
by their elongate teats, which in males are undeveloped. Geni
talia may be deceptive. The female spider monkey possesses a
long, pendulous clitoris that is longer and more conspicuous than
the male's penis.
Although size differences by sex in adults generally favor the
male, the importance of assigning sex on the basis of genitalia
rather than on size alone is underscored by the fact that the adult fe
male may be slightly larger than the adult male in marmosets, Cal
litrichidae, and the black gibbon, Hylobates concolor (Ralls, 1976).
Distinguishing sex among infants and juveniles is difficult in
some species because the genitalia or secondary sexual characters
are insufficiently developed to be seen. Even congeneric species
may differ in this regard; the genitalia of juveniles may be seen in
the red howler monkey, Alouatta seniculus, but not in the man
tled howler monkey, A . palliata (Thorington et a/. , 1979).

84 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N ECOLOGY
In the Old World monkeys, the separation of the ischial callosi

ties may aid sex identification. In the toque macaque, for ex
ample, the callosities are separated in the female but fused in the
male. The difference is most marked in adults.
ESTIMATING RELATIVE AGE CLASSES FOR

CENSUSES
Because of the limited time available during broad surveys and
many transect censuses, investigators have used the size-scaling
methods of early primate field studies to develop general age clas
sifications and have assigned estimated chronological ages to
these size classes on the basis of information from known-aged
captive animals. In this method each animal is scaled against the
largest animal in the group , usually an adult male, and is catego
rized as an adult, juvenile, or infant. Figure 5- 1 illustrates the
scaling technique for the arboreal howler monkey. With in
creased habituation, and thus improved visibility of the animals,
investigators have subdivided relative-size classe s into as many as
eight classes , including adult males, adult females, subadult
males, two or three juvenile classe s , and often two infant classe s .
Body proportions change dramatically with growth. As the
head becomes relatively smaller and the hind limbs, especially the
thighs, relatively larger, the weight moves posteriorly, changing
the center of gravity and the locomotor and postural capacities of
the animal. The thighs of climbing species are smaller than those
of running species, and the tails, especially prehensile ones, are
larger. Both of these differences can be seen in contrasting the
howlers with baboons and macaques. Grand (in press) described
the changes in body proportions between infant and adult male
rhesus macaques, and these are diagramed in Figure 5-2.
Changes in the mass of body regions are more significant than
those in their lengths. During growth , the head in relation to
body weight decreases rapidly, from 26% in the newborn infant
to 12% at 10-15 mo to 8% in the adult female and 6 % in the
adult male. The transformation for howlers between the head of
the newborn (20%) and that of the adult male (8% ) is less ex
treme than that for macaques, but the change in proportion of
the tail (10%-5. 5 % ) is more extreme. An appreciation of the de-

FIGURE 5- 1 Age and sex classes of howler monkeys. Top : A = adult male, B =
adult female, C = subadult, D = j uvenile , E = infant. Bottom: Size classes are
superimposed on each other as a first step in scaling animals for estimating
relative ages. Greater refinement is achieved by considering changes in body pro
portions.
tails of these changes in body proportions over and above changes

in stature greatly facilitates the aging and recognition of individ
ual animals. Commonly recognized classes are characterized
below.
ADULTS
Adults are fully grown and reproductively mature. In males,

adulthood is indicated by the full development of the genitalia
and of the secondary sexu.al characters. Usually they are larger
than those of adult females. As a practical starting point, adult
females have given birth to at least one infant and often may be

86 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P OPULATJ O N E C O L O G Y
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5 6 .5
·�
8.2
� p3.: '-
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N ewborn infant Adult mole
RGURE 5·2 Changes i n bod y proportions with age in macaques.
seen carrying one (see p. 89). They are distinguishable from large
nulliparous juvenile females by their teats (but see comment on p.
95). In the latter the nipples are small and unprotruding as in
males, whereas in adult females they are elongated and often pen
dulous as a consequence of having been suckled.
SUBADULT MALES
Subadult males are separately identified among sexually dimor

phic species in which the adult males are larger than the adult fe
males. They are intermediate in size between large juvenile males
(or adult females) and adult males, and their secondary sexual
characters are incompletely developed.
A few primatologists (e .g. , Neville, 1972) working with howler
monkeys, Alouatta seniculus , also recognize a subadult female
class. These are juvenile females that have started to develop but
have not yet achieved the body size and genital configuration typi
cal of adult females. Most workers classify such females as juve
niles and restrict use of the term "subadult" to males between the
size of adult females and adult males.


JUVENILES
Juveniles are young animals that are usually weaned and not car
ried by the mother but are not yet reproductively mature. The up
per size limit for juveniles corresponds to that of the average adult
female, the lower limit to that of the largest infants. Several juve
niles of varying sizes and ages usually occur in any social group . It
has been common in field studies to recognize several classes with
each class encompassing a range of sizes that is distinct from
other such classes. Thus, small juveniles are known as "juve
niles- ! " and juveniles of the next larger size range are known as
"juveniles-2" (see Figure S-3 and Table S- 1). Generally not more
than three juvenile size classes have been distinguished.
INFANTS
Infants are the smallest and youngest animals in a group . They

are not yet weaned and are carried by the mother at least part of
the time . The individual carrying an infant is not always its
mother. For example , in tamarins, Callitrichidae. and squirrel
monkeys, Saimiri, the fathers and other group members may
carry infants; and in some colobines, juvenile females and adult
I
I
Y r. 8 6-8 >5 I 5 4. 5 4.5 3
FIGURE S-3 Age and sex classes of baboons. Diagram of baboons traveling on
the ground helps to scale identified, known-aged individuals. Table S- 1 sup
plements the figure. Redrawn from Altmann and Altmann ( 1 970) and personal
communication ( 1 979).

females other than the mothers may carry infants. In many pri
mates the youngest infants are set apart from older animals by
skin color or fur color (or both). The youngest infants are some
times referred to as "infants-1 , " and those that have undergone a
color change but are still being nursed and carried by their
mothers are referred to as "infants-2." These color changes are il
lustrated in Figure S-3 and Table S- 1 for baboons.
DIRECT MEASUREMENT OF CHRONOLOGICAL AGE

The most accurate measurement of age is direct, and the most
convenient unit for measuring age is the year. The year is also a
biologically meaningful unit of measurement for age because pri
mates in most habitats are subject to seasonal environmental
changes that directly influence seasonal variations in their food
TABLE 5-1 Physical Characteristics of Amboseli Baboons
Estimates of Ages
(years)"
Class Physical Characteristics 1963-1971 1979
Infant- 1 Hair completely or partially 0-l /2 0-2/3

black (natal coat). Black
spots in tail and shoulders
remain longest. Skin pink or
red from skin vascularity;
ears and nose retain pink
longest.
Infant-2 Hair brown to cream-colored, 1 /2-1 2/3-2
often lighter (in Amboseli)
than that of adults. Skin
pigmented black , as in
adults, except for pink scro
tum.
Juvenile-1 Not sharply demarcated from 1-2 2-4
previous class. Light hair
retained. Face wrinkles dis
appear. Scrotum changes
from pink to gray at 3-4
yr of age.


TABLE 5-1 (continued)
Estimates of Ages
(years)8
Class Physical Characteristics 1963- 1971 1979
Juvenile-2 Not sharply demarcated from 2-4 4-S for

previous class . Hair often females
darker, as in adult. Males' 4-6 for
testes descend at s h -6 yr males
of age.
Adult female Sexually mature; sexual skin �er 4 �er 5
swells pe_riodically. Nipples
buttonlike when nullipar
ous; elongated in more
mature, multiparous fe
males. First pregnancy at
about 6 yr of age; full size
reached at about 7 yr of age .
Subadult male Development of secondary 4-6 6-8
sexual characters: mantle,
long canine teeth, large
size, greater musculature
than females. Scrotum
(testes) larger than Juve·
nile-2. White streaks on
muzzle. Canine ridges.
Adult male Secondary sexual characteris �er 6 �er 8
tics fully developed.
a Age estimates were revised as a result of increased fteld experience (see p. 95).
Source: Altmann and Altmann ( 1970) and personal communication ( 1979).
supply, reproductive and hormonal states, behavior, and sur

vival.
Direct measurement of chronological age requires the identifi
cation of individuals at birth and the tracing of their identity
through time. Since newborn infants may have few traits that set
them apart as individuals, the identity of the mother is useful. By
the age of weaning, the infant may have developed some of its
own distinguishing features.
Although direct measurement of age is costly in human effort
and time, it is valuable, if not essential, in any serious study deal-

90 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O LO G Y
ing with life history or demographic processes . Ideally , one would

like to assess the ages of all individuals in a population to the
nearest year. Such accuracy is not always possib le and may not be
necessary . For example, if identified animals of known chrono
logical age are first used to establish morphological criteria that
correlate with age, then morphology might be used in tum to esti
mate indirectly the chronological age of animals whose birth days
are unknown.
INDIRECT MEASUREMENT OF CHRONOLOGICAL AGE

Estimating chronological age from established morphological
criteria is a compromise between relative and direct measure
ments of age and serves to establish chronological ages between
and within relative age classes . Several changes take place in vari
ous parts. of the body as individuals grow. H these changes occur
in a regular sequence and show a high correlation with chronolog
ical age, they may be used as a basis for estimating age. Once the
criteria for such estimates are established for a species, aging may
be done without the long-term investment required by direct ag
ing.
Among the criteria used for estimating ages in primates are
changes in the number and sequence of erupted teeth, tooth
wear, eye lens weight, allometric dimensions and weights of or
gans and skeletal segments, skin color, fur color, and body size
(Gavan, 1953, 1971 ; Gavan and Hutchinson, 1973; Reed, 1973;
Rosenthal, 1968; Stahl et al. , 1968; Wagenen and Catchpole,
1956). For the field worker who does not capture his subjects, the
number and type of criteria are restricted to those external mor
phological traits that can be seen with the aid of binoculars. Ex
amples include changes in the color of the skin and fur, size of the
body or parts of the body, and the development of genitals and
secondary sexual characters. Many observable morphological
traits change gradually with age and are not useful for aging.
Therefore, as an initial step in aging wild primates, one tries to
fmd distinct morphological discontinuities or age markers that
correlate weU with a specific age. One such marker is the transi
tion from the typically natal pelage to the adult skin and fur col
ors at 2-5 mo of age in many Old World primates. Other markers


are the onset of reproduction, especially in females, and the end
point of physical growth . Anchoring such events to the correct
age requires an initial direct measurement through long-term ob
servation.
Some of the physical characteristics that help define age and
sex classes for a particular species are illustrated in Figure 5-3,
which relates to baboons. Table 5- 1 , which supplements Figure
5-3, gives an idea of the continuing process by which age esti
mates are refined during field studies. During more than a de
cade of studying Amboseli baboons, Altmann and Altmann ( 1970
and personal communication , 1979) have been able to replace es
timates that correspond only roughly to chronological age with
improved estimates based on individuals of known ages within
their study populations.
A method for obtaining weights of macaques under field condi
tions has been used by W. P. J. Dittus to augment observational
techniques for estimating growth . This technique makes it possi
ble to obtain more precise data on the growth of some species,
thereby enabling an investigator to examine more closely the re
sponses of individuals to variations with age and the food supply.
By suspending a scale from a branch and placing food in a tray
that is attached to the scale, it is possible to attract macaques to
sit on the tray and so to weigh them . Weights can be read, with
the aid of binoculars, from several meters away.
E STIMATING CHRONOLOGICAL AGES OF INFANTS
In species in which changes from a natal pelage and skin color to

an adult type occur, these changes can be used to age infan�s.
The following morphological correlates of age are abstracted
from a key that was drawn up for the toque macaque (W. P. J.
Dittus, unpublished data). They illustrate the type of information
that may be used for aging.
Day of Birth
Skin is pink and wrinkled. Natal coat is fine and uniformly dark
brown. Eyes are open but squinted. Umbilical cord is attached;
thick and flexible.

92 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O G Y
Day 2-3
Umbilical cord is generally thin , dry, and stiff or sometimes miss
ing by the second day. By the third, it is usually missing, the eyes
are wide open and alert, and the skin is less wrinkled and pink .
Week 1-3
Very slight melanin starts to occur on dorsal surfaces of hands,

feet, and forelimbs during first week. By the third week , these
areas are noticeably light gray. Otherwise the skin is white, but
ears may flush in hot weather.
Week S
Light gray melanin begins to appear at outer edges of pinnae.
Week 9-10
Gray hair follicles begin to appear on the bare white forehead as

two small patches to the left and right of the midline. This is the
beginning of the pretoque (see p . 1 1 1 ) .
Month 4-5
Dorsal surface of hands and feet changes to black and acquires
fur as in adults. Pretoque hair patches fuse across the midline
and with the toque hair on the crown of the head. Adult-type
pelage prevails.
Month 9-12
Pinnae are fully or almost fully pigmented black .
In the toque macaque, changes in the texture and color of the
natal coat are variable between 2 and 5 mo of age and therefore
are not very useful for aging within this age range. Useful age
markers concern the onset of melanin deposits and the growth of
hair on naked areas.


The transition from natal coat to adult pelage is variable also in
the yellow baboon, Papio cynocephalus , and the deposition of
dark pigment in the skin is correlated better with age. The follow
ing changes occur in infant yellow baboons (Altmann et al. ,
1977).
At Birth
Skin is pink.
7 Mo
All infants have gray hands and feet, primarily gray paracollosal
skin, a little gray pigmentation on a primarily pink muzzle, and
p ink ears.
12-15 Mo
Skin pigmentation is complete except for males' scrota, which re

main pink until about the fourth year of life.
Most primate field studies are now of sufficient duration that
similar keys might be established for infants of many species.
"Infancy" can be variously defined-the definition depending
on purpose. In life-history studies the ability to identify infants
about 1 yr old is useful. The size and morphology of 1 -yr-old in
fants might be taken as the criteria defining the transition from
infant to juvenile states.
ESTIMATING CHRONOLOGICAL AGES OF JUVENILES
The problem of aging juveniles is to assign chronological ages to a

gradient of body sizes between 1 -yr-old infants and adult females.
Age estimates are aided if we know the duration of the juvenile
phase (or the age at which it ends), the variation in body size or
growth rate with age, and the factors that affect variations in
growth. These topics, although interrelated, will be discussed in
tum.

Duration of Juvenile Phase in Wild Populations

The onset of reproduction in females is thought of as marking the
end of the juvenile phase, but "onset of reproduction" has been
variously defined. It has been defmed as the onset of menarchy or
puberty, the time of ftrst conception , the time of ftrst pregnancy,
and the time of farst birth. The ages differ for these events. Under
fteld conditions the time of farst birth is the most practical
because it is an obvious event that can be dated. It can also be an
ticipated because pregnant females in late tenn are u sually con
spicuous. H the period of gestation is known , the time of farst con
ception can be estimated.
The duration of the female juvenile phase will generally be set
by the age at which reproduction begins. In some cases a female
may attain full growth but be infertile. This will be an exceptional
event and can only be determined by long-tenn monitoring. Th e
relationship between age and the onset of reproduction is worth
closer examination. Human studies (Frisch and Revelle, 1970)
suggested that menarchy occurs over a range of ages and heights
but at attainment of an invariable critical body weight. Peng et
a/. ( 1973) found that the female Taiwan macaque, Macaca cyl
copsis , cannot conceive unless she achieves a critical body weight
in excess of 4 kg, and semen cannot be obtained from male Tai
wan macaques weighing less than 5 kg. Similar critical body
weights have been established for female (5 kg) and male (6 kg)
rhesus M. mulatta; for female (6.5 kg) and male (S-8 kg) Japa
nese macaques, M. fuscata (Mori, 1979); and for male (4.3 kg)
cynomolgus macaques, M. fascicularis (Hartman, 1932; Valerie
et a/. , 1971 , quoted in Peng et a/. , 1973). Female howler
monkeys, Alouatta caraya , weighing less than 4 kg did not con
ceive, and Gilbert and Gillman ( 1960) provide evidence from the
chacma baboon, Papio ursinus , that is consistent with the ftnding
in other primates and human beings that females below a critical
weight do not conceive. The typically heavier species have higher
critical weights for conception.
H critical weight needs to be attained in order to reproduce,
then any factor that may affect the rate of growth, such as food
supply or social behavior, should influence the age at onset of re
production or the duration of the juvenile phase. For example,


under extreme food shortage, the physical growth of female Japa
nese macaques was delayed and their average age at first birth in
creased from 6.2 to 6.8 yr, some not experiencing first birth until
the age of 9 yr (Mori, 1979).
Lacking long-term field data, primatologists have based their
field estimates of age and of onset of reproduction on data from
captive animals. However, captive primates usually receive liberal
rations of well-balanced nutritious diets that maximize rates of
growth and maturation . In nature, growth rates might be ex
pected to be less because of variations in the availability of food.
Indeed, newborn rhesus monkeys whose mothers were caught in
the wild weighed 14-19% less than those whose mothers were
raised in the laboratory (Valerio et a/. , 1970). Recent long-term
field studies in which the development of individuals was traced
from birth to adulthood indicate that growth rate is slower than it
was thought to be and that age at onset of reproduction is higher.
For example, in his study of wild bonnet macaques, Macaca
radiata , Simonds (1965) estimated the age of first birth in wild
females to be the same as the age that had been established from
studies of captive macaques: 3.5-4.5 yr. However, long-term field
data for the slightly smaller toque macaque have shown that wild
females of this closely related species do not experience their first
birth until they are 5.5-6.5 yr old (Dittus, 1975, and unpublished
data). Similarly, wild female baboons experience their first birth
when about 6.5 yr old (Altmann et a/. , 1977), which is 2 yr later
than the corresponding age of those raised in captivity. In light of
these long-term field records, Dittus ( 1 975) and Altmann et a/.
( 1977) advanced their original estimates of age among juveniles.
Thus, currently published estimates of age at onset of adult
hood in wild primates are probably considerably underestimated,
particularly among the Cercopithecinae, if they are based on
extrapolations of age from captive primates rather than on obser
vations of individuals in the field from birth to adulthood. Excep
tions to this might be the published estimates of age for Co/obi
nae or others that are difficult to raise in captivity.
Variations in the age at which the first birth in females occurs
in a population may lead to uncertainty in determining age. To
circumvent this difficulty, one may wish to distinguish between
reproducing (primiparous and multiparous) females and those

TABLE S-2 Weights and Sitting Heights of Captive Rhesus Macaques, Macaca mulatta. at
Different Ages"
Males Females
Mean Weight Mean Sitting Height Mean Weight Mean Sitting Height
Age Range (yr) ( kg) ± SD (em) ± SD ( kg) ± SD (em) ± SD
0.00-0.03 0.48 ± 0.05 19.3 ± 1 .0 0.44 ± 0.06 19.2 ± 0.9

0.46-0.54 1 . 50 ± 0. 1 30.9 ± 1.1 1 . 30 ± 0. 1 5 29. 1 ± 1 .3
0.96- 1 .04 2 . 20 ± 0.2 35.8 ± 1 .4 1 . 90 ± 0.2 34.3 ± 1.7
1 .46- 1 .59 3 . 00 ± 0.5 39.6 ± 1 .6 2.50 ± 0.2 37.5 ± 1.1
1 .92-2.08 3 . 50 ± 0.6 4 1 .8 ± 2. 1 2 . 90 ± 0.2 40. 1 ± 1.1
2.92-3. 1 7 5. 1 0 ± 1.1 47. 1 ± 3.0 4 . 20 ± 0.4 44. 6 ± 1 .3
3.83-4. 1 7 7.40 ± 1 .4 52. 1 ± 3.2 5 . 20 ± 0.8 47.2 ± 1 .3
4.83-5. 1 7 9. 70 ± 1 .5 55. 7 ± 2.5 5 . 70 ± 0.6 48. 3 ± I. 7
" Data from Gavan and Hutchinson , 1 973 .


that are of the same age as the reproducing ones, but which are
still nulliparous.
Habitat, Social Rank, and Season of Birth as Factors in

Growth Differences
If body size is used to estimate chronological age, it is helpful to
known how well age and body size correlate. Gavan and Hutchin·
son ( 1973) provide some of the best data for such an assessment
in their study of growth rates in rhesus macaques, Macaca mu·
latta , raised under controlled colony conditions. Using animals of
known ages, they measured the number of erupted teeth , the
weight, and the sitting height (crown-to-rump length) . A con·
densed version of some of their data is given in Table 5-2. Using
such data, Gavan and Hutchinson arrived at several regression
equations for estimating age. Following are examples of equa
tions in which weight ( W) is given in kg and sitting height (H) in
em:
For males: Age = 0.537 X ( W - 0. 108)

Age = (0.337 X W) + [0.058 X (H - 1 . 628)]
For females: Age = 0.921 X ( W - 0.646)
Age = ( 1 .021 X W) + [0.021 X (H 0. 152)]
-
Testing these equations on a group of rhesus monkeys whose

ages were known, the authors found their equations to have a
maximum deviation of ± 0.4 yr. But this degree of accuracy is
valid only for rhesus raised under ideal conditions. In wild popu·
lations, growth rates are slower, but how do they vary?
Wild toque macaques, Macaca sinica , living in good habitats
weigh more than those living in marginal habitats, and socially
high-ranking animals, which enjoy priority of access to resources,
grow faster than low-ranking ones (W. P. J. Dittus, unpublished
data). Whether such relations exist among other wild primates is
unknown, but it is likely that habitat quality and social rank
cause greater variation in growth in any wild, food-limited popu
lation (where such exist) than in captive animals that have access
to a superabundant and invariable food supply. One would also
expect year-to-year variations in the natural food supply to accen·

98 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O PU LATI O N E C O L O GY
tuate or diminish size differences among growing animals born in

different years. Primates subject to high year-to-year fluctuations
in their food supply would be most affected.
The traditional method of assigning ages to size classes as
sumes a fairly close relationship between body size and age. In
light of the above, such methods might be scrutinized.
Assigning ages to size classe s is justified, however, where dis
continuities in size distribution are apparent and are the result of
a birth pulse. A well-defined birth season is one in which births in
a population are fairly well synchronized, so that most individuals
of a given birth season are fairly close in body size and may be
recognized as belonging to a distinct age class or cohort. How
ever, owing to the cumulative effects of differences in growth
rates between individuals, these class distinctions become less de
marcated with increasing age. The effects of a birth pulse are
most useful, therefore, in distinguishing the 1 -yr-old juveniles
from the newly born infants and from the juveniles 2 yr old or
older.
A breakdown of larger juveniles into distinct age classes pre
supposes an intimate knowledge of size differences by age. Given
such knowledge of an average-sized juvenile of age "X, " one
might assume that in a large census sample the numbers of indi
viduals wrongly underestimated and overestimated in age for any
one age class would cancel one another. Such errors, however,
will only partly cancel one another as illustrated by the following
example.
Assume that the "true" age distribution in a hypothetical pop
ulation is like that in row 1 of Table S-3. Assume further that
75% in each age class are estimated correctly (row 3) but that
there is uncertainty as to the correct age for the 25% remaining
individuals in each age class (row 2). The latter do, however, defi
nitely belong either to the age class under consideration or to one
of the immediately adjoining age classe s . If ages are assigned to
the uncertain-aged individuals without bias into the age class in
question or into one of the two adjoining classe s , the numbers of
uncertainly aged individuals are distributed evenly among adjoin
ing classes as in rows 4-7. These "best-guess" age distributions
(rows 4-7) are added to the known (row 3) to arrive at a final esti
mate of age distributions (row 8). The percentage of error be-

TABLE S-3 Effect of Faulty Estimation of Ages and of Mutual

Cancellation of Errors on Estimates of Age-Class Frequencies
Number of Animals in a
Hypothetical Population,
by Age Classes (A, 8, C, D)
26 21 6 26
Row Number A 8 c D
True age distribution

