1997 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Resource use patterns and social structure among chimpanzees
| Project/Area Number |
07041138
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for international Scientific Research
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | Field Research |
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| Research Field |
人類学(含生理人類学)
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| Research Institution | Kyoto University |
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Principal Investigator |
NICHIDA Toshisada Kyoto University, Graduate School of Science, Professor, 理学研究科, 教授 (40011647)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
TAKASAKI Hiroyuki Okayama Univ.of Science, Faculty of Integrated Information, Lecturer, 総合情報学部, 講師 (70222081)
WAKIBARA James Tanzania National Parks, Mahale National Park, Ecologist, パークエコロジスト
NIGI Hideo Osaka University, Faculty of Human Sciences, Professor, 人間科学部, 教授 (60072675)
IHOBE Hiroshi Kyoto University, Graduate School of Science, Assistant, 理学研究科, 助手 (20252413)
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| Project Period (FY) |
1995 – 1997
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| Keywords | Mahale Mountains / Chimpanzee / Red colobus / Resource use / Feeding ecology / Vegetation / Population density / Social behavior |
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| Research Abstract |
From 1995 to 1997, the food resource of the M group chimpanzees was investigated in the Mahale Mountains National Park, Tanzania. All the trees with DBH>=30cm and all the woody vines with DBH>=5cm, located within 5m each of the two sides of the transects (4km) and observation paths (23km), were listed up, and numbered alminium/plastic tags were attached to them for phenological research. These plants were monitored once a month throughout the period in order to estimate the quantity of available food and to obtain the phenological data. Chimpanzees were followed, and the location of food patchs used, their patch sizes, feeding speed and party sizes were recorded. A preliminary analysis showed that 9 of the 10 most common species of trees were those producing fruits eaten by chimpanzee.
This suggests intensive and effective seed dispersal by chimpanzees. The plant density was intermediatebetween Lope of Gabon and Kahuzi of Zaire, two floristically known chimpanzee habitats. The distribut
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ion and density of mammal prey resources were investigated by counting animals detected within 50 m from the observation paths. Ecological relationships of a chosen group of red colobus monkeys with chimpanzees were also investigated. The colobus monkeys density has proved to be large enough to survive the predation by chimpanzees at the culling rate of 100 head per year. The puzzling discovery however, is that despite the fact that red-tailed monkeys were as abundant as red colobus monkeys, only the latter species were selected as intensive prey by chimpanzees. Various dipteran flies presumed to have some econlogical relationships with chimpanzees were collected using specialtraps.Fecal samples were systematically collected, and the occurrence of intestinal parasites was compared across age and sex. The quantity of sex hormones to be extracted from dried feces will be measured in the laboratory. Various artificial intervention such as girdling was attempted to eradicate an invasive exotic plant. Senna spectabilis, and the effects were compared among various methods and toe control plot. Data on ranging, ant-fishing, grooming, reunion, fighting, hunting and meat-sharing were collected.Behavior of the chimpanzees was video taped under the supervision of T.Nishida by various film-shooting teams including the University of Airteam. We expect to obtain valuable information from these cinematographic records. Less
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Research Products
(17 results)
