Activity states and motor activity in an infant capuchin monkey (Cebus apella) from birth through eleven weeks.

Abstract

Behavioral states and motor activity of an infant capuchin monkey reared by its mother in a social group were studied for 11 weeks after birth. Manipulative activity was infrequent through the first four weeks after birth; what little occurred was mediated by other animals interacting with the infant. The rate of manipulation increased the most between weeks 8 and 9. At the same time, the most frequent targets of manipulation shifted from the infant's own body and the bodies of others to surfaces and inanimate objects in the cage. Large increases in the proportion of time in an Alert/active state and improvement in postural control also occurred at the end of the second month. The data suggest that major organizational changes in motor coordination and the regulation of behavioral state occurred jointly over a short period of time at about 8 weeks of age. In comparison to other species of monkeys, the capuchin infant displayed later development of manipulation, postural control, and independent locomotion, and greater dependence on social contacts for early interaction with its environment. These characteristics are in accord with the greater neurological immaturity of the capuchin infant at birth compared to other monkeys.