2I 104 84 3 8
["2(261 2)
2S"lo age uncertain 9
75 "lo age correct 3 78 63 27
] 6 ( 2 2)
+ 13 13
uncertain age are as- 5 + 3) 7 7 7
signed equally among (9 + 3) 3 3 3
""""
adjoining age classes
"' "' '"""'"'"" "' 7 +
Estimated age distribu-
6 2 6
tion (sum of row 3
and rows 4-7) 8 98 86 38 10
"lo of error 9 25
tween the estimated (row 8) and true (row 1) age distributions is

given in row 9.
Although errors in aging are generally reduced for each age
class by adjustments such as those illustrated in Table S-3, it is
evident that errors do not wholly cancel one another. The error is
greatest in age classes with low frequencies.
One way to reduce such errors is to combine two or more age
classes and defme the age limits of this combined class according
to reliable age indicators. For example, in real census data,
"young juveniles" might be readily distinguished as a distinct
class as a result of a birth pulse and might be aged 1-2 yr old.
"Old juveniles" might be those larger than "young juveniles" but
smaller than adults; they would be 2-6 yr old.
Sex as a Factor in Growth Differences

Infant and juvenile males grow faster than their female peers
among several primates studied in captivity-for example, rhesus

100 T E C H N I QUE S I N PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O GY
Macaca mulatta (Table S-2), barbary macaques, M. sylvana

(Roberts, 1978), squirrel monkeys, Saimiri sciureus (Kaak et a/. ,
1979)-and in the wild population of toque macaques, M. sinica
(Dittus, 1977a). Species differ in the degree of sexual dimorphism
in size. If growth rates by sex under natural conditions are un
known, an attempt to adjust age classifications on the basis of sex
differences in growth may assume a degree of accuracy in age
determination that under field conditions is unjustified. Among
infants and young juveniles especially, growth diffe rences by sex
are slight, and the task of making accurate estimates is made
more difficult by size differences resulting from diffe rences in
date of birth relative to peers of the same birth season or cohort.
That is, infants born early in the birth season will be larger than
those born late, although both are classified as belonging to the
same age class (e.g. , 0-1 yr old). Among older juveniles, adjust
ment of age classification according to growth differences by sex
may be justified if the effects of sex on growth are consistent and
can be distinguished from other effects, such as social rank , and
if the growth differences by sex are great enough to influence age
estimates within the size-age categories chosen . For example, the
error in age classification owing to growth differences by sex will
be greater if fme distinctions in age are attempted than if several
size-age classes are combined into one class spanning several sizes
or years.
Since growth differences by sex are cumulative, they will have
their greatest effect among the oldest juveniles; therefore, they
may need to be considered when establishing criteria for the up
per limits of the juvenile period in males. In females, this is
marked by the first birth and poses no problem. For demographic
analyses, one wishes to identify males that are of the same age as
the females at first birth .
Primiparous females often continue to grow for another year or
so after their first birth until they reach full adult female size. In
species where juvenile males grow faster than their female peers,
a male the size of an average adult female may be fairly close in
age to a smaller primipara at the time of her first birth . The de
gree of correspondence in these relationships needs to be estab
lished empirically for each species.
Since first birth seems to occur at a constant critical weight, the
sizes of primipara may vary less than the sizes of the average


adult females. Hence, the size of a primiparous female may be an
easier anchor for aging males of the same size.
The age at which events such as first birth occur may vary ac
cording to the environmental conditions or according to whether
the population is changing in size or is stable (Dittus, 1977a,
1 980). Therefore, in using transitional stages such as first birth as
indicators of age, one should be sure that the correlation between
stage and age is established separately for each population under
study.
Traits other than body size can be used to supplement such age
estimates. For example, during the later stages of the juvenile
phase, the genitalia begin to change. Altmann et a/. ( 1977) report
that among yellow baboons, Papio cynocephalus , the scrotum of
juvenile males turns from pink to gray at 3-4 yr of age.
E STIMATING CHRONOLOGICAL AGES OF SUBADULT MALES
The criteria defining the upper limit of the juvenile male phase
also define the lower limit of the subadult male phase . Examples
of morphological changes in males of known ages are provided
from the two primates for which such data are available from wild
populations.
Male toque macaques, Macaca sinica , by 5.5-6 yr of age are
about the same size as multiparous adult females, and the canine
teeth have erupted beyond the level of the incisors and molars. By
the seventh year, the males are larger than adult females, and the
testes have descended but are small. Males in their seventh and
eighth year may appear lean owing to rapid skeletal growth that
appears to have stretched their spare flesh . Full canine develop
ment, adult male size, and musculature are reached at over 8 yr
of age.
Male yellow baboons, Papio cynocephalus, are the size of adult
females by 5 yr of age, are larger than all adult females by 6 yr,
experience descent of the testes at 5.5-6 yr, and acquire full adult
male development at over 10 yr of age (Altmann et a/. , 1977) .
In the toque macaque, the average weight of adult males is
5.35 kg, the standard deviation is 0. 70 kg, and the range is
4.0-7. 7 kg (N = 38 males weighed) . Much variation in the body
size of adult males may be true also of other primates. Therefore,
definition of the criteria for the transition from subadult to adult

102 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O PULATI O N E C O L O GY
male could be problematic. In the toque macaque, some males in

their prime Gudged to be 10-15 yr old) weigh more than the
"average" male owing to their well-developed musculature. Crite
ria for the transition to adulthood in males therefore might be
taken as the attainment of canine teeth and body frame sizes, but
not necessarily of body mass, as in prime males.
AGING ADULT ANIMALS
The onset of adulthood in males and females has been described

in earlier sections. The end point of adulthood is defined by lon
gevity or maximum life span of a species under natural conditions.
It has been assumed generally that primates and other animals
maintained in captivity live longer than their wild counterparts.
Although conditions in captivity may improve the probability that
more animals will live to old age, it is questionable whether the
chronological limits of longevity per se are advanced significantly
in captivity. Long-term field studies of the toque macaque sug
gest that a few individuals live to be at least 30 yr old, a figure
that agrees with longevity records of this species in captivity.
Table 5-4 lists the longevity of several primates living in captivity.
Age differences among adult primates seem to be registered
best in the appearance of the skin and teeth . Therefore, it is more
difficult to discern ages under field conditions in those species
that are heavily furred and have deeply pigmented facial and
other skin, since these conditions either hide or obscure changes
in the skin with age. The experience of the investigator seems to
be of little help in aging difficult species. Drs. Stuart and Jeanne
Altmann have studied yellow baboons over many years and em
phasize their inability (and that of others) to discern age dif
ferences consistently among adult yellow baboons (personal com
munication).
Although toque macaques may be exceptionally well suited for
the identification of age-specific characters, adults were assigned
ages only after the investigator had accumulated 3 yr of field con
tact with the macaques. Following Dittus' ( 1 974, 1975) descrip
tion of characters that vary with age among adults, Hrdy ( 1977,
Hrdy and Hrdy, 1976) attempted to classify adult gray langurs,
Presbytis entellus, which are much more difficult to age than


macaques. As observers increase their attention to the details of
age changes in the skin , pelage, teeth , skeleton , and behavior of
adults, it should become possible to distinguish ages among
adults even in some of those species that have previously been
thought to lack age-specific characters. This may be expected be
cause morphological changes are cumulative. Old age especially
is marked by its own changes, such as weight loss, stiffness or
lameness, and infrequent activity-factors that can be recognized
despite cryptic skin areas.
The nature of the changes associated with aging vary with the
species. Several changes are described here to illustrate charac
ters that were observed in toque macaques and can be seen by
comparing the photographs in Figures S-4 and 5-S. Gradual
changes in the wrinkling and color of the skin become evident be
tween youth and old age . The facial and body skin of young adult
animals usually is taut and smooth with few or no blemishes,
whereas the facial skin of very old animals may appear pitted and
creased, especially around the eyes and mouth . A loss of skin
tonus may cause the lower lid to droop and produce "bags" under
the eyes. The edges of the upper lips may be creased and drawn
inward, giving a typically "toothless" appearance. Many small
creases and wrinkles appear in the skin of the chest and abdo
men, and loose folds of skin appear at the juncture of the limbs
and trunk and under the chin . In the Cercopithecinae, the empty
cheek pouches may hang as large, loose folds of skin . Hanging
teats and mammae and abdominal stretch folds may become
prominent in old females.
The degree of erythrization of the facial skin in some females
also intensifies with age. The pale or slightly flushed complexion
of young adult females may be intensified by middle age or old
age to bright red and may deepen to bluish red in very old age.
However, some young adult females also have bright red faces
(but more even), and some old females have pale faces (but not
unblemished), so that color is not a sole index of age. The num
ber and size of pigment spots and the prominence of facial hair,
especially around the mouth , increase with age in both sexes. The
number of scars and cuts in the ears accumulate with age, al
though by itself the amount of scarring is not a reliable index of
age.

TABLE S-4 Maximum Life Spans for Selected Primates Maintained in Captivity
Age at Death
Species Common Name Sex (years) Reference
---
Prosimians
Daubentonia madagascariensis Aye-aye 23 Jones, 1968
Microcebus coquereli Coqueral's mouse lemur 15 Jones, 1962
Tarsius syrichta Philippine tarsier 9 12 Ulmer, 1960
Ga/ago sp. Galago 14° Bowden and Jones, 1979
Lemur macacao Black lemur 27 Jones, 1962
Lemur mongoz Mongoose lemur 25 Jones, 1962
New World Monkeys
Callithrix jacchus Common marmoset 12 Napier and Napier, 1967
Saguinus sp. Tamarin 120 Bowden and Jones, 1979
Aotus trivirgatus Night or owl monkey 1 7" Bowden and Jones, 1979
Chiropotes satanas Black saki IS Jones, 1962
Saimiri sciureus Squirrel monkey 9 21 Hume, 1957
Cebus sp. Capuchin 43" Bowden and Jones, 1979
Ateles geoffroyi Black-handed spider monkey 18 Jones, 1962
Ateles paniscus Black spider monkey 20 Crandall, 1964

Old World Monkeys

Cercopithecus aethiops Vervet or green monkey 28" Bowden and Jones, 1979
Cercopithecus diana Diana monkey 31 Napier and Napier, 1967
Papio hamadryas Hamadryas baboon 29 Jones, 1962
Papio ursinus Chacma baboon 45 Flower, 1931
Macaca jascicu/aris (iris) Crab-eating macaque C1 38 Dathe, 1971
Macaca fuscata Japanese macaque 33" Bowden and Jones, 1979
Macaca mu/atta Rhesus macaque 9 33" Bowden and Jones, 1979
Macaca nemestrina Pigtailed macaque 33" Bowden and Jones, 1979
Macaca sinica Toque macaque C1 30+ Hill, 1974
Macaca speciosa Stumptailed macaque 33" Bowden and Jones, 1979
Presbytis entel/us Grey langur 22 Rabb, 1960
Presbytis cristata Lutong 9 29 Anon . , 1974
Colobus polykomos King colobus C1 27+ Hill, 1975
Apes
Hylobates far White-handed gibbon C1 31 Jones, 1962
Gorilla gorilla Gorilla C1 40 Cutler, 1975
Pan troglodytes Chimpanzee C1 49" Bowden and Jones, 1979
Pongo pygmaeus Orangutan C1 so Cutler, 1975
" Mean of five oldest animals reported.

1 06 TE C H N I Q U E S I N PRIMATE P O PU LATI O N E C O L OGY
FIGURE S-4 An adult male toque macaque, "Stumpy. " Left, in December
1971 when middle-aged; right, in February 1980 when "senile." The number of
red spots on the face has increased, and the facial skin has lost some of its tonus.
Photograph courtesy of Wolfgang P. J. Dittus.
Changes in pelage are probably most evident in very old age.

The pelage may become dull and without luster, and bald spots
may appear, especially on the tail. Dunbar and Dunbar ( 1 975)
described changes in the length and color of the cape in adult
male gelada baboons, Theropithecus gelada , that may be useful
for distinguishing ages among them.
With increasing age the teeth become worn and discolored
through tartarization. The canine teeth of adult males are espe
cially useful for gauging these changes. The canines of adult male
toque macaques in their prime (judged to 10-15 yr old) are fully
erupted, sharply pointed, and clean ivory colored. With increas
ing age the canines become less pointed, shorter, and more stained.


By old age the canines may be worn to the level of the incisors,
and the teeth in general are worn and stained yellow-brown.
These changes, like those of the skin, are graded and may be use
ful for judging ages intermediate between youth and old age.
Very old animals often experience a loss in weight and appear
scrawny. Lameness, gnarled fingers, stiffness and swelling of the
joints (apparent arthritis), and difficulty in locomotion collec·
tively are signs of very old age. When stiff fingers or awkwardly
mended joints or bones are seen in young animals, they appear to
be the result of injuries rather than a general syndrome of stiff
ness.
In the toque macaque the voice changes from infancy to adult·
hood, and very old adults may have a characteristically low
pitched, raspy, or quavery voice. Waser ( 1 978) describes a similar
.. old voice" in an old female mangabey, Cercocebus albigena.
A summary of morphological traits observed in very old ani
mals of several species is given in Table 5-S. The most useful
characters for assessing ages intermediate between young adult
and very old adult are those that change gradually and progres-
FIGURE 5·5 An adult male toque macaque, "Harris." Left, in December 1971
when middle-aged; right, in April 1975 after he had acquired a new cut on his up·
per lip. The red spot under the left eye has grown larger, and several new small red
spots have appeared. Photograph courtesy of Wolfgang P. J. Dittus.

TABLE 5-S Morphological and Behavioral Traits that are Typical of Old Age in Several Primates
(X indicates that trait or change occurs.)
--
New
Prosi- World
mians Monkeys Old World Monkeys Apes
---
Morphological and Capu· Toquec Rhesus Gelada• Chacma Manga- Gray Chim· Orang-
Behavioral Traits Sifakaa chin b Macaque Macaqued baboon baboon/ bey' langur" panzee; utani Man •
Worn discolored teeth X X X X X X X X X

Wrinkled and creased
facial skin, loose
"bags under the eyes" X X X X
Hairy facial skin X X X
Creased loose folds of
body skin X X
Change in skin pigmen·
tation X X X X
Change in pelage color
and/or lustre X X X X X X X X

Hair loss , or bare patches

of skin X X X X X X X X X X
Change in timbre of voice X X X
Loss of weight, scrawniness X X X X X X X X
Accumulation of scars
and injuries X X X X X X X
Stiffness, or difficulty in
locomotion X X X X X
Lethargic or inactive X X X
0 Sifaka Propithecus verreauxi (Jolly, 1966).

h White-fronted capuchin Cebus albifrons (W. P. J. Dittus, personal observation).
< Toque macaque Macaca sinica (Dittus, 1974, 1975; W . P. J. Dittus, personal observation).
d Rhesus macaque Macaca mulatta (Wagenen, 19n; Southwick et a/. , 1965).
e aelada baboon Theropithecus gelada (Dunbar and Dunbar, 1975).
f Chacma baboon Papio ursinus (Saayman, 1970).
' Mangabey Cercocebus albegina (Waser, 1978).
h Gray langur Presbytis entellus (W. P. J. Dittus, personal observation; Hrdy, 1979).
; Chimpanzee Pan troglodytes (van Lawick-Goodall, 1971).
j Orangutan Pongo pygmaeus ( MacKinnon, 1974a).
k Man (W. P. J. Dittus, personal observation).

1 10 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P OPULATI O N E C O L O G Y
sively with age-for example, the skin and the teeth . Although it
is difficult to quantify these changes with age, they are very simi
lar to those that occur in adult human beings.
It has been useful in the toque macaque to establish five adult
age classes: young, young to middle aged, middle aged, old, and
very old (or senile). Adult animals are assigned to one of the adult
age classes based on the investigator's subjective appraisal of the
animal's overall morphology or set of age traits as outlined above .
As a rough approximation of the chronological ages that might
correspond to each of the adult age classes, the following proce
dure is adopted. The "Young Adult Female" class is assigned a
duration of 5 yr from the sixth to the tenth year of life inclusively
(slightly revised since Dittus, 1975). The "Subadult Male" class
(sixth and seventh years) plus the "Young Adult Male" class
(eighth to tenth years) together span the same 5 yr as the "Young
Adult Female. " The remaining 20 adult years (eleventh to thir
tieth years) are divided equally among the remaining four adult
age classes for each sex, each class thus spanning 5 yr.
IDENTIFYING INDIVIDUAL PRIMATES BY NATURAL

MARKINGS
Free-living primates can be identified individually if they possess

recognizable natural or artificial markings that distinguish them
from other individuals. Natural markings are discussed below. A
discussion of artificial marking techniques begins on page 1 17.
Distinguishing individuals by their natural markings is by far
the most common method used by field primatologists. Its suc
cess depends on the existence of morphological variations among
the individuals in the population under study, on the experience
and perseverance of the investigator in learning to recognize and
record individual differences, and on good observation condi
tions.
The following guidelines for the establishment of keys for identi
fying individuals were developed from the study of toque
macaques, Macaca sinica , at Polonnaruwa, where observation
conditions are good and where 500 toque macaques have been in
dividually identified by their natural markings. About 60 animals
are added and lost annually. Each monkey is observed at least
once a month as part of a regular census schedule. The guidelines

are suggested as a general approach to the problem of identifica

tion and may have merit when applied to other species.
SELECTING AND DESCRIBING INDIVIDUALISTIC TRAITS

The most important aid to identification is knowing the kinds of
differences to look for. A morphological trait that is to be useful
for distinguishing individuals should have the following proper
ties:
• Variable between individuals.

• Constant through time or changing slowly enough to permit
a record of the change.
• Visible under normal working conditions.
• Recognizable by other investigators.
Some of the obvious traits that meet these criteria are sex, body
size, missing limbs, healed scars, and presence or absence and
size of canine teeth . Traits that are least useful for identification
are those that change seasonally with the reproductive condition
(e.g. , color or size of perineal swellings in female baboons and
some macaques) and those that change rapidly with maturation
(e.g. , color of pelage or skin among infants or the body size of
subadult males).
The first task in identification therefore is the selection and
compilation of a list of reliable "key traits. " Such a list may in
clude pelage color (among juveniles and adults); color of skin
(face or other areas); length and configuration of head hair or
mane; and distribution of pigment in ears, face, or elsewhere.
The second task is to determine the extent of variation in the
traits. The third is to devise a standard vocabulary for describing
the variations in each of the key traits.
The following abridged list is an example from the toque ma
caque:
Pelage
The pelage (exclusive of the head hair) is described at two levels:
first, the basic or overall coat color of light, medium, or dark
brown; second, the tint or hue of the basic color. Thus, medium

1 12 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O G Y
or dark brown furs can be tinted either orange, gray, or simply

brown. Light-brown furs are more variable and may be tinted
orange, golden, yellow, sandy beige, agouti, or gray. In addition
to color the pelage varies in distribution of color and in luster.
Head Hair
Toque macaques and their closest relatives, the bonnet ma
caques, Macaca radiata , possess a whorl of hair that radiates
symmetrically outward from a central spot on top of the crown. In
the toque macaque, three growths of hair (toque, pretoque, and
overtoque) interrelate to form very variable "hairdos, " which may
require lengthy though standardized description . The toque,
which varies in color and especially in structure, is the most char
acteristic trait for some individuals, and it is useful for distin
guishing young animals over 6 mo old.
Face Color
The face color of adult females can be described as follows: pale
skin color, slight pink flush , light red, medium red, deep red,
and deep red to slightly purple. The distribution of the color
varies. The facial skin color of adult males and of juveniles of
either sex may be pale, typical medium tones, beige, slightly
flushed, or grayish . The lower lip may be unmelanized or mela
nized according to certain patterns.
Ears
The skin at the juncture of the pinnae and the head and also the
tragus may be melanized totally or partially black, in varying pat
terns. Pigment patterns of juveniles change gradually.
Dermal Pigment
The skin on the ventral or inside surfaces of the body and upper
limbs is sparsely haired so that the light-blue pigmented skin can
be seen. In many animals the "ventrum" is entirely and evenly
pigmented; in others, white depigmented areas occur. The con-

Techniques for Sexing and Aging Primates 1 13

figurations of these white patches are evident a few days after
birth and remain constant (allowing for allometric growth)
through life. These ventral patches therefore are extremely useful
for distinguishing infants and juveniles that may otherwise ap·
pear similar.
In addition to these traits and their variations, adult in
dividuals especially vary in the number, size, and distribution of
black, gray, brown , and red spots on the face. To some extent,
the time of their appearance and their size are age related (spots
become more numerous and larger with age), but the locations
remain ftxed for life. Adults are also frequently scarred.
RECORDING INDIVIDUAL IDENTIFICATIONS
Having recognized the nature and extent of morphological varia·

tion, one must decide how to record traits systematically in such a
way that identification data are easily and quickly recorded, up·
dated, and referred to under field conditions.
Contrary to what one might expect, photography is not the
most useful tool, chiefly because of difficulties in obtaining
close-up photographs of small subjects (e.g. , monkey heads) from
various angles or profiles. In addition , one must contend with
poor or varying lighting conditions in the forest, moving animals,
delays in film development time, and the sensitivity of film to out
door tropical conditions. Photography is thus reduced to a sup·
plemental method of recording.
The preferred procedure is to observe the animals with binocu
lars, to write descriptions of the animals (and prepare drawings)
while the observer is still in the field, and to record the descrip·
tions on identification cards. (See Appendix C and Figure S-6. )
Morphological traits that are not easily and quickly drawn are de·
scribed. Such traits include pelage, toque structure, ears, face
color, ventrum, and "other, " which may refer to crippling, scar·
ring, odd behavioral traits, and gait. Characters that do not lend
themselves to concise description are usually easiest to draw.
These relate to the size, color, configuration , and distribution of
spots or scars. In the toque macaque, such spots occur mainly on
the face. Therefore, left and right profiles and a frontal view of a
standardized macaque face are printed on one side of identifica·

1 14 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P OPULATI O N ECOLOGY
S t u m py
a. Troop: B Stumpy Dec. 1 5, 1 97 1

Adult male: middle-aged
Pel ege : mid·to-d.rk brown
Toque: round; slightly projects beyond sides of heed
and to brows, thus hiding the pretoque
Ftce color: normal betge; l i p pigment thick and even
Ears: both intact; tragus blade.
Tail is cut; distal quarter missing
Ventrum: l ight blue except for small white patches
in left and right groins
Notches
b. Troop: 8 Harris Dec. 1 5, 1 9 7 1

Ad u l t male: middle-aged
Pelage: mid-brown, tinted slightly orange
Toque: round overtoque strands project beyond sides
of head; pretoque small and V-shaped
Face ector: flesh color, l ip pigment slight dip
Ears: both cut; left tragus btack, right blotched
Ventrum: no white p8tches; all even light blue
FIGURE 5-6 Sample identification cards (3" X 5") for the adult males whose
photographs are seen in Figures 5-4 and 5-5. Red blotches are shown as circles,
which are larger than actual size. Dark freckles are shown as dots. The sketch ap
pears on one side of a card, the description on the other.


tion cards. Th e spots and scars a re drawn o n the faces at or near
easily recognizable reference points, such as nostrils, lips, and
comers of the eyes.
Facial spots and scars, especially small ones, are frequently
conveyed more clearly in a drawing than in a photograph . How
ever, photographs provide a better representation of a monkey's
overall appearance or gestalt. As the sum total of a monkey's ap
pearance is memorized, its gestalt becomes more important to an
experienced monkey observer, and progressively less reliance is
placed on key identification traits. Identification cards are never
theless indispensable as mnemonic props because in making
them an observer is required to learn to recognize individuals.
Reliance on photographs alone may lead to unjustified confi
dence in one's identification ability. A combination of identifica
tion cards and photographs may be desirable, especially at the
beginning of a study, as a check on one's accuracy in description .
Additional information that can be written on the cards in
cludes the date of the description or redescription , the
individual's social group, its identification code (name or num
ber), its sex, and date of birth or estimated age. For young ani
mals the mother's code may also be useful. The convenience of
identification cards lies in the ease with which they are prepared
and stored, and in their accessibility and reproducibility. The
major investment in time occurs early-in learning the most use
ful traits and how to consistently recognize and describe their
variations.
With modification of key traits the card system has been ap
plied to the study of gray langurs, Presbytis entellus , at Polon
naruwa. As in the toque macaque, individual differences register
best in the pelage color, configuration of the head hair, and in
pigment patterns of the exposed skin. Gray langurs have darkly
pigmented facial and body skin. Individual differences are mani
fested in small depigmented or "white" blotches of varying size
and configuration that occur especially in the groin and inner up
per thighs. In addition, the skin immediately above and lateral to
the ischial callosities may vary in extent, configuration, and
color. Wrinkles, scars, and overall facial gestalt help to distin
guish individuals despite their generally all-black faces.

