Social behavior of captive Indochinese and insular long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) following transfer to a new facility

Abstract

There are measurable differences in behavior, physiology, social organization, and geographic distribution within and between various species of macaques. We collected information on the social behavior of captive Macaca fascicularis from Indochina and island populations after they had been transferred to a new environment and new social groups. While some changes in behavior occurred over time, we found no decrease in high levels of agonistic behaviors. We interpret this finding in light of previous research reporting that long-tailed macaques show low levels of habitatuation to novelty and are highly aroused in comparison to other macaque species. We found predictable differences in behavior for males, females, and infants, in which infants played more, females had higher levels of contact proximity to other individuals, and males exhibited more sexual and threat behavior. A comparison of social behavior in long-tailed macaques from different origins indicate that Indochinese macaques are generally less affiliative and Indochinese males are more aggressive than their insular counterparts. Differences among macaque species, and within the fascicularis-group, should be considered in management of captive colonies and when interpreting research data.