116 TE C H N I Q U E S I N PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C O L O GY
Investigators working with other species or under less favorable

observation conditions have relied on diffe rent traits. A charac
teristic that has provided a ready means for distinguishing indi
vidual capuchins, Cebus capucinus , has been forehead qair pat
terns. The patterns described by Oppenheimer (1969) during his
study in Panama are illustrated in Figure 5-7.
In tall closed-canopy forests the observation of primates is
more limited, but investigators working in such habitats have
found there a range of natural markings for recognizing in
dividuals. In some cases it has not been possible to identify in
dividual markings for all ages, and investigators have used
marker individuals, location, and group affiliation to identify in-
ooe any ooe 1 /J J J /SA

sex m /f m/f m /f m /f m
J J ISA A A A
m f f
A A A A A
m
FIGURE S-7 Forehead patterns of Cebus capu·

cinus. The faces have been drawn to the same size
without regard to age or sex class to emphasize the
variability in hair patterns. Redrawn from Oppen·
heimer ( 1969). Symbols are: /, infant; J, juvenile; SA ,
subadult; A, adult; m, male; andj, female.


dividuals. The difficulties Struhsaker (1975) reported in identify
ing individual red colobus, Co/obus badius, in Uganda are typical
of those that have been faced by field workers in observing shy
canopy primates. He reported:
Among the red colobus, adult males were most easily distinguished as
individuals. This was partly because they habituated faster and conse
quently, one could observe them for longer periods and thus pick out
identifying marks. In addition, their appearance was more individualistic
than that of the females. Invariably, I could pick out individual males on
the basis of their facial and whisker characteristics. I did not need
"natural" deformities such as ear notches or tail kinks to identify the
males, because their faces all looked different. As an initial check on this
means of identification I also kept notes on "natural" deformities. The
most common natural mark was one or more stiff fingers. The digit
number, combined with a notation of left versus right hand, provided a
check against the identification based on facial appearance. Ear notches
and tail kinks were notably absent from adult males, although some had
tails that were 1 14 to 1 13 shorter than normal. In contrast, I found it
quite difficult to identify adult females. For them I had to rely on tail
k inks, whisker shape and extent of whisker development, and general
tone of pelage coloration . Stiff fingers were not seen among the females,
although some had pink tips on one or more digits.
IDENTIFYING INDIVIDUAL PRIMATES BY

ARTIFICIAL MARKING TECHNIQUES
CAPTURING LIVE PRIMATES
Usually it is expensive and time-consuming to capture live pri

mates. There is also a risk to the animal being captured. How
ever, there are many benefits to an ecological study when animals
are caught, so in each study the benefits, risks, and costs should
be carefully considered before a capture program is initiated
(Thorington , in press).
In using any technique for capturing primates, one should
keep in mind the possibility of using decoy animals. A captured
or tame primate will frequently attract others of the same species.
A decoy can be placed in a separate compartment of a trap or in a
cage where one wishes to dart or net animals. Since many pri
mates are likely to be abusive toward a strange animal in the ter-

1 18 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C OLOGY
ritory, it is important that a decoy be adequately protected. When

used in a trap, decoys should be double-caged so they cannot be
bitten.
Trapping
Trapping is the technique most commonly used for capturing pri
mates (Dawson , 1977; Neyman , 1977). Many kinds of live traps
are commercially available (e.g. , Tomahawk Live Trap Co. , Box
323, Tomahawk, Wisconsin 5448 7, usA), but in most tropical
countries they can probably be made less expensively than they
can be bought (Neyman , 1977). A cage with a guillotine door can
easily be fitted with a tripping mechanism that will cause the door
to fall when an animal takes the bait. Such traps are made and
used in most parts of the world.
When several suitable live traps-big enough and strong
enough-have been obtained, they should be placed where pri
mates are seen high in the trees or on the ground, as appropriate.
The trap should be "prebaited" with a suitable food. Prebaiting
involves propping up the door of the trap so that it cannot be
sprung, putting food in it, and thus using the trap as a feeding
station . The objective is to accustom the animals to feeding there
without concern. The advantage to the trapper is that he need not
check the traps regularly at a time when the animals are most
wary of them and least likely to be caught.
When the primates seem to be taking the bait the traps can be
set. It is then important to check the traps regularly. Don't leave
diurnal primates in the traps overnight or nocturnal primates
during the day, and prevent them from being stressed by heat (es
pecially in the sun), cold weather, or rain . You will probably
catch other kinds of animals, like birds and rodents, in your
traps. If released, many of these will not enter the traps again ,
but some may enter repeatedly and become expert at stealing the
bait. These will need to be dealt with in other ways.
If the primates are social it may be possible to use a large trap
to catch a whole troop or most members of one. Some persons
have used a trap triggered by a string from a blind, in which case
they could wait until several animals were in the trap before
springing it.

Techniquesfor Sexing and Aging Primates 1 19
Once the animals are in the trap the job is to get them out with
out traumatizing them or the investigator. It may be possible to
chase small primates out of the trap into a cloth or string bag, but
it is desirable to anesthetize larger primates before removing
them from the trap. For this it may be necessary to have a stick
with a syringe on the end, arranged so that the syringe injects the
anesthetic when the animal is poked. Use a short needle and poke
him in a nonvital area, like the muscles of the thigh or the back .
The safest anesthetic for nonhuman primates seems to be Keta
mine HCl (Domino, 1964; Martin , 1972). It is probable that 10
mg/kg is a safe dose or an underdose for all primates. For ner
vous animals it may be better to use a combination of Ketamine
and Ace Promazine. Add enough Ace Promazine to the Ketamine
bottle so that the animal will get 1 mg of Ace Promazine for every
9 mg of Ketamine.
Darting
Darting techniques are useful for capturing animals under many
circumstances when trapping is difficult or impossible, such as
trapping species that are trap-shy or spend most of their time
high in the trees (Scott et al. , 1976a; Thorington , in press). These
techniques are laborious, however, and there is more risk to the
animal. A variety of darts and projecting weapons are available.
Most commonly used are dartguns, blowguns, and crossbows.
Dartguns are usually pumpguns or are powered by C0 2 car
tridges. Generally, the C0 2 guns are preferable. A pumpgun
must be pumped up between shots, which is a noisy and time
consuming procedure. If one misses his first shot, he cannot
quickly and quietly take a second shot with a pumpgun.
To be accurate and effective a dartgun must fire straight ; there
must be an easy way to modify muzzle velocity so that one can
shoot at animals at different distances; the darts must have de
pendable trajectories and must not tumble in flight; and the darts
must not penetrate deeply but must discharge the anesthetic reli
ably. (Effective systems are sold by Pneu Dart, Inc . , 406 Bridge
Street, Williamsport, Pennsylvania 1 7701 , usA, and by Telinject,
Veterinirmedizinische Specialgerite GmbH, Hohenzollem
strasse 92, D-6700 Ludwigshaffen am Rhein , Federal Republic of

120 TECHNI QUES IN PRIMATE POPULATION E C O L O GY
Germany. Zoo veterinarians frequently have need of such equip

ment and may be able to advise you about its use . )
A blowgun i s as good as the person using it. With practice, a
person can become accurate and develop a good range. A blow
gun is much quieter than a C02 gun . It must have the attrib utes
named in the preceding paragraph . The critical factor is the dart,
which must be very light. Darts can be made from tuberculin sy
ringes with the plungers weighted so that they inject upon impact
(Brockelman and Kobayashi, 1971 ; Dewey and Rudnick, 1973).
Another kind of dart, which uses air pressure to inject the fluid,
and a blowgun are also available from Telinject in Germany.
A crossbow can combine the accuracy and range of a C02 gun
with the quietness of a blowgun. Most are a bit noisier than blow
guns, however, and they do not allow one to modify the "muzzle
velocity" easily when shooting at animals at different distances.
With an increase in distance, one must unstring the bow, give the
bowstring a few more twists, and restring it, but when darting
distances are fairly constant, this would not be a problem. (Cross
bows especially designed for capturing primates can be obtained
from Mr. Thad Martin, Route 5, Box 65, Huntsville, Arkansas
72740, usA. They shoot tuberculin syringes on the end of short
bolts. On impact, the momentum of the bolt pushes the plunger
of the syringe, causing it to inject the anesthetic. )
The drug is a crucial part of the darting system. It should have
a high ratio of lethal-to-effective dose. It must be concentrated
enough to ensure that an effective dose will fit into a small dart.
Semylan, a phencyclidine, is such a drug, but it may be difficult
to obtain . Ketamine is safer, but is is not so strong; two to four
times as much fluid needs to be injected from the dart. These
drugs do not work instantaneously, and the animal may flee the
immediate area after it has been darted. If adequately dosed,
however, the animal will stop in a minute or two. In many forest
situations, one must follow the animal closely during this time or
risk losing it.
When animals are darted in trees it is desirable to catch them,
lest they injure themselves in the fall. A large animal is more
likely to be injured in a fall than a small one-and the larger the
animal, the harder the task of catching it. Two persons holding
the comers of a blanket can catch a 10-kg monkey falling from a

Techniquesfor Sexing and Aging Primates 121

tall tree. If the forest floor is open so that persons can easily posi
tion themselves under the animal, a bigger "net" is desirable. If
the understory is dense and positioning is difficult, a smaller net
may be necessary. When the animal is being caught and while it
is being maintained in captivity, it is important to follow humane
practices.
Netting
Netting is one of many other techniques that has been used in
capturing primates. It has been used successfully in capturing
some of the smallest primates and some of the largest. Large ter
restrial primates, like gorillas and chimpanzees, have been
chased into lines of strong nets, where they have been physically
overcome. This would appear to be hazardous for both the apes
and the people involved.
At the small end, bird nets have been used to capture tarsiers
(Fogden, 1974). Presumably, mist nets of appropriate size could
be used to capture a variety of species of primates that regularly
leap from one tree to another. It is probable that mist nets would
be most effective for capturing small nocturnal primates, like tar
siers and bushbabies, but it is possible that they could be used ef
fectively for animals like talapoins, squirrel monkeys, and mar
mosets.
MARKING LIVE PRIMATES
In some studies it is desirable to have animals individually marked

so that they can be recognized from a distance or when they are
recaptured. A variety of systems has been used, no one of which
seems to be best in all circumstances (Thorington et al. , 1979).
Investigators frequently use redundant identifications as a pre
caution against the loss of one of them.
If the animals do not need to be identified individually at a dis
tance, they may be marked with ear notches, with ear tags, or
with tattoos. If the animals do need to be identified at a distance,
they may be marked by clipping and dyeing hair, using collars
and freeze branding.

122 TE C HNIQUE S I N PRIMATE POPULA n O N E C O L OGY
Ear Notches and Ear Tags
To make ear notches one needs only a pair of scissors . By notch

ing the pinnae of the two ears in different ways one can make a
variety of distinctly different patterns by which individuals can be
recognized . Under some circumstances these notches will be dis
tinguishable at a distance. The only problem with ear notches is
that animals sometimes notch their own ears or their neighbors'
in fights. Before deciding to use a system of ear notches, look at
some of your animals and determine if there are many that al
ready have notched ears from natural causes. H so, it is probably
not a good system for that species.
Ear tags are easily applied and are unambiguous marks. They
can frequently be seen at a distance, although the number itself
cannot be read . The only problem is that animals will occasion
ally puU them out. Some investigators have reduced this problem
by placing one ear tag in each ear on the theory that it would be
unlikely for an animal to lose both tags. Ear tags can be used for
individual recognition at a distance. The simplest system is to use
several tags on each animal. A smaU number of individuals can
be coded by the number of tags they have in each ear Another.
system is to paint the ear tags. An enamel paint will last some
times for several years, and while it does the individuals can be
recognized by their color codes (Thorington et al. , 1979). Simi
larly, a smaU bit of plastic surveyor's tape may be looped through
the tag, and the color of the tape may be used to distinguish in
dividuals. For a species that is hard to sex in the field, a useful
trick is to tag the right ear of one sex and the left ear of the other.
In this way one can quickly ascertain the sex of individuals at a
distance. (Monel self-piercing ear tags can be purchased from the
Gey Band and Tag Co. , P.O. Box 363, Norristown, Pennsylvania
19404, usA, or the National Band and Tag Co. , n1 York Street ,
Newport, Kentucky 41071 , USA.)
Tattoos
To tattoo an animal one must make smaU holes in the skin and
rub a permanent ink into the holes. This can be done crudely with


a needle and india ink. More desirably, one can obtain a tattoo
kit for small animals, consisting of a set of small numbers and let
ters, a pair of applicator pliers, and some tattoo ink . (A small
animal tattoo kit is available from Nasco, 901 Janesville Avenue,
Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin 53538, usA . ) The numbers or letters
desired are put in place in the applicator. One holds up a flap of
the animal's skin, squeezes the skin between the jaws of the ap
plicator, which makes the chosen pattern of perforations in the
skin, and then rubs the ink into the holes. It is best to tattoo a
relatively hairless place that is lightly pigmented. The skin under
the arm or in the axila is frequently good. In macaques the chest
or sternal area is often light in color and sporadically furred,
making it ideal for tattooing. If the skin is light in color one can
use a black tattoo ink . If it is dark one should use green or white ink .
Clipping and Dyeing Hair

For temporary marks that can be seen at a distance, one can sim
ply cut the animal's hair in unusual patterns. Bands of hair can
be shaved off the tail, for example, to provide a distinctive code,
or patches of hair can be removed from other areas. One can also
use hair dyes or bleaches. Nyanzol is a particularly good dye for
this purpose. (It is available from Nyanza, Inc . , 49 Blanchard
Street, Lawrence, Massachusetts 01842, usA . ) It is mixed with
equal parts of hydrogen peroxide and water and painted on the
animal to make dark patches in the hair (Fitzwater, 1 943). Such
dyes will last until the animal next molts its hair. It should not be
overlooked that such dyes can therefore be used to determine
when animals molt their hair ·in the wild.
Collars
For more permanent marking that can be distinguished at a dis
tance, coUars and freeze brands seem to be the most successful.
Leather coUars are suitable in some circumstances (Scott et a/. ,
1976a), but they should be held together with rivets rather than
with stitching if they are to survive for long periods of time. Col
lars can also be made of baD chain. They can be cut to size easily,

124 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATION E C O L O GY
and they may survive better than leather collars on animals that
have claws. BaD-chain collars made of nickel-coated brass will
not last as long as ball-chain collars of stainless steel. Use the
thickest gauge baU chain that see ms reasonable for the size of the
animal being studied if you wish to obtain a "maximum life
span" for the collar. Collars should not be too tight around the
neck, but they should not be so loose that an animal can get its
forearm caught in the collar. Both kinds of collars can be coded
for recognition of individuals. Round, numbered metal or plastic
disks can be hung from the collar; the numbers should be large
enough to be read with binoculars at a distance. Plastic disks can
be color-coded. The ball-chain collars can have colored beads on
them, arranged so that each animal has its own color pattern . If
four beads are used one can usually see two adjacent ones easily;
it is frequently difficult to see all four. Thus, it is best to use only
one or two colors, alternating the colors when there are two. The
animal can then be recognized whenever two adjacent beads are
seen.
Freeze Branding
Freeze branding is accomplished by freezing the skin for a short
period of time. This kills the melanocytes in the skin and causes
the hair to subsequently grow in white. By freezing selectively one
can give each animal a distinctive pattern of white patches
white bands on the tail, for example. When liquid nitrogen is
available one can do the freezing with a piece of metal that has
been cooled to the temperature of the liquid nitrogen. The metal
should be attached to a wooden handle. Do not try to hold one
end of the metal piece while freezing the other end. The metal
may be cooled in a bath of dry ice in alcohol if liquid nitrogen is
not available. Another way to freeze the skin is to use a spray of
Freon (Lazarus and Rowe, 1975), frequently available in radio
stores under the name of "Component Cooler. " Be careful to
spray only the desired area. It is usually best to use a mask over
the area being sprayed so that only a small part of the animal is
frozen. For thin-skinned, small primates, the skin freezes in
about 10 s; for big, thick-skinned monkeys, it takes about 30 s.
Freeze branding does not hurt at the time it is done, but it does

hurt later. In the interest of animal welfare, use as little skin as

possible in branding. Since freeze brands are not distinctive until
the new hair grows in , it is best to combine this technique with a
more temporary one, like cutting the hair distinctively or dyeing
it.
TOOTH CASTS AND AGING

Tooth casts provide a permanent record of the teeth of the ani
mals. They can be studied after the animals have been released,
and they can be studied in greater detail than is possible in the
live animal. From tooth casts one can estimate the ages of the ani
mals, obtain dental measurements, and study dental anomalies
and orthodontic problems. It is argued that asymmetries indicate
stress (Siegel and Doyle, 197Sa,b). Dental asymmetries can easily
be studied on tooth casts and could be used to study nutritional
stress during development. Discrete and metric variations of
teeth have strong genetic components. Thus, tooth casts can be
used to determine how closely related different troop s or popula
tions of animals are, and from them inferences can be made
about the amount of genetic exchange between troop s or popula
tions (Froehlich and Thorington , in press).
To make tooth casts one needs plastic to make dental trays of
the right size and shape, alginate for obtaining the molds, and
dental stone to make the casts. Since these supplies are used by
many dentists, they can be bought at any dental supply store or
directly from dentists.
The dental trays must be shaped to the dental arcades of the
animals being studied, but they must be slightly larger. The up
per tray can extend straight across the rear molars, but the lower
tray must be U-shaped so as to leave room for the tongue. If one
has access to skulls of the species, one can pad the teeth with wet
paper and then form the plastic over this before it hardens. Be
sure to make the tray deep enough for the canines. If you do not
have access to skulls, you will have to make your first casts with
out a permanent tray. Make temporary trays of cardboard, which
you can shape to the animal you catch . When you have a cast of
the teeth you can use it to make a permanent tray. If you are
catching animals of different ages, you will need trays of different

1 26 TE CHNIQUES IN PRIMATE POPULATI ON E C O LOGY
sizes. With heavy paper or cardboard you should be able to make

a tray for any dental arcade you encounter. The trays should have
holes in them so that the alginate will ooze through, thereby fix
ing the mold to the tray. The tray then serves to hold the flexible
aliginate rigidly in the shape in which it sets.
To make a mold of the teeth, mix the alginate with water; you
will probably fmd instructions on the container. Use a spatula for
mixing, then transfer the alginate to the dental tray. Put the tray
in the mouth of the animal, pressing the alginate finnly over the
teeth. Hold it in place until the alginate sets, then carefuUy pop it
loose from the teeth . Immediately examine the impression in the
alginate. Be sure that you have good impressions of aU the tooth
crowns. Air bubbles in the alginate can obscure important de
tails. If the animal's tongue is in the wrong place, a whole tooth
row can be concealed. If the animal's teeth were not clean, you
may have a beautiful impression of a leaf or of a piece of fruit,
rather than what you are seeking. If you have a good impression,
set the mold aside wrapped in damp paper or cloth until you have
time to make the cast. If the mold dries, aU is lost. It is better to
keep it in water than to risk having it dry out.
The cast is made from the dental stone. Mix the powdered
stone with water until it is a paste in consistency; foUow the in
structions on the box. Then carefuUy fdl up the mold with it. You
will fm d it easier to avoid air bubbles if you farst immerse the
mold in water, puU it out, and shake off the excess water before
fdling it with the dental stone. The dental stone will displace or
mix with the water deep in the cusps, whereas it will not mix with
air bubbles that get trapped in the cusps in the mold. Be sure to
build up a good thickness of dental stone above the teeth, for this
will be the base of the cast when you tum it out. If the base of the
cast is weak, the cast will be easily broken. Let the dental stone
set and dry, but you will have an easier time removing it from the
mold if you do not aUow the mold to dry. When the stone has set
fairly hard, you can immerse the cast and the mold in water for
an hour or two before removing the cast from the mold. If you
separate them under water, you may be able to pour a second cast
in the same mold. With practice you will be able to puU a cast
from a mold without damaging either, even though there may be
long canines to worry about. Have some glue available so that you


can glue any broken canines back onto the cast right away. Be
sure to number your cast as soon as possible , either by scratching
the number into the base as the dental stone hardens, or by writ
ing with india ink on the cast as soon as it hardens. Note the ani
mal number and the date so that you will not confuse the cast
with any you may make later of the same animal, if you recapture
it.
New dental materials for tooth casts are becoming available.
Molding compounds like silicone rubber provide a more detailed
mold than does alginate. In fact, the detail provided by some is
good enough for studies with the scanning electron microscope .
These materials have the disadvantage of not mixing with water
the way alginate does. Therefore, the teeth must be dry when the
impression is obtained or the detail is lost. They have the advan
tage that the mold is permanent and will not dry out and lose its
shape as alginate does. Therefore, one does not need to make the
casts as quickly from the silicone mold as one must from the algi
nate mold. The casts may be made from dental stone with algi
nate molds, or for more detail the casts can be made with an
epoxy plastic.
Because most dentists know and use these procedures, it is
generally easy to get a demonstration of tooth-casting techniques.
It is also relatively easy to obtain the necessary supplies in tropical
countries as well as in Europe and North America. You will need
the following materials or substitutes for them: plastic for dental
trays (e.g. , "Coe" tray plastic), alginate for the molds, dental
stone for the casts, "flexibowls" for mixing alginate and dental
stone, spatulas, a toothbrush , glue, and small plastic bags for
keeping the molds damp before casting. (For epoxy casts one can
obtain the molding material Xantopran from Unitek Corpora
tion, 2724 South Peck Road, Monrovia, California 91016, usA . )
A recommended epoxy for the casts i s Ciba-Geigy Araldite Epoxy
6005 with hardener #956. It is desirable to store the molds in zip
lock plastic bags. For cleaning and drying the animal's teeth it is
useful to have a small portable water-pick and canned Freon or
dust-free air. In making the casts it is useful to have a vibrator to
remove the bubbles from the epoxy.

Habitat
Use
Mammals do not make uniform use of their habitats. They tend

to be very selective of their times of activity and their spatial use
of habitat. This selectivity is a very important aspect of their
ecology, and thus it continues to be studied frequently. Little
more than a watch , pencil, and notebook is needed. The basic
paper on sampling methods is by Altmann ( 1 974). Additional
comments are given in Clutton-Brock ( 1 977, Appendix 1).
TIME BUDGETS
Two techniques are commonly used in primate field studies. In

one, called the focal animal technique, the investigator focuses on
a single animal for extended periods. He records the activity of
that animal for a period of time, then switches to another animal
and records its activities for another period. The second tech
nique is to scan the troop of primates at set intervals and record
what each visible animal is doing at that time. This is the scan
technique. In using either technique it is convenient to decide be-
1 28

Habitat Use 129

forehand on the categories of activity to be recorded: feeding,
climbing, resting, sleeping, and so on. These categories can be as
detailed as desired and should reflect the full range of activities
being studied.
When using the focal animal technique one should consider
carefully beforehand how to analyze and present the data. In
some studies, frequency is most useful (the number of figs con
sumed by a monkey or the number of interactions between ani
mals). Continuous recording may be essential to obtain data on
the duration of events-how long animals feed in fig trees or how
much time during the day they spend foraging for insects. A sam
pling system can be used readily. For example, one can record
every 2 min the major activities of the animal in the previous 2
min, tabulate the number of 2-min periods each hour in which
different activities occurred, and use these data as estimates of
frequency or of time spent in these activities, whichever is appro
priate.
When using the scan technique one can make instantaneous
observations (what each animal is doing the moment you look at
it) or timed observations (look at each animal for 5 or 10 s, then
record what it was doing). When scanning it is important to look
at as many animals in a troop as possible and to be alert for bi
ases. It is always likely that some activities will be recorded infre
quently, only because it is more difficult to see the animals then.
There may also be bias attributable to the shyness of certain indi
viduals (e.g. , females with newborn young).
Among social animals it is generally the case that males, fe
males, and juveniles use their time differently, so it is desirable
that the data be collected separately for each class of animal. In
scanning this also enables one to determine if one class of animals
is harder to see than another and hence is being underrepresented
in the samples. When using the focal animal technique, ran
domize the choice of the animal and be sure not to watch just ani
mals that are most easily observed. One should also check for
other biases to make sure that adult males are not observed only
on sunny days and females on rainy days or juveniles only when
the troop is feeding on flowers. The shorter the study the greater
the likelihood that some biases like these will occur, even though
the selection of animals is randomized.

130 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C OLOGY
In many cases, primates' shyness makes it impossible to study

them routinely. One can still use a scan technique, but the scan
takes place when animals are first encountered, before they de
tect the observer. If one records the time, where they are, and
what they are doing each time they are encountered, it is possible
to gradually build up a good profile of their activities. However, if
the encounter occurs at the same place or at the same time of day,
the data will present a biased view of their total pattern of activ
ity. Thus, it is desirable to establish a series of transects, along
established roads, trails, or waterways where necessary, and in
other areas where possible. Off-trail transects can be followed
easily, even at night, if they are laid out with a white string. One
can proceed along these transects at different times of day or
night collecting data whenever one encounters primates. If the
transects are arranged in a grid, data will show spatial as well as
temporal use of the habitat.
USE OF SPACE
DAILY RANGING
How animals use space within their habitat can be studied in

several ways. It is useful to know how far animals travel daily and
over how large an area they range. This is best done by following
the animals regularly, directly measuring the length of their
path-either with a measuring tape or by pacing off the
distance-and by plotting their movements on a map ( Richard,
1979). The home range is the area the animals cover in all their
activities. The longer one watches animals, the larger their home
range proves to be, but after a certain number of hours of obser
vation one usually knows most of the home range. There may be
seasonal variation or changes in the home range, so it is fre
quently informative to compute the number of hectares used by
the animals each month and to compare the areas used in dif
ferent seasons.
The use of the home range is uneven. Frequently a core area is
used much more often than are peripheral parts of the home
range. This may be studied by dividing the home range into
quadrats and recording how long the animals spend in each

Habitat Use 131
quadrat. For large primates the quadrats can probably be 1 ha

(i.e. , 100 m on a side). For small monkeys and prosimians it may
be desirable to use smaller quadrats, perhaps 1 /4 ha in size (Rud
ran , 1978). Even shy monkeys can be studied this way. Rather
than recording the length of time they spend in each quadrat, one
can record the number of times they are encountered in each
quadrat (Rodman, 1978). With enough data of either type one
can calculate the percentage of time the animals spend in each
quadrat of their home range. These data can be compared with
the types of resources found in each quadrat. Seasonal changes
can also be documented.
HEIGHT AND SUBSTRATE
Another aspect of habitat use in a forest is the height above the

ground at which the animals are found (Rodman , 1978; Suss
man, 1972). This can be estimated with a rangefinder, with the
viewfinder of a camera, or by eye. In any case one should regu
larly check his estimates against known heights. Heights may be
classified according to a system appropriate for the habitat. For
example, in high forest the classes might be 0-5 m, 5-10 m,
10-20 m, 20-30 m, and more than 30 m. In analyzing the height
data it is useful to categorize the heights of the different parts of
the forest. In some areas the tallest trees may be only 20 m in
height, whereas in other areas the first branches may be higher
than 20 m. This information should be included with the analyses
of the heights at which the monkeys feed, rest, sleep, or travel. It
is also important to test whether the presence of the observer af
fects the height of the animals. Check to see if the animals are at
the same height when ftrst encountered and 5 min later.
More refmed studies of habitat use are becoming common . For
example, it is of interest in some studies to record the sizes of the
branches on which the primates move and feed (Fleagle, 1978) or
the angles that they make to the horizontal (Rose, 1978). One
makes these estimates from the ground, and with practice one
can become quite accurate. Again , measurements are in classes.
Angles are expressed in a range of degrees (e.g. , 0-30° , 30-60° ,
60-90°). Diameters are expressed in centimeters (e.g. , 0-1 em for
twigs, 1-3 em for small branches, 3-10 em for large branches,

132 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C O LOGY
10-20 em, and so on). The size estimates can be facilitated by

comparing the size of the branch with the size of the fingers, feet ,
and body of the primate being observed.
FEEDING ECOLOGY
The foods of primates can be studied in several ways. The most

obvious way is to watch what they are feeding on . This is highly
effective for fruit and leaf eaters if the observer knows the plants
as well as the animals do. If he does not, the observer can still
label the plant and return to it later to obtain samples for identifi
cation. Identifying insects that a monkey is popping into its
mouth is more difficult, but it is sometimes possible to identify in
sects by the sounds they make (as in the case of cicadas), or to see
fragments of insects that are dropped when insects that are being
picked up are too small to be identified. It is undesirable to kill
wild primates, but if dead animals are available, one can examine
the stomach contents (Charles-Dominique , 1972; Fooden, 1965).
These can be studied fresh or they can be fixed in 10% formalin
or 70% alcohol. The stomach contents can be sorted, and frag
ments of leaves, fruits, seeds, and insects can be identified. It is
sometimes possible to sort and weigh the components of the diet.
Stomach contents can also be obtained from a captured anesthe
tized animal by inserting a tube down its throat into its stomach .
Water is injected down the tube into the stomach , then sucked
out again (G. G. Montgomery, personal communication). The
sample can then be strained from the water. Be sure that the tube
goes down the esophagus into the stomach and not down the tra
chea into the lungs. With the outer end of the tube held to one's
ear, one can hear or feel the animal's breath if the other end of
the tube is in the trachea. Be careful, because the animal will die
very quickly if water is injected into the trachea or lungs.
An astute naturalist can learn a great deal about the foods of
animals just by examining the signs they leave behind. These in
clude partially eaten flowers, fruits, and leaves. Feces can be col
lected and examined for plant and insect fragments, seeds, and
other evidence of foods eaten. They can also be examined for par
asites and parasite eggs, which may be clues to insect feeding.
The feces can be preserved in formalin or alcohol, but it should

Habitat Use 133

be noted that many parasitologists do not like formalin preserva
tion of worms.
Feeding studies have gradually become more detailed. It is
commonly expected now that the investigator wiD record the spe
cies, the parts of a plant or animal that are eaten, and the phyto
phase or stage of each food item (Glander, 1978). Are the fruits
ripe or green? Is it just the base of the flower that is being de
voured? Is it just the abdomen of the beetle that is favored? Are
only smaU caterpillars eaten? These are some of the detailed
questions that may be asked in feeding studies. Frequently, a
much longer list of plant parts is discriminated, including those
phenophases listed in Chapter 3 and such items as petioles, bark,
tubers, and resin .
Finally, the amount of each food item consumed can be esti
mated in various ways, the preferred way depending largely on
the nature of observation conditions. Direct or indirect sampling
measures are used, depending on whether visual contact can be
maintained with individuals throughout the observation period.
Ideally one might wish to know how much of each type of food an
animal consumes throughout a day. This requires estimation of
the number of items consumed and their weights. To estimate the
number of items consumed, an animal is followed and the type
and number of food items brought into the mouth are recorded
for each minute of observation . The schedule followed depends
on the amount and type of information required. Loss of informa
tion is minimized if one identified animal is followed from dawn
to dusk and different individuals are followed on consecutive days
for several days each month. In this way it is possible to accumu
late a series of feeding-day profiles and a record of seasonal varia
tion in the amounts of each food item consumed.
Occasionally, continuous observation of a feeding animal is not
possible , as when its back is turned to the observer or when it is
hidden in the foliage. However, the amount of food consumed
can be extrapolated if one knows the type of food being con
sumed, the time the animal spends in feeding, and the rate at
which the food is ingested.
The size of food items taken must be known in order to esti
mate the weight of comparable samples. For most food items
(e.g. , fruits, flowers, petioles) that are brought into the mouth

134 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C O L O GY
singly, the size is self-evident. When several food items, such as a

bunch of leaves, are brought to the mouth with a handpicking
motion, the number of leaves per bunch is estimated. Similarly,
the size of "bites" from large food items may require estimation .
To obtain accurate weights, food items should be collected in
the field and placed into plastic bags to reduce the evaporation of
moisture. Multiplication of the average weight of single or "bite
sized" food items by the number consumed yields the weight of
each food item consumed per observation period. Once collected,
food items may be analyzed for moisture content or nutritional
content. The former involves simply drying the items slowly in an
oven. The difference between the "wet" and "dry" weights yields
the weight of water in the food items. Nutritional analyses require
elaborate laboratory procedures that will not be considered here.
Hladik (1977) described methods for collecting and preparing
food items in the field for nutritional analyses.
The food intake in terms of both quantity and quality may ulti
mately be correlated with the energy demands of foraging move
ments and energy needs for reproduction. Attempts to calculate
energy expended and food intake on a seasonal basis have been
undertaken with Alouatta , Ateles, and Papio (Altmann , 1974;
Coehlo et a/. , 1979).
The relationship between food selection and plant defense
mechanisms involving secondary compounds is an active area of
current research . Some authors are relating food preferences by
species and season to the avoidance of toxic secondary com
pounds such as tannins, saponins, and alkaloids. The problems
encountered by folivorous primates in feeding on potentially toxic
compounds in leaves are shared by other arboreal mammals in
cluding marsupials and edentates (see McKey et al. , 1978; Mont
gomery, 1978).

7
Primate
Population
Analysis
Population analysis is a technique for describing quantitatively

the (1) size and structure of a population in terms of the numbers
of animals of different age and sex and (2) changes in population
size and structure due to births, deaths, emigration, and aging.
Estimates or measures of such numerical attributes of a popu
lation are referred to as vital statistics. They include the birth
rate, death rate, population growth rate, and others. Vital statis
tics describe the dynamics of a population, or its demography.
The vital statistics of a population are a function of the genetic
makeup of a species and of environmental influences. Therefore,
they are useful for making comparisons of species, or of popula
tions of the same species in different environments, or of the same
population at different times. Knowledge of the vital statistics of
a species, especially as they change under different environmental
conditions, is fundamental to understanding its strategy for liv
ing. Apart from the value of such data for theoretical considera
tions concerning the evolution of behavioral-ecological phenom
ena, knowledge of a population's demographic behavior is essen-
135

136 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATION E C O LOGY

tial in the applied fields of wildlife management and conserva
tion.
DATA REQUIREMENTS
The raw data required for population analysis are animals, in suf
ficient numbers, of each age and sex. In studies of many species,
especially game animals, "kill records" or trapping records have
been used as raw data. For primates, such data are rare . Instead,
free-living animals are usually censused by an observer who clas
sifies them according to established aging or sexing criteria.
The data in population analysis must meet two requirements
that are often difficult to fulfill. First, the data must represent a
true sample of the population from which it was drawn. The sec
ond requirement is that the census data must be accurately classi
fied by age and sex. Errors in estimates of vital statistics that can
arise from faulty age classification are discussed in Chapter 5.
Changes in a population can be monitored by making an an
nual census of animals of all ages by sex and by making a series of
annual censuses to find newborn infants.
BIRTHS AND FECUNDITY

The purpose of censusing for births is to obtain information on
the distribution of births in time, the sex ratio at birth , and the
rates of birth and fecundity.
BIRTH SEASONS
Theoretically, births can be distributed in time according to

either of two models. In a birth pulse model, all births in the pop
ulation for the entire year occur on the same day and on the same
date every year. In a birth flow model, births occur at the same
rate every day throughout the year. No population fits either
model exactly, but any population will resemble one more than
the other. Modem human populations closely fit the birth flow
model, whereas most animal populations reproduce seasonally

Primate Population Analysis 137

and come closer to the birth pulse model, which is illustrated
later in this chapter. The determination of the mean or median
birth day and the standard deviation of the birthdates should re
place the imprecise descriptions of birth seasons based on the
overall spread and peak periods of births, because these statistics
allow more accurate division of the population into age classes.
Caughley (1977) suggests that populations whose season of birth
has a standard deviation of less than 30 days can be described by
the birth pulse model.
To defme the season of births one must sample a population
for the presence of newborn infants during a period of at least
1 yr. Mortality among newborn infants can be high. Therefore, to
reduce the error of not counting infants that were born and died
in the interval between successive censuses, one should make the
census interval as short as possible. Since pregnant females are
conspicuous in some primates, the censusing effort can be fo
cused on specific individuals until all adult females in a troop
have recently given birth or can be seen nursing infants.
In a birth census it is important to detect all births and esti
mate birthdates as accurately as possible. This will depend on the
interval between censuses and the accuracy of age estimates based
on infant morphology. When a birthdate is uncertain it should be
estimated within absolute confidence limits, that is, a range of
dates between which the birth is certain to have occurred.
The frequency of births throughout a year or study period is
tabulated by dividing the year or study period into equal periods.
The period should not be less than either the interval between
birth censuses, or the birthdate with the largest confidence limits
as defmed above. This prevents the tabulation from appearing to
be more precise than it actually is. For most primates a period of
14 or 28 days is a convenient interval for analysis. If the birth
season is brief and if the census data are very accurate, 7-day
periods may be more appropriate.
The method of analysis as outlined by Caughley (1977, pp.
72-74) is given in Table 7- 1 and is illustrated with data from 150
births that occurred in the population of toque monkeys, Macaca
sinica , at Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka, between 1968 and 1972 (W.
P. J. Dittus, unpublished). The same data are plotted as a histo
gram in Figure 7-1 .

138 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE POPULATION E C O L O GY

TABLE 7-1 Estimating Averages and Standard
Deviations of Birth Season in a Population of Toque
Monkeys at Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka
Period Period No.

Limits Code Births
Date (days) X f fx fx 2
June 25-July 22 0-28 I 0 0 0

July 23-Aug I9 29-.56 2 2 4 8
Aug 20-Sep I6 57-34 3 6 I8 54
Sep 1 7-0ct IS SS--1 13 4 6 24 96
Oct I6-Nov I2 1 14-I4I 5 4 20 IOO
Nov IJ-Dec IO I42- I69 6 8 48 288
Dec 1 1 -Jan 7 I 70- I97 7 25 I 75 I , 225
Jan S-Feb 4 I98-225 8 55 440 3,520
Feb S-Mar 4 226-253 9 20 IBO I , 620
Mar S-Apr I 254-28I IO I3 IJO I ,JOO
Apr 2-Apr 29 282-309 11 9 99 I,089
Apr 30-May 27 3I0-337 I2 2 24 0.288
May 2S-Jun 24 JJS-365 I3 0 0 0
Totals ISO I , I62 9 ,588
Soruce: W. P. J. Dittus, unpublished data, I96S- I972.
The mean date of birth and its standard deviation are first cal
culated in tenns of the period codes and then converted to their
real values in days or dates.
E jx 1 , 162 .
Mean date ' Mn = -- = -- = 7. 75 penods '
Ej 1 50
where
f = the number of births during a period, and x = the
period code
= 7. 75 periods X 28 days per period
= 217 days after midpoint of period 1 (June 25-July 22)
= July 8 + 217 days
= February 10.
Grouping the data into intervals of constant width (each equ al

to one unit in coded form) results in a slight overestimate of the


variance. This is corrected by using Sheppard's correction for
grouping (Snedecor and Cochran , 1967)-that is, by subtracting
1 112.
E jx 2
- ( E j ) 2/E j
x..,_ ____,'--- 1/1
Variance, s2 = --"----'-.::..;..._ -
Ej - 1 2
9,588 - ( 1 , 162) 2/150

= ---'-------''--'---'---
- 1/1 2
149
= 3.85 periods
Most birth seasons are skewed in the positive direction-that

is, the frequency of births rises steeply to a peak and then de
scends in a long tail to the right. In such asymetrical distributions
Md
I
60
Mn
50
40
..
.<:
�
:.;
�
0 30
�
.,
.0
e
::> 20
z
10
P e r i o d code I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 II 12 13
D o te Jly Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jon F e b Mar Apr M oy Jun Jly
FIGURE 7 · 1 Distribution of births in toque monkeys a t Polonnaruwa, S ri

Lanka, fro m 1968 t o 19n. The mean birthdate (Mn), the median birthdate (Md),
and the standard deviation are shown on the bar above the histogram. Source:
W. P. J. Dittus, unpublished data.

140 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POP ULATIO N E C O LOGY

the median date of birth is a better indicator of the average birth
day of all infants.
The median birthdate is the day when half the infants have
been born-in this case, the day when 150/ 2 = 75 infants have
been born. The median birthdate is located in two steps. First,
the median birth period is found by cumulatively summing the
frequencies of births ( f) until the median birth is located. In this
example the median birth number, 75, falls within the median
birth period from January 8 to February 4.
Second, the median birthdate is calculated as follows (after
Snedecor and Cochran , 1967):
Standard deviation, s = -v'Variance = -J3. 85 = 1 .96 periods
= 1 . 96 periods X 28 days per period
= 55 days
Standard error, s!.Jf:J = 55 days/-JISO = 4.5 days
. g(C)
Medtan, Md = L + -1-,
where
L = lower limit (in days) of the period in which the median
lies
= 198 days
g = serial number of the median birth minus the cumula
tive frequency of births up to the upper limit of the
period preceding the median period
= 75 - 51 = 24
C = period interval = 28 days
f = frequency of births in the period containing the
median = 55.
Thus,
Md = 198 + 24 (28) /55 = 210 days from the start of period 1
= June 25 + 210 days
= January 2 1 .


The mode of a birth season may be of interest in comparisons
of birth periods or for comparisons with some environmental
event. The modal period is the period with the highest frequency
of births. In this example it is January 8 to February 4. An ap
proximate mode is calculated as follows (after Stanley, 1963):
ja (C) '
Mode = L +
fa + fb
where
L = lower limit of modal period = 198 days
fa = frequency of births in the period following the modal =
20 births
ih = frequency of births in the period preceding the model =
25 births
c = period interval = 28 days.
Thus,
mode = 198 + 20(28) / 20 + 25 = 210 days
= 210 days from start of period 1 on June 25
= January 21 .
By chance the major mode = median in this sample from the

toque monkey.
Another method for obtaining birth season statistics involves
probit analysis. This method is especially useful when regular
census work is not possible, because it requires no constant sam
ple size or regular interval between samplings, nor does the be
ginning or end of the birth season have to be sampled. It is an in
direct method that relies on estimating the birth distribution
from the cumulative proportion of births that have occurred up to
each day of observation. This method is most accurate, however,
when births are normally distributed and when there are no in
fant deaths during the sampling period or birth season. The latter
constraint may be negligible when birth seasons are brief, but it is
limiting when the birth season exends over several months during
which infant mortality may be high . See Caughley ( 1977) or
Caughley and Caughley ( 1974) for an outline of the method.

142 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P OPULATI O N E C O L O GY
TESTING SEX RATIO AT BIRTH WITH THE BINOMIAL TEST
Owing to differential mortality by sex among young infants, a

census taken several months following the birth season may pro
duce an estimate different from the true sex ratio at birth . It is
desirable, therefore , to census as close to the birthdate as possi
ble.
Most primate and other vertebrate populations have an equal
sex ratio at birth . The significance of a digression from a 1 : 1 ratio
can be tested by using a binomial test. The toque monkeys at
Polonnaruwa were sampled, and 208 females and 21 1 males were
counted among 419 animals. The equation for the binomial test is
(x + 0.5) - NP
z =
"'NPQ
where
x = the smaller number of observed births (208)
N = the total number of observed births (419)
P = the proportion of births expected in one category or sex
Q = 1 - P = the proportion of births expected in the other
sex.
Since, according to our null-hypothesis the expected proportion

of births of one sex is one-half P = Q = 0.5 and
(208 + 0.5) - (419)(0.5) 208.5 - 209.5 -1

z = = = ---
"'(419)(0.5)(0.5) "'104.75 10.23
z = - 0. 1 .
The probability assoc iated with the value of z is obtained from a

table of probabilities for z as is found in most statistics texts, for
example Sokal and Rohlf (1969) or Siegel (1956). In the above ex
ample, p = 0.4602 for a one-tailed test and 0. 9204 for a two-tailed
test. That is, the probability that a digression from a 1 : 1 sex ratio
as large as the one observed in this example could have arisen by
chance alone is 0. 9204. For samples over 25, a significant (p �


0.05) deviation from a 1 : 1 sex ratio is obtained whenever z �
1 . 96. For sample sizes less than 25, a different binomial formula
and table of probabilities are applied as outlined in the texts op. cit.
BIRTHRATES AND FECUNDITY
Natality, or birthrate, is the number of infants produced in 1 yr

by a population. It can be expressed on the basis of the popula
tion as a whole (the crude birthrate), or on a subset of the popula
tion-for example, birthrate per adult female. The term "fecun
dity" is generally used to convey differences in natality between
females of different ages. In analysis it is often convenient to con
sider the female segment of the population only, or at least sepa
rately from the male segment. Hence the statistic symbolized by
"mx " is defined as age-specific fecundity and refers to the average
number offemale infants (m ) born to females of the age class "x. "
The raw data required for calculating birthrates are: ( 1 ) num
bers of infants born per year and (2) the total number of animals
in that part of the population (total, segment, or female age class)
for which the birthrate is expressed. Since the birthrate in pri
mates is conveniently measured per annum, the observation pe
riod should span at least 1 yr. Adult females are generally easy to
recognize and count in a census, and birthrate is most reliably ex
pressed per adult female. As in collecting other birth data, fre
quent censusing reduces the likelihood of missing infants that
died shortly after birth .
The choice of the three methods for estimating birthrate and
fecundity rate described below depends on the duration of the ob
servation period and on the degree of refinement in the raw data.
Method 1 is an estimate based on known births in 1 yr. If the
observation period spans only 1 yr and females are individually
identified, the birthrate is estimated as follows:
Birthrate, b = I, IF, ,
where /1 = total number of infants born in 1 yr and F, = total

number of females observed throughout 1 yr. If females are clas
sified according to different age classes (x) , then the birthrate can
be expressed specific to an age class (h x ):

144 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POP ULATI O N E C O L O GY
Age-specific birthrate, hx = lx lFx ,
where lx = number of infants born to females of age class x and

Fx = total number of females of age class x. Given a sex ratio at
birth of 1 : 1 , the age-specific fecundity is one-half of the birthrate,
or:
Age-specific fecundity, mx = lxi2Fx ·
Similar data from several years of observation can be treated in

the same way for each year, and the results can be averaged over
all years.
Method 2 is an estimate based on interbirth intervals. The in
terbirth interval in most of the larger primates exceeds 1 yr.
Three conditions must be met to use the interbirth interval for
calculating the birthrate. First, the observation period must be
more than the interbirth interval, probably at least 2 yr for most
primates. Second, the females must be individually identified so
that a given female's second birth is correctly linked to her first
for calculating the interbirth interval. Third, the dates of suc
cessive births must be known fairly accurately because the size of
the error in estimating the interval will be the sum of the errors in
estimates of both birth dates.
Under these conditions, the birthrate, b = 1/t, where t = in
terbirth interval.
Assuming that the interval (tx> for females of age class x is
known, then mx = 1 12tx·
Method 3 is an estimate based on female-years of observation.
In most field studies the size of the census sample increases with
observation time, and the quality of the data generally improves
with experience. Therefore data may vary in information content
between years. Assume, for example, that the first two conditions
outlined under Method 2 are fulfilled and that several identified
females are known to have had infants but the birthdates are too
vaguely known to accurately estimate interbirth intervals. The es
timation of mx from such data is given in Table 7-2 for middle
aged adult female toque monkeys.
Within each age class, x , the number of years of observation
differed between females. The data can be expressed, however, in

TABLE 7-2 Estimating the Mean Fecundity for Middle-Aged

( 15-19 yr) Adult Female Toque Monkeys at Polonnaruwa on the
Basis of Female-Years of Observation
Name of No. Infants No. Years Mean

Adult Born to Female was Fecundity
Female Female Observed m iS-19
Cres 4 4
Fut 1 3
Su 3 3
Nar 2 2
Zip 1 2
Halo 2 2
Total 13 16 13
2( 16) = 0.406
Source: W. P. J. Dittus, unpublished data.
female-years. For example, 3 female-years represent 3 years of

observation of one female.
As illustrated in Table 7-2, the age-specific fecundity is calcu
lated from mx = 112 the total number of infants that born to all
females in age class x, divided by the sum of the female-years for
all females in age class x .
The event of first birth may be used as a criterion for defining
the age of primiparous females. To avoid circularity in analysis,
one should base estimates of mx for young adult females on at
least 2 yr of observation after the first birth , or on the interbirth
interval (Method 2).
The fecundity pattern of a population is generally displayed in
Table 7-3, which is a fecundity table that lists the mean fecundity
of females of each age class.
ESTIMATING RATES OF POPULATION GROWTH
PER-CAPITA RATE OF INCREASE
A simple measure of population growth is given by the per-capita

rate or finite rate of increase, A.

1 46 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C O LO GY
Nt + t
A= '
N,
where N, = numbers in a population at time, t . For example, if

population size at time zero were 450, N0 = 450, and 1 yr later
there are 622 individuals, N1 = 622, then A = 622/450 = 1 .38.
This value of lambda indicates that the population has grown at
the rate of 1 .38 per individual per year. When A is greater than 1 ,
the population h as increased in the period t to t + 1 ; when A is
less than 1 , the population size has decreased; and when A = 1 ,
the population size h as remained constant.
OBSERVED EXPONENTIAL RATE OF INCREASE
Another measure of population growth is the observed exponen

tial rate of increase, r. It is related to A by A = e ' , where e = base
of natural (Naperian) logs = 2. 7183. Thus, loge A = loge e ' = r.
From the example above, e ' = A = 1 .38; therefore, r = loge
1 .38 = 0.32.
The expression of r in a population is N1 = N0e n . From this we
see that if r = 0, then N, = N0 , or the population is stable in size.
Increasing populations have a positive r ( + r ) , whereas decreas
ing ones have a negative r ( - r ) .
TABLE 7-3 Estimating Mean Age-specific Birthrates (b x) and

Fecundity Rates (mx) of Females in the Population of Toque
Monkeys at Polonnaruwa Between 1968 an d 19724
Mean Mean
Estimated Age Birthrate Fecundity
Age Class (years) hx mx
Infant and juvenile 0-4 0.000 0.000

Young adult 5-9 0.704 0.352
Young to middle·aged adult 10- 1 4 0. 724 0.362
Middle-aged adult 15-19 0.813 0.406
Old adult 20-24 0.885 0.442
Senile adult 25-29 0.286 0. 1 43
Source: Dittus, 1975.


The observed exponential rate of increase is sometimes useful
in calculations involving vital statistics and is often referred to in
abbreviated form as the rate of population increase or the growth
rate. It is generally used in place of A. It is not the same as the in
nate or intrinsic rate of population increases, r m• which is com
monly quoted in ecology textbooks. The latter is primarily a theo
retical construct that is measurable only, if at all, under specified
or experimentally controlled conditions. The observed r calcu
lated from A cannot be used as an estimate of rm ·
ESTIMATING VITAL STATISTICS FROM A STABLE

STANDING AGE DISTRIBUTION
CONSTRUCTION OF AGE-STRUCTURE TABLES
A standing age distribution is the number of animals of different

age and sex observed at any one point in time. It is stable when
the proportions of individuals at different ages remain constant
through time. Age distributions are usually tabulated separately
for each sex in age-structure tables, as illustrated in Table 7-4. In
this table, most ages are grouped into classes and are tabulated
according to the birth pulse model discussed under "Birth
Seasons. "
The importance of the censusing methods described earlier can
now be understood in terms of the assumptions underlying the
construction of an age-structure table, the accuracy of which de
pends on the adequacy of the sample of the population , the com
pleteness and accuracy of the age and sex class identifications,
and the accuracy of the estimate of the birth season. Sampling
primate populations is relatively easy (compared with sampling
herds of ungulates, for example) because most primates live in
closed social groups of manageable sizes. A population sample is
a set of these mutually exclusive troop s. For estimating vital sta
tistics, data on the age and sex structure of all troops must be
combined in order to obtain a sample size sufficiently large for
valid analysis.
Since the aim is to count all members of a population, care
should be taken to identify all animals in each troop and to in
clude any all-male groups and peripheral males in this tabula-

148 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE POP ULATI O N E C O L O G Y

TABLE 7-4 Age Structure for the Population of Toque
Monkeys at Polonnaruwa in 1971
Estimated Age No. No.

Age Class (years) Females Males
Infant h- < 1 21 30
Young juvenile 1 18 23
Old juvenile 2-4 36 60
Subadult S-6 0 23
Young adult male 7-9 0 12
Young adult female S-9 29 0
Young to middle-aged 1 0-14 26 16
Middle-aged 15-19 24 13
Old 20-24 20 6
Senile 25-29 11 1
Total 185 184
Source: After Dittus, 1975.
tion. The chances of noting peripheral males that may be tem

porarily absent from a troop are increased by visiting the same
troop on different days during the count period. The com
pleteness of counts within any troop can be enhanced by concen
trating on one age and sex class at a time and by distinguishing
between individuals even if this can only be done temporarily dur
ing a visit to the troop .
The timing of a count in relation to the birth season determines
whether the ages of most individuals will be close to multiples of
whole years or will have an added large fraction of a year. Since
analysis by the birth pulse model has fewer constraints (because
of the greater accuracy in assigning ages), it is advantageous to
census close to the median or mean birth day of the population.
These considerations assume, of course, that the average birth
day of the population is the same every year and that the standard
deviation from the average birth day is low. Individual troops
may differ consistently in their average birth day from that of the
population as a whole. The variance in birth days usually is less
within a troop than for the entire population (W. P. J. Dittus, un
published). If such information is available, the time of censusing
a troop might be adjusted to coincide with its average birth day.


CONSTRUCTION OF A LIFE TABLE BASED ON THE
BIRTH PULSE MODEL
A life table delineates the survivorship schedule of a population .

The population is treated in an abstract fashion as though all ani
mals in it were born simultaneously and their numbers were pro
gressively depleted by mortality as they grow older. Such a group
is called a cohort. Usually males and females are considered sepa
rate cohorts. The size of the cohort at its inception is 100o/o and is
equal to the total number of births in the sample. One visualizes
following the history of this cohort throughout life and recording
the numbers still living at each birth day. These records would be
equivalent to an age-structure table (but see limitations on p.
158), and the numbers alive at each age are the basis for calculat
ing other statistics.
Vital statistics are most conveniently expressed as probabili
ties. The usual statistics given in a life table are as follows:
lx = survivorship (or survival), or the probability at birth of

surviving to the exact age x.
dx = mortality, or the probability of dying during the age in
terval x to x + 1 .
q x = rate of mortality, or the proportion of animals alive at
age x that will die before age x + 1 .
Px = rate of survival, or the proportion of animals alive at age
x that will survive to age x + 1 .
It is important to note that given any one statistic the others can
be calculated; each statistic merely displays the same data in a
different format. The statistics are related to one another as
follows:
Occasionally, life-table data are expressed on a per- 1 ,000 or

per- 100 basis, the assumption being that the cohort started to-

-
g;
TABLE 7-5 Life Table for Female Toque Monkeys
Average Average Annual

No. per Average Mortality Average Annual
Annum Annual Total Between Age Mortality Rate
Age No. No. Ages - fx Survivorship Mortality Class x Between Age Class
Class Observed per Age fx = -
ax !_o Age Class x per Age and x + 1 x and x + 1
(years) x fx Class a x lx Class dx dx qx
0 38 1 38 1 .000 0.526 0.526 0.526

1 18 1 18 0.474 0. 158 0. 158 0.333
2-4 36 3 12 0.316 0. 163 0.0543 0. 1 72
5-9 29 5 5.8 0. 153 0.016 0.0032 0.021
10-14 26 5 5.2 0. 137 0.01 1 0.0022 0.016
15-19 24 5 4.8 0. 126 0.02 1 0.0042 0.033
20-24 20 5 4.0 0. 105 0.047 0.0094 0.090
25-29 11 5 2.2 0.058 0.058 0.01 16 0.200
> 29 0 0> 0 0 0 0 0
Edx = 1 .0


gether as 1 , 000 (or 100) animals and their numbers decreased
through time. Instead of recording probabilities of survivorship ,
the life table would portray numbers still alive, or dead with in
creasing age. Converting the probabilities to such whole numbers
involves simple multiplication-for example, 1 ,000 lx , or 100 lx ,
and so on. In this chapter all life-table statistics are expressed as
probabilities · because these are easier to work with in analysis.
The raw data for construction of a life table can be either the
number dead per age class (death-based) or the number alive per
age class (life-based). Most primate census data lend themselves
best to life-based analysis, when the assumptions described under
"Estimating Vital Statistics from Individual Life-History Rec
ords" are met (p. 163).
Transformation of raw data from an age-structure table to its
hypothetical life-table equivalent requires two manipulations.
First, unless the population's birth season conforms exactly to the
theoretical birth pulse model and the census was taken on the day
of all births for the population for that year, the number of in
fants born in that year or during the year preceding the census
will be underestimated. This can be corrected for, however, by
eliminating from the raw data the number of infants less than 1 yr
old and substituting an estimate of the number that were born in
the season preceding the census. This is calculated as the product
of the number of adult females in the census and their average
birthrate. In the example from the population of toque monkeys
(Table 7-4), the number of adult females in the population was
1 10 and their average birthrate over 4 yr was 0.688 infants/adult
female/year. The estimated number of infants born at the theo
retical pulse prior to the census is 1 10 X 0.688 = 76 infants. The
sex ratio at birth is 1 : 1 ; therefore, there are 38 infants of each sex
(Table 7-5).
Life-table data are given in Table 7-5 for female toque mon
keys. The number of females observed for each age class < !x > is
taken directly from the age-structure table (Table 7-5), except
that the estimated number of female births ( /0) is substituted for
the number of female infants recorded at the time of the census.
The second manipulation requires the transformation of the
observed frequencies of females, fx , to survivorship , lx , on a per
total-number-born basis: lx = fx lfo ·

152 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C O LOGY
For example , for age class x = 1, in Table 7-5: 11 = 18/38 =

0.474. H lx values have been computed for each year of age, x =
1 , x = 2, x = 3, and so on, the statistics d", q", and Px can be de
rived directly for each year by using the formulas indicated above.
The statistics are then tabulated for each year of life in a format
similar to that in Table 7-5 to give a life table.
ESTIMATING VITAL STATISTICS FROM AVERAGED AGE CLASS

FREQUENCIES
Theoretically, one would wish to have the observed frequencies of

females, fx, for each year of life. This requires that the ages of all
animals in the census be estimated to the nearest year. Unfor
tunately, in most primate censuses such accuracy is elusive . Data
are generally presented according to age classes whose limits are
estimated with confidence. In Table 7-5, fx is tabulated per age
class , x, and an average lx is computed to express fx on a per
annum basis within each age class . These averages represent fx at
an age midway between the birth pulse limits or age limits of an
age class. The procedure is equivalent to smoothing fx between
years. Thus,
where a" = number of birth pulses of ages (in years) encom

passed by age class x. For example, from Table 7-5,
h-4 - 36 - 12 .
f-2-4 -
-
a 2-4 3
The values of lx are then transformed to the average number of

survivors in each age class in the usual manner:
f= lx .
" fo


For example, for the age class encompassing x = 2, 3, 4,
- 12
/2-4 = = 0.316.
38
To fmd dx one first calculates d per age class or dx
where y is the age class next older to age class x; then, the annual
average number of animals dying per age class x is
For the macaque data, for example,
d2-4 = l;-4 - /5-9 = 0.316 - 0. 153 = 0. 163
and
d2-4 0.163
d2-4 -
- - -
- - 0 . 0543 .
-
a 2-4 3
Note that the sum of all deaths E;'= o dx or E (dxH ax > is 1 .000 , the
size of the cohort at birth . The standard notation E;'= o represents
the limits of the summation-in this case, the sum of values for x
from 0 to infinity or the sum of all age classes . Following conven
tion, the limits of the summation will not be shown when all age
classes are summed.
Age-specific mortality, qx, also is expressed as an average per
annum for each age class:
dx
qx = y an d P-x = 1 . ()()() - qx .
- -
JC

154 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P OPULATI O N E C O L OGY
From Table 7-5, for example ,
and
ih-4 = 1 .000 - 'ii 2-4 = 1 .000 - 0. 172 = 0.828.
To express fx, dx , 'iix • or Px on the basis of the age class as a

whole, one multiplies each statistic by the appropriate ax. Using
very old females (25-29 yr old) from Table 7-5 as an example, we
fmd:
= 0.200 X 5 = 1 . 000 .
That is, all females of the age class x = 25-29 will, on the
average, die before their 30th birthdays.
When ax = 1 , as for x = 0 and x = 1 in Table 7-5, then fx =
lx , dx = dx, and so on.
Another statistic that is often displayed in life tables is ex =
mean expectation of life remaining for individuals at the start of
an age x.
The statistic ex = (Lx+n + Lx+ 2 + Lx+ l + Lx) llx , where
. . .
Lx = average survivorship during the age interval x to x + 1 :
fx + fx+ l •
LX =
2
From Table 7-5, for example, L0 = 10 + 1 1 12 = 1 .000 + 0.553/2

= 0. 777. The sum of L is obtained by starting with the oldest age
class and adding from the bottom of the life table until the speci
fied age class is reached, in this example-L25 • Because x varies
between the limits from the specified age class to infinity rather
than from 0 to infinity, the limits are shown as E;"=x Ly . The data
shown in Table 7-6 are given to exemplify estimation of ex for a


portion of the life table only. Thus, for 25-yr-old female toque
monkeys
0.029 + 0.058 + 0.058 + 0.058

+ 0.058
= ----------------------��
0.058
and
e zs -
l; _b._ o.261 _
- 4.5 yr.
y = ZS lzs
_
- 0.058
The average life expectancy for females in the senile age class is
4.5 + 3.5 + 2.5 + 1 .5 + 0.5

=
5
12.5
= -- = 2.5 yr.
5
Or, a female of the age class x = 25 29 will , on the average, live

-
another 2.5 yr.

The average life expectancies of individuals of different age
classes are given in Table 7-7 for female toque monkeys. The life
expectancy at birth , e0, is the average life expectancy of the entire
cohort; for the female toque monkey, e0 = 4.8 yr. It is so low
because of high mortality among infants and juveniles.
GRAPHIC REPRESENTATION OF LIFE TABLES
Vital statistics can be displayed graphically in a plot of age on the

abscissa and the selected statistic on the ordinate. The most use-

156 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATIO N E C OLOGY
TABLE 7-6 Estimating the Life Expectancy, ex , for a Portion

of a Life Table for Female Toque Monkeys
Age x lx Lx ELx ex
0-22 not tabulated

23 0. 105 0. 105 0.448 4.3
24 0. 105 0.0815 0.343 3.3
25 0.058 0.058 0.261 4.5
26 0.058 0.058 0. 203 3.5
27 0.058 0.058 0. 145 2.5
28 0.058 0.058 0.087 1 .5
29 0.058 0.029 0.029 0.5
30 0.000
Source: Adapted from Dittus, 1975.
ful schedules are survivorship (/") and age-specific mortality rate

(qx> · The advantage of such graphs is that mortality rate and sur
vivorship schedules can be easily assessed at a glance. Figures 7-2
and 7-3 show survivorship and mortality rate curves for male and
female toque monkeys.
The survivorship curves appear in a stepwise fashion because
statistics were computed as averages that apply to all ages within
TABLE 7-7 Average Life Expectancies for Female

Toque Monkeys of Different Age Classes
Average Life
Expectancy
Age Class (years) ex
0 4.8
I 8.6
2-4 10.7
5-9 16.6
10-14 13.0
15-19 9.3
20-24 5.2
25-29 2.5
Source: Adapted from Dittus, 1975.


1.0 0 0
.8 0 0
Fem ale
I
I
.6 0 0 Mole
I
)( \
\
. �--
0. I
I
,
s::.
I
... .400 I
0 I
>
I
...
> l�
::;) I
(f) I
.200 I
I
0 10 20 30
Age (years)
FIGURE 7-2 Survival curves for male and female toque monkeys at Polon-
naruwa from 1968 to 1 972. After Dittus, 1975.
any one age class. Theoretically, one would expect the transitions
from one age to the next to be smoother than they appear here.
Other graphic representations include age pyramids for each
sex, or histograms made by plotting lx and dx against age (see
Eberhardt, 1968, for examples).
LIFE TABLES BASED ON THE BIRTH FLOW MODEL
The life-table calculations above assumed a birth pulse model. In

a birth flow situation, the census data are divided into intervals of
age x to x + 1 starting with age class 0.5-1 .5. The cohort is
assumed to begin at age 0.5 yr. To estimate the size of the cohort
at age 0.5, one must know the mortality in the interval 0-0.5 yr.
Given the cohort strength at birth , 10 (as calculated from fecun
dity), mortality in the interval 0-0.5 can be estimated if the num
ber of infants 6 mo old is known.

158 T E C H N IQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATION E C OLOGY
1.0 0 0
.8 0 0
)(
Female
r::T
-
� .6 0 0 Mole
....
0
-
>-
.400
-
0
...
0 1\
::E I \
I \
.200
I \
I \
\
'
""'
-- ---
0
0 10 20 30
Age !years)
FIGURE 7-3 Age-specific mortality rate curves for male and female toque
monkeys. After Dittus, 1975.
LIMITATIONS OF AGE DISTRIBUTION DATA FOR CALCULATING

VITAL STATISTICS
The Effect of Age Distribution on Life- Table Estimates

The frequency distribution of ages in a population sample at the
time of the census is known as a "standing age distribution" and
is usually shown in an age-structure table . In estimating life-table
statistics from such data, one assumes that the standing age dis
tribution is equivalent to a "temporal age distribution" of a
cohort. The latter is an abstract distribution of the number of
survivors remaining each year from a group of animals that
started life together and thereafter faced the same risks of death
at each age, although these risks changed with successive years or
ages.
In a real population , however, natality differences between
years by themselves may influence the numbers recruited from 1


year (or age) to another. Also, at any point in time the ages of all
animals in the population are not equal as is assumed in the
imagined cohort model. Thus if the environment changes to the
extent of altering the risks of death from one calendar year to
another, not all animals in a real population would face the same
risks of death in passing through a particular age.
The assumptions of a cohort model hold true only if the popu
lation sampled is a "stationary" one so that over many years the
schedules of fecundity and survivorship have been constant and
the exponential rate of population increase (r) has been zero. This
can be shown as follows.
The standing age distribution , S..,, can be expressed as the
number of animals in an age class relative to the number of new
born (Caughley, 1977). It is estimated from a census sample as
S.., = j..,lfo· It is related to survivorship 1.., by S.., = l..,e -"', where
r = rate of population increase. It is clear from this relationship
that unless r = 0, the standing age distribution will differ from 1..,.
Therefore, S.., can be used to estimate 1.., only in populations where
r is and has been zero for some time. Or, intuitively, if r is con
stantly changing, the numbers recruited or dying at different ages
are changing and are thereby altering the age distribution from
year to year.
In a "stable age distribution" the survivorship and fecundity
schedules have also been constant for some time so that the pro
portions of one age or age class to another are constant. Under
these conditions r will also converge toward a constant value, but
not necessarily r = 0. However, if the value of r is known and can
be shown to have been constant for a long time then , from the re
lationship of r to S.., and 1..,, 1.., may be computed given S..,.
Estimation of life-table statistics from a standing age distribu
tion is therefore restricted to only those populations whose mor
tality and fecundity schedules have been constant for two or three
generations and whose rate of population increase (r) is known
and has been constant for a long time.
Assessing Population Stability

Stable populations have stable age distributions. They are "sta
tionary" when r = 0. But stable populations need not be sta-

1 60 TE CHNIQUE S I N PRIMATE POPULATIO N E C O L O G Y
tionacy; they can have any r. Given any r, however, a population

requires two or three generations to converge toward stability.
Hence a good deal of information is needed about the history of a
population before S" can be used to estimate /". Any information
indicative of the state of population growth (r) might be useful for
rejecting or accepting S" as a basis for estimating vital statistics.
Population growth rate (r) may be assessed directly or indi
rectly. A direct assessment requires that r be estimated at intervals
over a period of two or three generations. Short-term estimates,
as over a few years of a field study, are by themselves inadequate
to predict whether long-term stability will occur.
Indirect assessments of population growth rate (r) deal with
gauging the stability of the environment, which influences popu
lation growth. In a stable environment the seasonal changes are
of the same kind and magnitude every year. Most primates are
K-selected, and their numbers are attuned to the carrying capac
ity of their environments (see Chapter 8). A population inhabiting
an environment that has been stable over a long period probably
has an average annual r = 0 and a fairly stable and stationary age
distribution.
The following conditions are indicative of long-term en
vironmental stability:
• Forest and other vegetation types that are climax and undis
turbed.
• Constant climatic regime. A climatic regime in which tem
perature and amount and seasonal distribution of rainfall follow

the same pattern over many years would tend to induce predict
able phenological and productivity patterns in the forest. Most
primate populations are attuned to the predictable seasonal flux
in resources.
• A balanced flora and fauna relative to environment type.
Unstable environments would tend to alter r so that popula

tions inhabiting such areas probably do not have a stable age dis
tribution. Unless an environmental change is of the same kind
and magnitude over a long period of time, it is unlikely that any
value of r � 0 would be constant for a long period. Conditions


that are indicative of unstable environments or populations are as
follows:
• Forests that have been disturbed recently, either through na
tural events, such as fire, cyclones, or changes in soil salinity, or

through felling by people.
• Change in cultivation practices. The balance of populations
in an area where they are partly or wholly dependent on agricul

ture would be changed by a change in long-established cultivation
practices in the area, such as the introduction of a new crop or of
the use of pesticides.
• Unnatural disease. For example, the introduction of yellow
fever to South America resulted in a marked decline of howler

monkey populations (Collias and Southwick , 1952).
• Hunting or trapping by man .
• Highly irregular climatic regimes.
• The introduction of human settlements.
• An impoverished flora and fauna relative to environmental
conditions.
Data from several sources may assist in a final judgment about

stability. For example , the population of toque monkeys at
Polonnaruwa was judged to have had a fairly stable history based
on forest ecology, a very constant long-term climatic regime, and
short-term population stability.
Errors Due to Inaccurate Age Estimates

Probably the greatest source of error in estimating vital statistics
is faulty age estimation . Since estimates of mortality are a func
tion of (lx - lx+ t >• the ability to distinguish individuals aged x
from those aged x + 1 is obviously crucial in determining the
numbers in each age class. Indirect age estimates are often based
on body-size differences (see Chapter 5).
The relationship between body size, age, and numbers of ani
mals is shown in Figure 7-4. In this figure, A and B are physical
growth curves for two cohorts having equal birthrates, sex ratios
at birth , and survivorship schedules. The cumulative number of
living individuals by age groups is the same for both cohorts. The

162 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O LO G Y
B
1000
•
0
E
A
·c
1000 0
0
�b
•
H �
·;; _ _ _
•
fa .0
0
,,.. 500 E
"
c:
Ill 500 •
.�
0
"
E
"
<.>
0 0
AQt - X
FIGURE 7-4 The relationship between growth in body size, age. and cumulative
survivorship in two imaginary cohorts. The imaginary cohorts, A and B. have
equal survivorship and sex ratios at birth , but they have different growth rates,
with B growing faster than A (see text).
curves serve to illustrate the type of error that can arise in popula
tion analyses from faulty age estimation.
An error that might occur is estimating the ages of slow
growing animals (A) on the basis of the size of fast-growing ones
(B). Assign ing an age xb to an A animal of size b would
underestimate the true age, x0, of A , and would overestimate the
number of A animals, fa , relative to their assigned age, xb , and
relative to the number of B animals, fh, of the same age, xb. In
analysis, such an error would underestimate the mortality of A
animals relative to their true ages and relative to B animals of the
same age.
In primate studies this error may arise if the size-to-age rela
tionships of fast-growing captive animals fed on nutritious diets
are used to estimate the ages of equally sized but slower-growing
wild animals. Similarly, male infants and juveniles often grow
faster than their female age mates. Using the size-to-age relation
ship of one sex to estimate the ages of the other, or an average
growth curve to estimate the ages of either, would tend to overes
timate the mortality of the faster-growing males relative to their
slower-growing female age mates.


When one does not have empirically derived growth curves for
both sexes in a census population, it is advisable to use the same
growth-age relationship to estimate the ages of both sexes, keep
ing in mind that if growth differences by sex occurred, the mor
tality of the faster-growing sex would tend to be underestimated
among infants and juveniles.
In conclusion, the use of standing age distributions to estimate
life-table functions should be approached with caution and
should be used only when it is possible to approximate the condi
tions of stable age distribution, long-term zero population growth
rate or known r, and accurate aging in the census.
Two alternative methods can be used to estimate vital statistics
when no assumptions are required concerning the stability of the
age distributions or the rate of population increase at any time.
(The methods are given in the next two sections. ) The first
method involves identifying a large number of individuals and
t rac ing their fates from birth . The second involves identifying
only a set of troops and comparing their standing age distribu
tions at yearly intervals.
ESTIMATING VITAL STATISTICS FROM INDIVIDUAL

LIFE-HISTORY RECORDS
To estimate vital statistics from individual life-history records one
must have, as raw data, ( 1 ) numbers of individuals that died in
t he age interval x to x + 1 or (2) numbers of individuals alive at
age x .
Th e method used in obtaining both kinds of data is similar and
requires that all individuals in the population be identified so that
their fates can be traced and their birth days determined. From
records of the age at death of individuals the number of deaths,
j;, in each age interval x to x + 1 is obtained. From records of
numbers living at census time, t, the number surviving, ft. at age
x is obtained. The accuracy of both age estimates will depend on
the census interval. If an estimate to the nearest interval of 1 yr (x
to x + 1) is sought, then each individual should be censused at
least on every birth day. In practice, of course, any one census
will sample many individuals whose birth days vary. Therefore

164 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O PULATI O N E C O L O G Y
several censuses are needed, especially during the birth seasons.

In populations whose average birth days have a large variance, or
whose birth schedule approximates the birth flow model, a
regular census schedule at intervals of 1 -3 mo is desirable.
When the original data are j; = number of deaths in each age
interval x to x + 1 , the following calculations are used to derive
vital statistics (after Caughley, 1977, p. 91):
x- 1
lx = 1 .000 - E dx
0
When the original data are in the form of fx = number of sur

vivors at age x, the following calculations apply (same source):
and qx and px are estimated in the same fashion as above.

The use of individual life-history records provides the most ac
curate estimates of life-table statistics; their main disadvantage is
the large investment of time and effort needed for their applica
tion.
ESTIMATING VITAL STATISTICS FROM STANDING

AGE DISTRIBUTIONS SAMPLED AT YEARLY
INTERVALS
When a standing age distribution is obtained from the same pop

ulation two or more times at intervals of 1 yr, any two successive
samples may be used to calculate life-table statistics.
The number of survivors, fx, at the time of the first sample is


compared with the number still living, fx+ 1 , 1 yr later in age class
x + 1 . The differencefx - fx+ 1 is the number that died in the in
terval x to x + 1, or in the year between census dates. The follow
ing calculations are used to determine q x for each age interval
(from Caughley, 1977):
fx(at time 0) - fx+ l (at time 1 )

qx =
fx(at time 0)
This method has the following constraints:
• The same proportion of the population must be taken at any
two samplings. In primate populations this condition is readily

fulfilled by sampling the same set of troops each time. Hence, in
dividual troops making up the sample must be identified. Sam
pling the same number of troops making up the sample does not
meet the stated condition because troop s vary in size and compo
sition.
• Any two successive samples should be taken at the same time
of year, preferably during the birth season , so that in a birth

pulse population the ages of animals will be distributed near their
birth days.
• Since most births are unlikely to occur on the day of sam
pling (t = 0), the estimate for the number of births, j0, might be
based on a series of birth censuses.
• The accuracy of estimates of fx will reflect the accuracy of ag
ing individuals.
DERIVING VITAL STATISTICS FROM FECUNDITY

AND SURVIVORSHIP SCHEDULES
The rate at which individuals replace themselves depends on how
well they survive and reproduce. Several important measures
based on the relationship between fecundity and survivorship are
considered below.
ESTIMATING NET REPRODUCTION RATE
The net reproductive rate, R0, is the rate of population increase

per generation . It is a special case of ;>.. , where the time interval t

166 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O L O GY
to t + 1 over which the population increase is measured is equal

to one generation.
R0 can also be defined as the average number of female off
spring produced by a female during her entire lifetime (Wilson
and Bossert, 1971). Thus defined, it is easy to visualize how R 0
would depend on the survivorship and fecundity of females. R0 is
calculated from fecundity and survivorship schedules as follows:
Ro = Elx mx .
In Table 7-8 the toque monkey data are used to illustrate the
estimation of R0• Since lx and m x are expressed as averages a:
and mx ) per annum within each age class, and we are interested
in the sum of lx m x for each year of life, the fx and m x must be
multiplied by the number of ages, ax • in each age class. For
grouped data, Ro = Elx m x = 'Elx m xax -
When R0 = 1 . the population is stationary per generation ;
when R0 is less than 1 , it is decreasing; and when R0 is greater
than 1 , the population is increasing. If lx is calculated with the
assumption that lx = Sx and r = 0 (as in Table 7-9), then R 0
must = 1 . Therefore, R 0 can b e estimated from lx m x only if the lx
schedule was calculated by methods not assuming r = 0.
TABLE 7-8 Calculation of Net Reproductive Rate, R0 , from

Fecundity and Survivorship Schedules of Female Toque Monkeys
Age Class Age or Years per

(years) Age Class ax lx - .
m x lx m x = 0x fxm x
0 1 .000 0.000 0.000

1 0.474 0.000 0.000
2-4 3 0.316 0.000 0.000
5-9 5 0. 153 0.352 0. 269
10-14 5 0. 137 0.362 0.248
15-19 5 0. 126 0.406 0.256
20-24 5 0. 105 0.442 0.232
25-29 5 0.058 0. 143 0.041
R 0 = 'E lxm x = 1 .046
*The values of iiix (Table 7-3) are based on small sample sizes. If the average
fecundity (mx = 0.344) for all females is based on a large sample size and is used
to estimate R0, then R0 = 0.9959.
Source: W. P. J. Dittus, unpublished data.

ESTIMATING ME AN GENERATION LENGTH
The mean generation length , T, can be defined as the mean

period elapsing between the birth of a mother and the birth of her
offspring (Laughlin, 1965). This has also been called the mean
cohort generation length .
In mammals such as primates, where a female gives birth to
many offspring over a long period, the mean generation length
might be more easily understood as the mean interval between the
birth of a mother and the birth of a daughter that survives to re
produce herself. Stated in this way, it expresses the average age
that a female must attain in order to replace herself once in the
population. Of course, if the population is increasing, the mother
will replace herself by more than a single daughter.
The formulas used for calculating mean generation length , T,
for populations with overlapping generations (after Caughley,
1977) are as follows. For a birth pulse population ,
Elxe -"'my;X
T=
Elxe -"'mx
And for a birth flow population ,
T = LXe -r<x + ll2>mX, X + 1 (x + '12) t
where mx.x+ t is the fecundity between age x and age x + 1 .

In a birth pulse population where ages are expressed in classes,
T = ESx mxxax , where x = average age of age class x and
ax = number of birth pulses of ages in years encompassed by age
class x and Sx = fxlfo ·
ESTIMATING EXPONENTIAL RATE OF POPULATION INCREASE
The exponential rate of increase, r, may be estimated from r =

1� R01 T. This estimate of r may be used only if in the derivation
of lx , which is used to compute R0 and T, it was not assumed that
r = 0.

168 TECHNIQUE S I N PRIMATE P O PULATIO N E C O L O G Y
TABLE 7-9 Estimation of Reproductive Values, vx , for Female

Toque Monkeys at Polonnaruwa (1968-1972) when r = 0
00 1 1 00
-
E /m - vx = - E 11my
Age 1% mx lxm x = lin,;ix y =x y y lx lx y =x
0 1 .000 0.000 0.000 1 .046 1 .000 1 . 0

1 0.474 0.000 0.000 1 .046 2. 1 10 2.2
2-4 0.316 0.000 0.000 1 . 046 3 . 1 65 3.3
5-9 0. 153 0.352 0.269 1 . 046 6.546 6.8
10-14 0. 137 0.362 0.248 0. 777 7.299 5.7
15-19 0. 126 0.406 0.256 0.529 7.937 4.2
20-24 0. 105 0.442 0.232 0.273 9.524 2.6
25-29 0.058 0. 143 0.041 0.041 17.24 1 0. 7
r;/xm x = 1 .046
ESTIMATING REPRODUCTIVE VALUE
The reproductive value, Vx, is an estimate of the number of female

offspring that remain to be born to a female of age x. It is a
unitary measure expressing how survivorship and fecundity in
teract to determine how many offspring a female is likely to pro
duce before dying. Young adult females that are just beginning to
reproduce have a long life expectancy and will produce more off
spring before dying than will older females. Similarly, juvenile
females and very old females with zero or low fecundity have low
reproductive values. The "exact" vx will of course be determined
by how survivorship and fecundity interact.
Following Wilson and Bossert ( 1971 ), vx is calculated for each
age x as
where y = all the ages that a female has yet to pass through from
age x to infinity (death) .
Assume, as i n the example from the toque monkey i n Table
7-9, that r = 0. Then, the formula for the calculation of vx simpli
fies to

To find E;"=x lx my for any age x, we fu:st assign the sum of the lx m x
schedule to age 0. Thereafter, for each age (or age class) I;""=x
ly my is computed by subtracting lx m x of the preceding age from
the E;"=x ly my of the preceding age. For example, from Table 7-9
I;'=x ly my of age class x = 10-14:
""
E ly my = 1 .046 - 0 . 269 = 0. 777.
y =x
The average vx per age class is the product of the reciprocal of fx

and E;"=x ly my appropriate to each age class. For female toque
monkeys of age class x = 10-14, for example,
vl0-14 = :
O. J7
X 0. 777 = 5.7.
The values of vx are plotted against age in Figure 7-5. At birth ,

v0 = 1 ; the average female replaces herself once per generation in
this population for which we have assumed r = 0.
For a more detailed discussion of the estimation of reproduc
tive values, see Wilson and Bossert ( 1971).
Reproductive value is preeminently of genetic and evolutionary
interest because it indexes the force of selection acting on behav
ioral and other traits that differ by age.
DISPERSAL
The process of dispersal whereby animals leave their natal group

to live and reproduce elsewhere is of interest for two reasons.
First, the disappearance of an individual through dispersal must
be distinguished from its death if estimates of mortality are to be
correct. Second, the rates at which individuals of different age
and sex disperse are of interest in themselves from the point of
view of genetic interchange between populations.
From the perspective of the biologist studying a population ,
movements of individuals can be considered at two levels: intra-

1 70 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C OLOGY
10
,.
>
Q)
;::1
0
>
Q)
>
.... 5
()
;::1
"0
0
...
�
Q)
a:
0 10 20 30
Age ( y e a r s )
FIGURE 7-5 The reproductive values, v..,, of female toque monkeys at different
ages. After Dittu s, 1979.
population and interpopulation movements. Primatologists have

referred to the fonner as intergroup transfer of individuals. The
distinction between intra- and interpopulation movements is
merely one of sampling convenience; biologically they are similar,
except perhaps for the difference in the distances moved and the
genetic implications this may have. For interpreting demographic
events within the sample population, it is important to know rates
of movement into and out of the population. For example, if a
high proportion of males leaves the study population every year,
and they are not replaced by an influx of an equal number of
males, the mortality of males in the population might be overesti
mated.
Intrapopulation movements have little influence on the demo
graphic sample and therefore have little bearing on estimates of
life-table statistics. However, knowledge of such movements is
important for correctly assessing interpopulation movements.


The best estimates of intra- and interpopulation movements
are based on individual life-history records. With respect to any
one social group or population, there are two kinds of move
ments: emigration and immigration. For analysis, a distinction
between the following types is useful:
Type 1 : In intrapopulation emigrations, an individual is known

to have left one social group and has joined another within the
sample population .
Type 2: Intrapopulation immigrations are the same as intra
population emigrations.
Type 3: In interpopulation emigrations, an individual is
known to have left a group within the sample population and has
joined a group outside the sample population .
Type 4: In interpopulation immigrations, a new individual
not previously seen in the population appears in a census.
Type 5: Disappearances occur when a previously censused
individual is no longer sighted and its fate is unknown.
Note that in these considerations the membership of the sam

ple population is defined by the sum of the memberships of all the
social groups in the population . With these distinctions in mind,
estimates might be made of rates of transfer between social
groups within a population and of those between populations.
ESTIMATING RATES OF TRANSFER BETWEEN SOCIAL GROUPS
The raw data for estimating rates of intergroup transfer are ( 1 )

number of individuals whose life histories are being traced, (2)
duration for which their histories are being traced, and (3) the
number of transfers each individual has made during the period
of observation . Since there is a category of "unknown fates"
(Type 5), the exact rates of movements cannot be estimated, but a
minimum and maximum can be estimated.
To find rates, the minimum and maximum numbers are found
ftrst:
Minimum number of emigrations = total of Type 1 plus Type 3.

Maximum number of emigrations = total of Types 1, 3, and 5.

t:j
TABLE 7- 10 Estimation of Minimum and Maximum Rates of Emigration for Toque Monkeys
of Different Age and Sex at Polonnaruwa Between 1968 and 1972
Average Interval
per Capita
Between
No. Rate of Emigrations
No. Monkey- Emigrations Emigration (years)
Years of
Age-Sex Class Observation Min . Max. Min . Max. Max. Min .
Adult males 58.73 10 14 0. 1 70 0.238 5.9 4.2

Adolescent males 24. 19 7 12 0.289 0.500 3.5 2.0
Adult females 131 .80 0 1 0 0.008 0 131.8
Infants and juveniles
of either sex > 100.0 0 0 0 0 0 0


Minimum number of immigrations = total of Type 2 plus
Type 4.
Maximum number of immigrations = same as the minimum.
To calculate rates, one finds the total number of monkey-years

of observations per individual, or for a class of individuals. Esti
mates of emigration are given in Table 7-10 for different age and
sex classes of toque monkeys at Polonnaruwa. Rates are found by
dividing the number of immigrations or emigrations by the num
ber of monkey-years observed for a class or individual. An exam
ple taken from Table 7-10 shows that the minimum rate of emi
gration for adult male toque monkeys is 10 emigrations per 58. 73
adult male monkey-years, which is 0. 1 70 emigrations per monkey
per year. The reciprocal of such rates gives the average interval of
time between successive emigrations. Adult male toque monkeys,
for example, emigrate maximally at an average of once every
110. 170 = 5.9 yr.
ESTIMATING RATES OF MOVEMENT BETWEEN POPULATIONS
The dynamics of dispersal between populations is likely to be the

same in k ind as between social groups. Knowledge of the latter
therefore is useful for predicting movements between popula
tions. For example, from Table 7-10 it is highly unlikely that
adult females or infants and young juveniles shift between popu
lations because they appear not to leave their social groups.
If we consider a set of troop s to constitute the sample popula
tion, the number of individuals moving into and out of the popu
lation is estimated as follows:
Minimum number of emigrations = total of Type 3.

Maximum number of emigrations = total of Type 3 plus Type 5.
Minimum number of immigrations = total of Type 4.
Maximum number of immigrations = same as the minimum.
These numbers are expressed as rates by dividing them by the

total number of monkey-years of observation appropriate to the
class in question .

1 74 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O LOGY
Fmding individuals that have left the population is probably

the most difficult task in population analysis. Methods for assess
ing such movements accurately are beyond the scope of this chap
ter; see Caughley (1977) for general approaches to this problem.
An indirect assesn sme t of the fate of animals that frequently
disappear might be obtained by censusing populations adjacent
to the study population. H an unusually high proportion of the
age-sex class whose members frequently disappear shows up in an
adjacent population, emigration from the sample population
might be seriously suspected.
MORTALITY VERSUS EMIGRATION
Estimates of intrapopulation movement indicate which age and

sex classes are subject to emigration . The disappearance of indi
viduals of a class that does not emigrate can be safely assumed to
have died. With some notable exceptions, female and young juve
nile primates do not emigrate from their natal groups. • The males
of many species, however, do emigrate from their natal groups as
adolescents, and as adults they continue to shift between groups
(Dittus, 1980). If estimates of mortality are based on individual
life-history records, the disappearance of a male may be inter
preted as either death or emigration.
In populations where it can be assumed that immigration and
emigration are equal, mortality can be estimated independently
of dispersal by applying methods based on standing age distribu
tions. (See "Estimating Vital Statistics from a Stable Standing
Age Distribution" and "Estimating Vital Statistics from Stand
ing Age Distributions Sampled at Yearly Intervals, " above. ) The
survivorship and mortality schedules of male toque monkeys
(Figures 7-2 and 7-3) are based on such independent derivations.
In speculations concerning the fate of individuals it is generally
considered "conservative" to attribute such losses to emigration .
Whether this is conservative in the sense of being the "most
likely" biological outcome or of projecting human values to
• For the exceptions, see Chivers ( 1974)-siamang gibbons; Harcourt et a/.

( 1976)-gorilla; Kawanaka and Nishida ( 1975) and van Lawick·Goodal l ( 1973)
chimpanzee ; and Marsh ( 1979) and Struhsaker and Leland ( 1979)-red colobus.

demographic events is open to question . If all males that disap

peared from a population had merely emigrated and such emi
gration was common in other populations as well, then some
where there must be a large reservoir of emigrated males. Such a
population has yet to be found in primate demographic studies.
Lone males and all-male groups must, of course, be incorporated
into any valid demographic sample.
SUGGESTED READINGS
The following are excellent introductions to the study of animal
populations: Caughley ( 1977), Eberhardt ( 1968), and Wilson and
Bossert ( 1971) . The book by Caughley is especially recommended
as a clear and practical manual.
Some other important publications are: Andrewartha and
Birch ( 1954), Caughley ( 1966, 1%7), Deevey ( 1947), and Pielou
(1969).

8
Determinants of
Population Density
and Growth
In the foregoing chapters, methods for measuring a variety of

physical, floral, and faunal parameters of the habitat were dis
cussed. In this chapter the relationships between some of these
variables are discussed in light of their influence in determining
population size in relation to environmental factors.
MEASURES OF POPULATION SIZE IN RELATION TO

THE ENVIRONMENT
ESTIMATES OF DENSITY AND BIOMASS
In estimating the vital statistics of a population , knowledge of only

the numbers of animals is relevant. Often, however, population
size is expressed as a density, which is defined as the number of
animals per unit area. Statements of density express an interest in
the relationship between a population's numerical size and its en
vironment.
Density is often converted to biomass by multiplying the number
of individuals in the population by their average weight. Accurate
1 76

Determinants of Population Density and Growth 177

estimates of biomass should take into account differences in the
numbers of animals of different body sizes (or ages) in the popula
tion . Thus, expressed mathematically,
x =j -
E n x Wx
x= l
Biomass = -----
A
where n x and Wx are the number and average weight, respectively,

of individuals in age class x, there being a total ofj age classes, oc
cupying an area of size A. The weight of inert gut contents may be
subtracted in estimates of mean weights.
The biomass of a species roughly represents the amount of
resources or energy that it extracts from an environment. Since
species vary in body size, such interspecific comparisons based on
numbers alone would be inadequate. It is desirable to express den
sities in terms of biomass because it provides some measure of the
importance or impact that a species has on an environment relative
to other species. Comparisons of biomass can be made between
different age classes within the same population (e.g. , adults ver
sus juveniles or males versus females) or between species, higher
taxonomic groupings, or ecological groupings (e.g. , folivorous ver
sus frugivorous primates).
Different methods for estimating densities and their correspon·
ding biomasses are in use. The following defmitions are useful:
Crude density refers to the number of animals within a defined

geographic area without regard to the suitability of the area for
supporting the species in question. Estimates of crude density are
u seful only for reporting numbers of animals in a defined area,
such as a game reserve or census plot. The area itself may encom
pass a diversity of habitats, some of which are totally unsuitable for
the species in question.
Ecological density refers to the number of animals per unit area
of suitable habitat. Estimates of ecological density may be higher
than those of crude density if the latter incorporates areas not in
habited by the species of interest.

1 78 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O LO G Y
The most accurate method for estimating ecological density in

volves charting the actual area of land or home ranges that a set of
troop s or a population has been observed to be using. UsuaUy this
requires a long-term intensive survey of a relatively small area of
land. Eisenberg (1979) reviewed density estimates for neotropical
primates made by 24 different authors. For meaningful com
parisons he found it useful to separate density estimates according
to the method of data collection . For example, for each of the
following species the first and second values from each pair of den
sity estimates are based on the home range method and on a less
intensive survey method, respectively: Callith rix torquatus, 20/km2
and 1S/km 2 ; Cebus capucinus, 130/km2 and 70-90/km2 ; Alouatta
palliata, 60-80/km2 ; Alouatta seniculus, 160/km 2 and 86/km 2 • In
each case the estimate of ecological density based on the home
range method was greater than that based on a broader, less
intensive survey method. Probably the latter method involves the
risks of underestimating the number of animals occupying a large
area and of incorporating habitats of variable suitability.
Eisenberg ( 1979) caUed ecological densities based on the inten
sive home range method "K density," on the assumption that
these densities are probably close to the mean equilibrium density
(see below) for the species in question within the particular en
vironment where the measurements were carried out.
It is evident from these considerations that the method used for
estimating density should be clearly spelled out in reporting
estimates of density.
MEAN EQUIUBRIUM DENSITY (K)
Figure 8-1 illustrates the pattern of changes in a hypothetical

population having an annual birth pulse.
Observations of growing populations have indicated that they
eventually reach an endpoint of no more growth . Although popu
lation density may fluctuate, the mean value of population den
sity remains fairly constant through time. This value has been
caUed the asymptotic density, or the mean equilibrium density,
and has been designated by the symbol K.
K relates to the rate of population growth, r, and to any mea
sure of population density, n , as follows. In growing populations,
r > 0, n < K. In declining populations, r < 0, n > K. In

.;.
·;;
c
..
,
c
.!!
0
:;
<>
0
a.
Time
FIGURE 8-1 Changes in population density, n, in a hypothetical population

having an annual birth pulse and increasing in density until it reaches its mean
equilibrium density, K. The carrying capacity of the environment is defined by K
rather than by the maximal (n2) or minimal (n1) values fluctuating about the
mean K.
stationary populations at equilibrium, r = 0, n = K. It is evident

that any measure of population density, n , is not necessarily
equivalent to K. One may assume that n = K only if the average
population density over several years remains constant; or, if
calculations based on other demographic parameters indicate
that the rate of population growth, r = 0 for some time. The
value of r is determined by the sum of the rates of birth (b) and
immigration (im) minus the sum of the rates of death (d) and
emigration (em); i.e . , r = (b + im) - (d + em); or, if im = em ,
r = b - d.
Since K is in part a function of environmental stability (see
below), it is sometimes assumed that n = K if aU other evidence
points to long-term environmental stability. Such an assumption
is less satisfactory than estimates of n over several years.
THE CONCEPI' OF CARRYING CAPACITY
The mean equilibrium density, K, varies both with the features of

the species and of the environment. The fact that different values

1 80 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O PU LATIO N E C O L O GY
of K may be reached by the same species in different en

vironments, or by the same population at different times, has em
phasized the importance of the environment in determining K.
As a result the focus of interest often is the environment itself,
which may be discussed in terms of its "carrying capacity" with
respect to a particular population, species, or group of species.
Thus, carrying capacity is often used in an abstract sense in com
paring the relative qualities of different environments. It must be
recognized, however, that the many factors that determine the
quality of the environment and, ultimately, the value of n or K
are not always known or easy to measure. For example, the food
supply has a major influence on population density. Yet it is
doubtful whether absolute food availability can ever be mea
sured, except perhaps in very simple environments. In contrast ,
the measure of K either in numbers of individuals or in biomass is
fairly straightforward. For convenience , therefore , carrying ca
pacity is defined in terms of K, or, as the maximum mean density
of a species that an environment can support on a sustained basis
without being degraded.
In such assessments, carrying capacity is represented by the ac
tual mean equilibrium density, K, rather than by the temporary
maximal or minimal fluctuations away from the mean, par
ticularly if such fluctuations are short term, as result, for exam
ple, from an annual birth pulse (Figure 8- 1). One should also be
aware that predation or disease may depress population density,
n , below its potential maximal K. Or, a rare environmental event ,
such as a severe drought, may temporarily depress K below its

usual maximal value . On the other hand, an environmental
change may be more permanent and alter the long-term carrying
capacity for a particular species. Thus a change in n may indeed
reflect a real change in K. One might suspect a change in carry
ing capacity especially if n changes over the long term. It is evi
dent that the nature of such interrelationships is best understood
through a close study of both the environment and the population
·
and preferably over a long term.

Despite the limitations in measuring some environmental fea
tures, one can often gain a fairly good appreciation of the nature
of ecological interrelationships from correlated changes among
measures of different environmental factors. Whether or not one


may assume that such correlations represent cause and effect
events depends on the quality of the information .
Because of the complexity of the relationships that determine
carrying capacity, one generally does not prove, but assu mes, that
a population's constant size may represent its mean equilibrium
density with respect to the carrying capacity of the environment.
DETERMINANTS OF POPULATION SIZE

The causes and mechanisms responsible for changes in popula
tion size are of central interest in ecology. They may be approached
at four levels: ( 1 ) measurement of the demographic processes
underlying changes in population size or density, (2) identifica
tion and measurement of the environmental factors that may
cause demographic changes, (3) measurement of annual fluctua
tions in food, and (4) identification and measurement of the
behavioral and physiological mechanisms through which en
vironmental factors affect demographic processes. The last two
levels are discussed in detail later.
DEMOGRAPIDC PROCESSES
This method was discussed in Chapter 7, which deals with

population analysis. In that chapter we identified the basic data
required for measuring demographic events and formulated the
manner in which demographic processes determine population
growth rates (e.g. , R0).
ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
We have noted that many environmental factors influence

population size and that the observable mean equilibrium density
(K) for a species may vary between habitats or over time within
the same population . Several of the physical and biological fac
tors that ultimately influence densities of a population (or the carry
ing capacity of the habitat to support that population) are dis
cussed below. A simplified hierarchy of interrelationships between
these factors is given in Figure 8-2.

182 TECHNI Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O PULATI O N E COLOGY
POP U L AT ION
GROWTH R ATE
(\) K
woter productivity ond

stOIOnOIIty
� yslcol E nvironment
Geology ond Climate:

soli substrate - temperature
- omount ond seosonol
distribution of woter
� mojor Influence
---+ secondary Influence
FIGURE 8-2 Interrelationships among physical and biological factors that in·
fluence the population growth rate and mean equilibrium density of a species.
Physical Factors
Basically, the physical environment determines the diversity and
abundance of plant life, on which all animals ultimately depend.
Therefore, information concerning the physical world is useful
for making predictions concerning the biological communities
one might expect in a specific area.

Determinants of Population Density and Growth 1 83
On a global scale the warm lowland and tropical regions sup

port more diverse plant and animal communities than do the
colder temperate or high montane areas. Areas of high rainfall
that is evenly distributed throughout the year are richer in life
than those of low or seasonal rainfall. On a local scale the loca
tion of oceans and mountain ranges in relation to prevailing wind
currents affects temperature and rainfall patterns. For example,
areas on the windward side of montane zones are generally drier
and warmer than those on the leeward side.
The effect of physical parameters can be more subtle , as in the
Amazon rain forests where areas subject to nutrient-rich flood
waters support a greater diversity and abundance of life forms
than do areas that are not flooded, despite minor differences in
rainfall or temperature between these areas. Similarly, in areas of
equivalent rainfall and temperature, porous soils support less life
than those that retain water.
In classifying the world's vegetation into major types, such as
savanna grassland, deciduous forest , semi-evergreen forest , and
evergreen rain forest, Walter ( 1971 ) found the parameters of
temperature, total rainfall, and the duration of drought in the an
nual cycle to be the most useful variables in predicting major
vegetation types, despite variations in the taxonomic composition
of the forest types.
Biological Factors
The density of a studied species may vary between habitats having
similar physical characteristics but differing in species composi
tion . A biological community is composed of the vegetation that
gives structure to it and the fauna that directly or indirectly
depends on it for food and shelter-the consumers, competitors,
predators, and pathogens.
The type of vegetation will in large part determine its depen
dent animal populations. For example, stable savanna grasslands
support large and diverse populations of grazers and predators
that prey on these grazers, whereas tall rain forests support fewer
terrestrial animals. Instead, tropical forests support a larger
biomass of arboreal browsing folivores and frugivores (Eisenberg
and Thorington , 1973). Moist semi-evergreen forests support a
higher density of primates than semi-deciduous dry forests

(Eisenberg et al. , 1972), and even within small geographic areas,

the diversity of the vegetation correlates with the diversity of
primate species it supports (Struhsaker, 1975).
The food supply is a major factor influencing the size of
primate populations (Dittus, 1977a, 1980). The amount of food
that is available to a species is determined by a variety of factors,
including the species' trophic adaptations, the diversity and pro
ductivity of the vegetation in the habitat, and competition from
other animals. These factors are not wholly independent of one
another but interrelate in a complex fashion . These relationships
and how they might be measured are examined more closely in
the next section.
The natural food supply for any primate is likely to fluctuate in
abundance during the yearly cycle. Many vertebrates and in
vertebrates share the foods that are eaten by a particular primate
species. If the food supply is limiting, competition from these
animals is likely to have its greatest effect during the season of
least food abundance . The extent of competition needs to be
established empirically in each community.
Indirectly, the vegetation will also influence the occurrence of
predators for primates. The influence of predation can be
_
estimated by making a faunal list of potential predators in an

area and then making a rough estimate of mortality from preda
tion through long-term observation . The incidence of predation
on a given primate species can also be assessed indirectly through
examination of fecal scats of predators for remains of the primate
of interest. Leopards, for example, exist primarily on prey
species, such as deer, antelope, and pigs, that inhabit savanna
and savanna woodlands. Although primates are not a major food
item in the leopard's diet ( Muckenhirn and Eisenberg, 1973),
they nevertheless are subject to leopard predation in habitats that
support the leopard's main prey animals. Most field studies of
medium-to-large primates have indicated a low incidence of
predation .
It is generally assumed that most populations of large verte
brates have become adapted or fairly resistant to the pathogens
natural to their populations, and large-scale reductions in their
populations through disease have been thought to be rare. The
widespread episodic heavy mortality observed among South Amer-


ican howler monkeys, Alouatta sp. (Collias and Southwick ,
1952), may represent an unstable relationship between Alouatta
and the yellow fever virus that was introduced from Africa more
than 200 yr ago. The case exemplifies how an introduced patho
gen can decimate populations that have not fully adapted to its
virulence. The proportion of mortality in natural populations that
is attributable to pathogens can be assessed only through close
studies directly addressing this problem. Morbidity and mortality
statist ics are unavailable for primate populations that may be af
fected by parasites and diseases such as yellow fever, malaria, tu
berculosis, Lassa fever, and Marburg virus. Since resistance to
disease may be in part a function of other factors, such as nutri
tional state, wounding, or age, its effect on mortality is not easily
isolated from that of other factors (Freeland, 1976).
FOOD SUPPLY AS A MAJOR FACTOR DETERMINING

POPULATION SIZE
Consideration of food supply in relation to population size in

volves three aspects: ( l ) th e dietary intake of a species , (2) the
diversity and productivity of food plants relative to the food items
consumed, and (3) the manner in which food supply influences
demographic parameters. Methods for estimating the diet were
described under "Feeding Ecology in Chapter 6. Methods for
"
estimating the diversity, productivity, and phenology of plants

were described in C h apter 3. In addition to th e productiv ity of
food plants in the habitat, the amount of food that is available to
a primate population depends on the primate's trophic ad apta
tions and the abundance of competitors that feed on or otherwise
destroy the same foods.
TROPHIC ADAPTATIONS
Trophic adaptations include all those morphological and behav

ioral traits that allow a species to collect, chew, and digest food.
Trophic adaptations should not be confused with "trophic level, "
which defines a species' role in the flow of energy within an eco
logical community. Prehensile tails and modifications of denti
tion and the digestive tract are examples of troph ic adaptations.

Prehensile tails, for example, allow South American cebids to

hang from sturdy branches in order to re ach plant food items at
the ends of flimsy twigs that they would not be able to reach
otherwise. The long hooklike arms and hands of gibbons and sia
mangs serve a similar purpose (Grand, 1972, 1978).
Strong incisor teeth in savanna-dwelling baboons aid in the
uprooting of tubers and root s, and modification of the molar
teeth aid leaf-eating primates in chewing mature fibrous leaves
(Kay, 1978). The most striking trophic adaptation may be the
ruminantlike digestive system of leaf-eating primates. The fore
guts (in the Colobinae) or the caecum (in the I ndridae and Alou
attinae) are highly specialized as fe rmentation chambers support
ing symbiotic microbes that break down the tough cellulose in
mature leaves (Bauchop , 1978). Since leaves are much more abun
dant than flowers and fruits, leaf-eating primates have available
to them a much greater store of food than do non-leaf-eating pri
mates. As a result , leaf-eating monkeys occur at much higher
densities than non-leaf-eating primates sharing the same habitat
(Eisenberg et al. , 1972; Struhsaker, 1975).
Estimation of a species' trophic adaptations therefore includes
documentation of an atomical adaptations or specializations rele
vant to the acquisition, processing, and digestion of food; behav
iors used in the acquisition and processing of various food items;
and the diet.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE DIVER S ITY AND PRODUCTIVITY

OF FOOD PLANTS AND POPULATION SIZE
The diversity of primate species correlated positively with the

diversity of tree species in the rain forests at Kibale, Uganda
(Struhsaker, 1975), and New Indenau, Cameroun (Gartlan and
Struhsaker, 1972). Conceivably, primate diversity is a function of
the diversity of ecological niches. Thus, as floristic diversity
decreases, the diversity of exploitable feeding niches decreases
until at some point the carrying capacity of the habitat is reduced
to zero for some species.
To a large extent, climatic and edaphic (or local ecological)
factors determine both the diversity and prod uctivity of a forest
type; in an undisturbed forest, diversity and productivity are likely


to be positively correlated. Thus, an attempt to distinguish the ef
fects of each factor on the density or biomass of a particular
species may be difficult. An example taken from Sri Lanka shows
that all tree species found in the forests at Wilpattu are also
found in those at Polonnaruwa, but not vice versa, so that the
Wilpattu forests have a lower diversity (Table 8- 1 ) . Forest pro
ductivity is also lower at Wilpattu than at Polonnaruwa. The
biomass of primate species found at Wilpattu is less than in the
more diverse and productive forests at Polonnaruwa, as is
predicted by this correlation. Such a correlation does not hold,
however, for comparisons of primate biomass between the forests
at Polonnaruwa and Horton Plains. Although forest diversity and
productivity are greater at Horton Plains than at Polonnaruwa,
the biomass of all three primate species there is considerably less.
In such cases, knowledge of the nutritional requirements of the
TABLE 8- 1 Differences in Biomass Among Species of Primates

in Three Forest Habitats and Climatic Zones of Sri Lanka
Wilpattu Polonnaruwa Horton Plains
Climate
Average annual rainfall 1 ,200 mm 1 , 671 mm 2,000 mm
No. months drought per annum 4-5 2-4 none
Forest Type arid semi- montane
scrub evergreen cloud
evergreen
Forest productivity in metric
tons/ha/yr" 2 4.5 5
Tree species diversityb low moderate moderately
H ' ( ln ) = 2.97< high
Primate Biomass (kg/km 2 )d·•
Macaca sinica 1 300 < 40
Presbytis entellus 19 730 0
Presbytis senex 0 1 ,430 630
" Hladik and Hladik, 1972.

b Dittu s, 1977b.
< See Chapter 3 for derivation of Shannon Index.
d Eisenberg et at. 1972.
.
• Dittus, 1977c.

1 88 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C O L O G Y
species in relation to the relative abundance of available foods in

the different forest habitats may provide a clue for this apparent
contradiction. For example, the macaque's preferred foods at
Polonnaruwa are the fruits of seven species of fig trees (Ficus). In
the montane forest at Horton Plains, figs are absent. Thus,
despite the greater overall productivity of the montane forest, the
productivity and diversity of the plants on which the macaques
depend are less than at Polonnaruwa. This probably explains the
lower biomass of macaques at Horton Plains. It is obvious from
this example that a great deal of ecological information is re
quired to draw conclusions concerning ecological relationships.
EFFECTS OF FOOD SUPPLY ON THE VITAL STATISTIC S

OF A POPULATION
The relationship between food supply and the demographic

parameters that determine K density are illustrated by the follow
ing examples:
• Natural populations of vervet monkeys, Cercopithecus

aethiops, and of yellow baboons, Papio cynocephalus , decreased
in size by over 40% and 90% , respectively, as a result of the
destruction of their natural food plants through edaphic changes
in the Masai-Amboseli Game Reserve in Kenya (Hausfater, 1975 ;
Struhsaker, 1973, 1976). The natural population of toque ma
caques, Macaca sinica , decreased by 15% as a result of a
drought; but during the same drought period, the population in
creased by 60o/o in an area where artificial feeding occurred (Dit
tus, 1977a). Declines in the populations of vervet monkeys and
toque macaques were attributed to an increase in mortality
among juveniles, especially the youngest juveniles (Dittus, 1977a;
Struhsaker, 1976). In Nepal, rhesus macaque, M. mulatta ,
populations are food-limited in relatively undisturbed habitats.
Although natality declines at high densities, mortality increases
in the juvenile and adult age classes (Southwick et a/. , 1980).
• Populations of rhesus macaques, Macaca mulatta , and of
Japanese macaques, M. fuscata , that have been provisioned with

food by man have grown at annual rates of 16% (Koford, 1965)
and 9% (Dittus, 1980, after ltani, 1975), respectively, and exist


at densities that are over 10-H)() times higher than those in their
natural habitats (Dittus, 1975). Compared with the wild non
provisioned population of M. sinica , where r = 0, in the growing
populations of M. mulatta and M. fuscata , the mortality among
juveniles was less and the natality was greater (Dittus, 1975).
• The Koshima colony of Japanese macaques was heavily pro
visioned with food for many years and increased in size. Then ar
tificial feeding was decreased, and the population declined. Com
parisons of vital statistics from the period of food surplus and
population growth with statistics from the period of food scarcity
and population decline indicated the following changes: infant
mortality increased from 15 to 68% ; the average natality decreased
from 66 to 32% ; and the average age at first birth in females in
creased from 6.2 to 6.8 yr, and in some females first birth was
delayed until the ninth year of life (Mori, 1979).
Together these data suggest that the food supply is of utmost

importance in limiting the density of some if not all primate
populations and that food supply has its effect on population
growth rate by influencing mortality, natality, and age at onset of
reproduction. These relationships have been examined in greater
detail by Dittus ( 1977a, 1979, 1980), who presents evidence to
suggest that social behavior, or competition for food and mates,
in large part mediates mortality and natality in relation to the
availability of limiting resources. In short, social behavior regu
lates the size and age-sex composition of many primate societies
in relation to the food supply, in a fashion that maximizes the re
productive success of some of its members.
POPULATION REGULATION BY BEHAVIORAL AND

PHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS
This section deals with the manner in which environmental fac
tors can influence the vital statistics in a primate pqpulation-its
rates of mortality, fecundity, and maturation . A flow diagram
(Figure 8-3) is presented to clarify important relationships be
tween environmental factors and behavioral and physiological
factors that ultimately influence demography. The various rela
tionships are discussed in tum.

190 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE POPULATION E C OLOGY
PHY S I OLOGY
• RATE OF G R OWTH & R E PRODUC T I VE
MATURA T I ON
- E NDOC R I NE BALA N C E
- N U TR I T I ONAL S T A T E
- R E S I STANCE TO D I S E A S E
PRE DATOR AVO I DA N C E I NT R A S P E C I F I C
MAN E U V E R S ., AND COMP E T I T I O N FOR C OMP E T I l i ON
�:�� _j / '--:::o_:r:�_:,
: :·�1 �� /
I NT R A S P E C I F i C
_ _
COMPE T I T I O N FOR
_ _.
'""'r-:: � �A �
REFUGES F ROM P R E D A T O R S
SuPPLY OF
E STROUS :
_ E LE
_ _ _:
I _ I
-
_ _
0
P R E DATORS
.____ i I�
l [NV I RONMENT
FIGURE 8-3 Flow diagram of hierarchical interrelationships among environ

mental, behavioral, and physiological factors that determine population growth
rate and equilibrium density.
IDENTIFYING AND MEASURING INTRASPECIFIC COMPETITION

FOR RESOURCES
Competition occurs when a number of individuals (or groups)

utilize common resources that are in short supply or, regardless
of whether the resources are in short supply, when animals (or
groups) harm one another in utilizing the same resources (modi
fied after Krebs, 1972).
Competition can be measured directly through observation and
recording of behaviors. Prerequisites to such recording are good
observation conditions and well-habituated animals that are not
disturbed by the proximity of an observer.


The first step in measuring competitive behaviors is their iden
tification. The investigator should familiarize himself with
gestures of communication used by the primate under study.
In most primates, unequivocal competitive behaviors can be
recognized in situations when ( 1 ) one individual removes food
from the hands, mouth , or cheek pouches of another and con
sumes it while the exploited individual attempts to resist such
robbing or (2) one individual displaces another engaged in feed
ing and consumes the abandoned food. Such displacements may
involve the use of physical force, such as biting, hitting, or push
ing; more frequently it involves only a threat gesture or simply an
approach.
More subtle competitive behaviors involve the gradual en
croachment and displacement of another individual from the vi
cinity of a desired resource. Displacements need not involve only
food items or water; they may involve, for example, priority of ac
cess to a safe perch when scrambling to avoid a predator or an ag
gressive conspecific or when selecting secure sleeping perches.
Some competitive acts may involve more than two individuals,
as in coalitions of two or more individuals against a target ani
mal. Similarly, whole groups may defend their feeding territories
against other conspecific groups, or a group may simply defend
or avoid a particular feeding site in areas of home range overlap .
The type of h�thesis formulated concerning competitive
behaviors will define the method used for its testing. As a general
guide, the focal-animal sampling method, in which each in
dividual in the social group is identified and followed for a fixed
duration, is suggested as one that can be modified to suit many
needs. The observation period will be determined by the total
time it takes to collect a sample of behavioral frequencies that is
sufficiently large to test the hypothesis statistically. A minimum
of 10 h of direct observation per individual is suggested. For
species with low interaction rates, such as langurs, a longer dura
tion may be required.
For each minute of observation the subject animal's activity
(e.g. , feeding, resting, grooming) and behavioral interactions with
others are recorded. One might also record food type consumed
and distance to other animals (nearest neighbors). Since data are
specific to identified individuals, frequencies or durations of

1 92 TE CHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O P U LATI O N E C O L O G Y
behaviors, foods consumed or "competed for," and the like can

be analyzed according to individual attributes such as age, sex,
reproductive state, and genealogy. For further details concerning
the collection and analysis of such data, see Dittus ( 1977a).
Socially dominant animals are those that have priority of access
to food and other contested resources. Socially subordinate
animals are ones that do not have such priority of access. In a
detailed study of the effects of competitive behavior in the toque
macaque, Macaca sinica, Dittus ( 1977a) showed that relative to
socially subordinate animals, dominant ones have the following
advantages:
• Dominant animals expend less time or energy in searching
for food items because they frequently usurp food from subor·
dinates who have expended time and energy in locating it.
• They feed at sites where food is most abundant and therefore
feed at faster rates.

• They consume a greater proportion of foods that are high in
caloric or nutritional content.

• They have a faster rate of growth or weight.
In addition, dominant mothers have a higher fecundity than

subordinate ones, and their offspring survive better than those of
subordinates (Dittus, 1979; Drickamer, 1974).
Dominance differs according to an individual's age, sex, and
genealogy. Dittus ( 1977a) showed that mortality patterns by age
and sex for toque macaques closely follow the differences by age
and sex in successful food competition. Competition for resources
was thought to be a major cause of mortality.
The general pattern of mortality in most mammals is one of
high mortality early in youth and decreasing mortality toward
adulthood. Mortality curves differ between the sexes in several
species (Ralls et al. , 1980). Individuals that survive to reproduc
tive age generally have a long life (Caughley, 1966).
Most primates appear to adhere to this pattern, and it is likely
that food competition is a major factor in adjusting primate
population density to the food supply (Dittus, 1980). When the
food supply changes, food competition affects survivorship
among infants, young juveniles, and old individuals the most

(Dittus, 1977a; Struhsaker, 1976). Such competition is exhibited

within social groups but may also occur between them, as in in
tergroup dominance hierarchies or in territorial behavior.
MATE COMPETITION
The different reproductive roles of males and females subject

them to different life histories. Although both males and females
compete for food resources, males may also compete for mates.
Mate competition occurs when males fight or otherwise vie over
mating access to estrous females. The frequency of such
behaviors can be documented through focal-animal sampling
techniques similar to those outlined above. Primate studies that
have investigated mate competition (Dittus, 1977a; Lindburg,
197 1 ; Vandenbergh and Vessey, 1968; Wilson and Boelkins,
1970) indicate that males are frequently wounded and die as a
result of wounds incurred in fights with other males.
The life history of young males may involve their emigration
from the natal troop at adolescence. Such emigrant adolescent
males attempt to attach themselves to other social groups. In
these attempts they are frequently forced to assume a subordinate
position peripheral to the troop . As a result of food competition
and of fighting with other, often stronger, adult males over
female mates, they are frequently wounded and die. Male mor
tality reaches a peak during the adolescent phase and decreases
with the attainment of adulthood. In adulthood, males continue
to transfer between social groups, albeit at a lower rate than dur
ing adolescence (Boelkins and Wilson , 1972; Dittus, 1975; Kawai
and Yoshiba, 1968). Because of such emigrations and the intense
mate competition in their adult lives, adult males suffer higher
mortality than adult females. The latter generally do not fight for
mates, nor do they emigrate from their natal troop (for excep
tions, see Chapter 5).
Male-male competitive behavior in some species-for example,
many colobines-may involve the killing of infants fathered by
other males (Hrdy, 1974; Rudran, 1973b ; Struhsaker, 1977;
Sugiyama, 1967). Such infanticide has two benefits for males.
First, females whose nursing infants die come into estrous sooner
than if their infants had lived and continued to nurse. Therefore,

194 TE C H N I Q UE S IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C OLOGY
such a female is "freed " to conceive the infant of the infanticidal

male sooner than if her fttst infant had continued to live. That is,
the male increases the number of infants he can sire, . or he
enhances his fitness (Hrdy, 1974; Struhsaker, 1977). Second,
males generally practice infanticide only at the time of first taking
over a troop and displacing the resident male from it. If food
resources are limiting, the new male leader who kills the infants
sired by the deposed male eliminates food competitors for himself
and especially for his own young. Because his own offspring
would be younger, and therefore subordinate to the infants of the
deposed male leader, they would stand to lose the most in food
competition with the older, dominant infants. The infanticidal
male therefore enhances the survivorship of his own infants by
eliminating the most likely food competitors for his own offspring
(Dittus, 1979; Rudran, 1979).
Regardless of the source of mortality, be it resource competi
tion, mate competition, or the outright killing of individuals as in
infanticide, such behaviors have a direct effect on the vital
statistics of the population and on its growth rate and density. To
test whether such behaviors are truly regulatory would involve
documenting behaviors and their different effects on demography
under different environmental conditions or under different
phases of population growth (Dittus, 1977a).
POPULATION REGULATION IN RELATION TO LIFE HISTORY
The regulatory factors or behaviors one might expect a primate

species to exhibit are predisposed by its life history. Although
food competition is likely to affect all age and sex classes in most
primate species, mate competition , as outlined above, appears to
be most prevalent among sexually dimorphic species where males
are larger than females. With the exception of the study of the
toque macaque that directly addressed the question of population
regulation (Dittus, 1977a), documentation of such regulation is
fragmentary. The evidence for population regulation in other
primates has been reviewed (Dittus, 1980).
Among monomorphic species where male-male competition for
mates is less prevalent, and where both males and females may
emigrate from their natal troops, one might expect male mortal-

Determirumts of Population Density and Growth 195

ity through mate competition to be minimal, and females might
be subject to mortality resulting from troop transfer behaviors.
Studies addressing these problems would be highly desirable , for
only then can the phenomena underlying population regulation in
primates be better understood.
PREDATION IN RELATION TO POPULATION REGULATION
Primates living in open savannal habitats are subject to predation

from large mammalian predators. Both the body and canine
teeth of adult males among savanna-living primates (e.g. , ba
boons, Papio sp. , Theropithecus, and patas monkeys, Erythro
cebus patas) are believed to have evolved to their characteristic
large size at least partly owing to their advantage in the defense
against predators.
If the incidence of predation on a primate population is very
high , its density might be kept lower than it would be in the
absence of predation . Except for some primate populations that
are hunted or trapped by man , such a population among the
medium-to-large primates has yet to be discovered in undisturbed
situations.
If refuges from predators, such as tall trees in open savannah ,
are scarce, they might constitute a limiting resource. Access to
such refuges is likely to be determined by differences in social
dominance relations so that the effect of predation on vital sta
tistics would be determined at least in part by social behavior.
THE INFLUENCE OF BEHAVIOR ON PHYSIOLOGY THAT MEDIATES

SURVIVORSHIP AND REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE
Except for the outright killing of individuals, behavior exerts its

influence on survivorship and fecundity through physiological
changes. Physiological mechanisms are obviously involved in
mediating behaviorally determined access to food into nutritional
state and rates of growth and reproductive maturation . Social
behavior also determines the hormonal balance of individuals.
Laboratory and field experiments with other animals have in
dicated that behaviorally subordinate and harrassed individuals
may die from stress. The typically lethal stress syndrome involves

1 96 TE CHNI Q U E S IN PRIMATE P OPULATI ON E C O L OGY
marked changes in the endocrine systems. Such mortality may

occur quite independently of food deprivation. Starvation is
simply an intense form of physiological stress. Generally, animals
that are in poor physical condition because of nutritional and en·
docrine stress also have lower resistance to disease organisms and
parasites. Thus, death or lowered reproductive performance may
be mediated by a variety of endocrine changes that are brought
about by behavior (see reviews by Christian, 1963, 1970).

Commentary
Transect censusing is useful for determining relative abundance

when densities for censused areas are to be compared. Such com
parisons are most useful when the censused areas are comparable
in tenns of forest type and patterns of human disturbance.
Transect estimates of density most nearly reflect real density for
those primate species that are relatively large ( > 1 kg) and con
spicuous in their activities. To date, the best transect estimates of
density have been developed by experienced field workers working
in a familiar habitat type who are well trained in observing and
detecting the primate species indigenous to the area.
One must be careful to distinguish between a density estimate
and the actual density for a given population in a designated
region . Intensive studies in small sample plots are mandated for
small primates and those primate species that are cryptic or noc
turnal if the aim is a close approximation to actual density. Table
9-1 reflects current judgments concerning the appropriate census
technique for a range of primate species. In light of these con
siderations, the following comments can fairly be made:
197

198 TECHNI Q U E S IN PRIMATE POPULATI O N E C O LO G Y
1. Transect length must be determined empirically. A transect

line should be long enough to cross all habitat types in the census
area. In the example used in this report (see p. 52), Struhsaker
found that 4 km was large enough to enable an observer to en
counter the primate species present in his forest.
2. In a broad survey it may not be possible to census more than
once. When this is the case, the length of the transect line is
determined by pacing during the census. For most censuses the
transects should be repeated along a predetermined line.
3. The sample size must be determined empirically by
calculating 950Jo confidence limits as data are collected. In the
sample data used in this manual, Struhsaker found that 20-30
repeat transects were adequate. Spacing samples over an annual
cycle is the only way to determine the effects of seasonal changes
in habitat use.
4. Because detection distances vary with many habitat
characteristics, especially foliage density, the transect width must
be determined empirically in each habitat. Two distances are
measured: the observer-to-animal, or sighting, distance and the
transect line-to-animal distance , or perpendicular distance. The
total strip width may then be calculated on the basis of a fixed or
variable strip width for each method. The maximum reliable
detection distance is the most commonly used type of variable
strip width.
5. The application of line-transect census methods to forest
primates is sufficiently recent that there is no best method , other
than inspection of graphed or tabulated data. Examples of three
useful methods are given . Much of the theory for census methods
has been developed on the basis of surveys of animals in a two
dimensional space; it is assumed that the animals do not move in
response to the observer before being detected. Forest primates
must be censused in a three-dimensional space; they are often
detected by sound before they are sighted; and they often move
from their original positions before being detected. Three stan
dardized studies are available that compare the accuracy of cen
sus methods for forest primates with density estimates deter
mined from detailed studies.
Struhsaker (see Chapter 4, this volume) found that an em
pirical inspection of the frequency distribution of sighting

Commentary 199
distances with a cutoff distance for reliable detectability (50 m in
this example) was the most accurate census method for making
density estimates for a common species in his study forest.
Density estimates based on perpendicular distance estimates
were inadequate under Struhsaker's survey conditions because
many sightings made over the trail (a zero distance) resulted in an
overestimation of the population .
In contrast, density estimates based on sighting distances proved
to be less adequate than perpendicular distance estimates under
Janson and Terborgh's (in press) survey conditions because they
overestimated population densities based on detailed studies of
their target species.
Eisenberg (see p. 65) describes a nonlinear density plot method
that requires prior information on home range size and mean
group size. This method also provided density estimates com
parable with those estimated for a common species from a de
tailed study.
6. Records of all individuals actually counted provide a known
minimum. It is often useful to record a separate estimate of the
number of additional animals in the vicinity (range of group size).
For density calculations it is best to estimate densities of groups
(excluding sightings of single animals that may be separated from
groups or may be transients).
Detailed counts of group size should be made at a time
separate from standardized transect periods when the groups can
be followed. The best group counts are obtained when the
animals leave or enter sleeping trees or when they cross a
restricted or open area during a progression . Total population
densities should be calculated by multiplying the number of
groups by the average number of individuals counted in several
groups.
Duplicate counts of the same groups (due to group movements
or multiple observers) can be avoided by knowing the travel rate
of the species and by identifying groups by individually distinct
size/sex compositions or distinct individuals.
7. Most census methods have depended on age and sex classes
that are scaled by size to the largest adult. Observers often sub
divided the immature categories beyond the basic age classes of
infant, juvenile, subadult male, adult female, and adult male.

TABLE 9- 1 Suggested Census Methods for Selected Primatesa
Intensive Study
Habitat Point of Selected
Species Type Transect Census Quadrat Areas References
Lemuridae
Microcebus
murinus Forest ++ ++ Martin, 1 972
Lorisidae and
Galagidae
Loris tardigradus Forest ++ Petter and Hladik , 1970
Galago demidovii Forest + ++ Charles-Dominique,
1972a,b
Callithricidae
Saguinus o.
oedipus Forest ++ Neyman, 1977
S. o.
geojfroyi + ++
Cebue/la pygmaea
Forest + Dawson, 1977
Forest + ++ Soini, 1978

Cebidae
Aotu.s trivirgatu.s Savanna + Rathbun, 1980
Aotu.s trivirgatu.s Forest ++ Thorington et a/. , 1976
Cebu.s ape/Ja Forest + ++ Janson and Terborgh, in
press
Alouatta seniculus Savanna ++ Eisenberg, 1979
A. seniculus Forest + Green, 1978a
Ateles belzebuth Forest + ++ Green, 1978a
Cercopithecidae
Macaca mulatta Cultivated
land ++ + Southwick et a/. , 1965
M. fa.sciculari.s Forest + Crockett and Wilson,
1980
Cercopithecus sp. Forest + ++ Struhsaker (Table 4-4,
this volume)
a+ = useful method; + + = preferred method.
�
-

202 TECHNIQUE S IN PRIMATE P O PULATI O N E C O L O G Y
These size classes have been roughly correlated with age classes
on the basis of infonnation from captive animals. These tech
niques have been satisfactory for general comparisons of the
status of a species in different parts of its range.
Using recent field data of known individuals, Dittus (see
Chapter 5, this volume) showed that aging techniques can be fur
ther refined by taking into account the fact that captive in
dividuals grow and mature faster than wild individuals, and the
size classes may be expected to vary between sexes, places, and
years, reflecting the nutritional status of those populations. The
more precise the age classifications, the more accurate the life
tables and the understanding of population dynamics.
8. Transect census methods provide density estimates of a
general nature that are useful when comparisons based on an
order-of-magnitude difference are useful. The accuracy of cen
susing is improved with standardization and an increased charac
terization of habitat productivity and seasonality.
Long-tenn studies provide increasingly accurate data on den
sities and additional data on such topics as home ranges and
overlap between neighboring groups, seasonal changes in habitat
use and diet, and records of groups with known age and sex com
positions.
9. So far as possible, habitat should be characterized by a
description of the vegetation profile, and the description should
include notes on the distribution of water and a gross classifica
tion of drainage and soil type. In more intensive surveys, vegeta
tion should be analyzed to gain an understanding of the relative
abundance and dominance of woody plant species.
10. In longer-tenn studies, seasonal changes in rainfall and
temperature should be recorded, and the findings should be aug
mented by phenological studies of the trees because ultimately
the carrying capacity of the habitat is related to plant productiv
ity. In long-tenn studies of primates, some method for individual
recognition must be devised that utilizes either natural or ar
tificial markings. Chronological age can be estimated by em
pirically verifying growth patterns of known individuals or by in
directly estimating age by morphological changes or tooth wear.
1 1 . In order to understand carrying capacity for diffe rent
species, long-tenn studies concentrated on feeding ecology and

Commentary 203
use of space must be undertaken . There is reason to believe that
many primate species are food-limited in their natural habitats.
12. Before controlled cropping can be undertaken , the popula
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expanding, or in decline. The construction of a life table is an
essential first step before rational utilization of primate resources
can be planned.
13. Emphasis is still on data gathering. It is to be hoped that
standardization of methodology will make possible field data that
are comparable between investigators and study areas and will
yield predictive statements concerning the behavior of natural
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North Borneo. Primates 5 : 1 1 -26.


APPENDIX
LAND SAT Data

Distribution
Centers
Operative in 1 979
Australia
Australian LANDSAT Station , P.O. Box 13, Woden A.C.T. 2606,
Australia
Brazil
INPE, Caixa Postal 01 , 12630 Cachoeira, Paulity, SP, Brazil
Canada
ccRs , 3564 Sheffield Road, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
India
National Remote Sensing Agency, Plot No. 4, Sardar Patel Road,
P.O. No. 1519, Secunderabad 50003 0 (A.P. ) India
Iran
Iranian Remote Sensing Center, National Iranian Radio and Tel
evision , 80 Sepand Street, Villa Avenue, Tehran, Iran
221

222 Appendix A
Italy and Sweden
Earthnet-ESRIN, via Galileo galilei, Casella Postale 04, 00044
Frascati, Italy
Japan
RESTEC, Remote Sensing Technology, Uni-Roppongi Bldg.
7- 15-17, Roppongi Minato-ky, Tokyo 106, Japan
United States
ERos Data Center, Geological Survey, U . S . Department of the In
terior, Computer Center Division, Sioux Falls Computation
Branch , Sioux Falls, South Dakota 57198

APPENDIX
8
Sources of
Interpretive
Service for
S atellite Imagery
in the United
States
Bendix Aerospace Systems Division, 3300 Plymouth Road, Ann

Arbor, Michigan 48105
Calspan Corporation , P. O. Box 235, Buffalo, New York 14221
coMARc Design Systems, The Agriculture Bldg. , Embarcadero
at Mission , San Francisco, California 94 105
Computer Sciences Corporation, 8728 Colesville Road, Silver
Spring, Maryland 20910
Comtal Corporation , 169 North Halstead Street, Pasadena,
California 9 1 107
Control Data Corporation , P.O . Box 1249, Minneapolis, Min
nesota 55440
Earth Satellite Corporation , 7222 47th Street, Chevy Chase,
Maryland 20815
Ecographics, International Environmental Analysis, P. O. Box
706, La Jolla, California 92038
Environmental Research Institute of Michigan , P. O. Box 618,
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48107
ESL, Inc. , 495 Java Drive, Sunnyvale, California 94086
223

224 Appendix B
Ford Aerospace & Communications Corporation, P.O. Box 58487,
Houston , Texas 77058
General Electric Company, 5030 Herzel Place, Beltsville, Mary
land 20705
Geo Image, Inc. , P.O. Box 576, Altadena, California 91001
Geospectra Corporation , 202 East Washington , Suite 504, Ann
Arbor, Michigan 48108
HRB-Singer, Inc. , Environmental Analysis Group, Science Park
-Box 60, State College, Pennsylvania 16801
International Business Machines, 1800 Frederic Pike, Gaithers
burg, Maryland 20760
International Imaging Systems, 650 North Mary Avenue, Sunny
vale, California 94086
Interpretive Service for Primate Studies, Image Analysis Center
for Ecological Studies, National Zoological Park , Smithsonian
Institution , Washington, D . C . 20008
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Road, Pasadena, California
91103
Lockhead Electronics Company, 1830 Space Park Drive, Hous
ton , Texas 77058
Mead Technology Laboratory, 3481 Dayton-Xenia Road, Day
on, Ohio 45432
Oregon State University, Environmental Remote Sensing Ap
plications Laboratory, Corvallis, Oregon 97331
Pattern Recognition-Technology and Application , S. S. Vig
lione and Associates, 551 Peralta Hills Drive, Anaheim, Cali
fornia 92807
Pennsylvania State University, Office of Remote Sensing of Earth
Resources, 219 Electrical Eng. West Bldg. , University Park,
Pennsylvania 16802
Purdue University, Laboratory for the Application of Remote
Sensing, West Lafayette, Indiana 47906
Seiscom Delta, Inc. , P. O. Box 36789, Houston , Texas 77036
South Dakota State University, Remote Sensing Institute, Brook
ings, South Dakota 57006
Stanford University, Remote Sensing Laboratory, Stanford, Cal
ifornia 94305
Texas A&M University, Remote Sensing Center, College Station ,
Texas 77843

Appendix B 225
TRW Systems Group , One Space Park , Redondo Beach , California

90278
University of California, Space Sciences Laboratory, Berkeley, Cal
ifornia 94720
University of Kansas, Space Technology Center, Lawrence, Kan
sas 66045
University of Southern California, Image Processing Institute,
Los Angeles, California 90007

APPENDIX
S ample
Data
Sheets
This appendix contains examples of data sheets that have been

found useful in conducting field surveys of nonhuman primates.
Investigators may want to use these as the basis for designing and
preparing their own data sheets.
226

A.ppendix C 227
Ground Truth Dau Sheet for LANDSAT Co.-...
L A N DSAT I n f ormat ion
L A N D S AT - L Photo No. Date o f Photo

L A N DSAT- 2 : Photo No. Date o f Photo __
L A N DS A T - 3 : Photo No. Date o f Photo
Map I n formation
Scale Sheet No. Lati tude Longitude
F ield Photography and Data
Spot-Check N o _ ___
Location
Date
Elevation
Attach Photograph Here
Locatton Diagram N
Spot-Check Descriptions
Forest Non forest
Type of forest 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Surrou n d i ng forest 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Forest disturbances 1 2 3 4 5 6 Land use category 1 2 3 4
Crown density
Leaf condition r+1 rtf Ownership
Cover pl_ant Htffi: 3
Aspect 4 5 6 7 8 Dom i nant tree
Slope 1 2 3 4 Height ( m l Girth (m)
Macrorelief class 1 2 3 4 Ground moisture condi t ion 1 2 3 4
No. of Ave.
No. Prom inent species
Trees Hi M No_ Cult ivated crop
1 1
2 2
3 3
4 4
5 5
RemarkS ------
Signature -------
Date -------

228 Appendix C
Codes
Typo� of f-' and Land U• �rv Code

Surrounding F_. Code
Cultivated 1
2
Ev.rgreen fornt 1
2
Urban
Mixed deciduous fornt
Water 3
Dry dipterocarps fornt 3
Others 4
Pine forest 4
Mangrove forest 5 Ow-ip Code
Bamboo forest 6 H illtribes 1
Scrub forest 7 Natives 2

Savanna 8
Migrants 3
Forest pill n tation 9

Co- Plant Code
Weed 1
Forest Disturban .. Code
Shrub 2
Nondisturbance 1
2
Tree 3
Cutting-l ight
Cutting-heavy 3 Aspect Coda
Fire da"- 4 North 1
Old clearing and Northeast 2

shifting cu ltivation 5 East 3
Infestation 6 Southeast 4
Crown density Code South 5

0-25% 1 South-.t 6
25-75% 2 Welt 7
75-1 00% 3 North-.t 8
Code Slop11 Code

Leaf Condition
Shedding 1 Very steep(>60° ) 1
Spring 2 Steep(46° �0 ) 2
F lowering 3 Moderately steep (25° -45" ) 3
Undulating 4
Ground Moisture Condition Code Macrorelief Cl- Code

Wet 1 Mountainous land 1
Medium 2 Hi lty land 2
Dry 3 Undulating and rolling land 3
Very Dry 4 Flat land 4

�
Cantuo o.u. 8hoet
LOCH�R ----- l
O.te Time Petsonnel ----- �
�
W.odw• -----
Mode of Trovel 5poecl of Tr..-1 ------
Sithll"'l
Obloovor· Animal Cuo

Time Time Anirr.l P•th lnitt.l lnitiel to No. of Sex/Age
Specift Location Sighted Left DittMCe Oist•nce Height ActivitY Sighting lndividuels Composition Comments
Sighting cue: S.x •nd Age Claa: ActivitY:
AV • Audio vitull Ad • Adult INie T • Trev.. ing
AB • Audio branch diiPiacement A9 • Adult fem�le F • Foreging
VM • Visual moving A9 + 1 • Adult fem.le with inf8nt R • Rftting
�
VS • Visu81 ttetionery SA • Subodult
• Jw.nile
• Intent

230 Appendix C
Monkey ldentific.tion Card
F ront of card used for written descriptions of key traits.
Troop: ------ Name: Date: -----
Age and Sex: ( Date of b i rth and mother's name I -------
P�� : --
---
Head hair: -------
F ace color :
Ears :
Derrnal sk i n : -------
Other:
Name : -------
C_ ··
..
.
.
.
.·
·
/:J
.·
Back of card has printed monkey faces u sed for drawi ng in the l ocat ion , size,
and co nfiguration of pigment spots, scars, and s i m i l a r blem ishes.

Appendix C 231
Sample Deta Sheet for Collected Animals
Species Sex -------
Tattoo no. ------- Date ------
Ear tag no. Troop no. -------
Freeze brand Local ity where capt u red -----
Ear notch pos ition --------
Color code on co l l ar ------
Time Amount
Scars, i nj u r ies, malformations, etc. Anesthetic ------
Tooth caste no. ------
F i ngerprints no. -------
Measurements
Head and body length E l bow-d igit length -----
Ta i l length Hand l ength -------
Head l e ngth ------ Femur length --------
Sh o u lder-e l bo w length ------ Tibia l ength --------
We ight ------

232
Prepa r a t t o n ..
"'
Trap
;
We �ght {gm) ..
0
H i nd Foot (mml �
Eer (mm) l!!
!! E
�
O E
,... _ �
=e ill
�
� �!
� �
M
n
M
"'
M
Ectopar ;;;
An imal Cond i t io n g
Age Ill
�
j
Sexual C ondttton
;:;
e
Sex
Cl
No. Co n f u sed �
;
I -! �
h �
j «Z
Now �
Species ::
'
�
i!.
�
c
0 "'
.., �
;g J;
0 -' 2
£
Observer :! jE
M �
:
> "' !!'
d
f �
� � J
c
�
�
;:- 'I'
0 ..

APPENDIX
Checklist of
Essential
Equipment
Basic Field Work Animal Marking Field Data Analysis

Binoculars Traps and bait Graph paper
Compass Dartgun and darts Ruler
Stopwatch Blowgun and darts Calculator
Watch Crossbow
Notebook Collars
Plant Identification
Pen (indelible ink) Tattoo equipment
Knife Freeze-branding Plant press
supplies Corrugated
Anesthetic aluminum
Mapping
Scales Cardboard sheets
Tape Measure Calipers Newspapers
Compass Measuring tape Tree tags
Surveyor's tape Scissors
Range finder Dye
233


Notes








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Techniques for the study of primate population ecology.

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COMMITIEE ON NONHUMAN PRIMATES

NORMAN H. ALTMAN, Papanicolaou Cancer Research Institute,

Miami, Florida (Chairman )

Bolton Center, University of Pennsylvania, School of Veteri·

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore,

Health , Bethesda, Maryland

Subcommittee on Conservation of Natural Populations

Survey, Kandy, Sri Lanka

THOMAS STRUHSAKER, New York Zoological Society, The Rocke·

feller University, New York , and Makerere University, Kam·

History, Smithsonian Institution , Washington , D . C .

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

10HN F. EISENBE RG , Chairman

Copyright\ National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

In addition to the basic contracts supporting this work , the Na­

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

tional Institute of Mental Health, Thomas Struhsaker, censusing

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

3 HABITAT DESCRIPTION AND SPECIMEN

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Background for Calculations Derived from Transect

5 TECHNIQUES FOR SEXING AND

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7 PRIMATE POPULATION ANALYSIS 135

A LANDSAT Data Distribution Centers Operative in

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

This manual deals with methods and techniques applicable under

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

2 TECHNIQUES IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C O L O GY

FIGURE 1-1 Typical collection of f1eld equipment for undertaking primate

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

• Determining the presence (and abundance) or absence of

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

4 TE C H N I Q U E S IN PRI MATE POPU LATI O N ECOLOGY

These objectives are fundamental to the development of conserva­

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

MAPS AND PHOTOGRAPHS

Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

6 TECHNI Q U E S IN PRIMATE P O P ULATI O N E C OLOGY

the neotropics in Holdridge (1967), for Asia in Purl (1960) and

FAUNAL LISTS AND FLORAL INVENTORIES

Most major geographic areas have at least provisional faunal lists

In addition to the basic contracts supporting this work , the Na

These objectives are fundamental to the development of conserva

soils in northern South America are typified by Saman, Pithecol

A physiognomic or structural classification of habitat types sepa

the number of layers (shrubs, understory, main canopy, emer

to plot these data on a single graph according to the method de