Lagothrix Mating

When it was born it behaved in the same assertive ways that male monkeys behaved. It challenged other males to fights, joined in rough and tumble games and tried to mate with female monkeys. Other studies of animals being injected with opposite sex hormones produced similar results. It is important not to generalise animal study findings to human beings who are very much aware of their behaviour and are able to control it.

The sexual interactions between males and females had always occurred. It was not a new phenomenon when men and women started participating in premarital sex, necking, petting, or kissing. It was the norm of the society. The emphasis on necking and petting arose from the renaming of the two acts. The older generation tended to have a different definition for these actions than the younger generation. The same actions were occurring, but there was a miscommunication about the definition of the words used to describe those actions.

Mate choice is a product of mate preferences form in the environment of evolutionary adaptiveness (EEA). Sexual selection suggests that females prefer males who they can gain benefits from such as gifts. This is shown in male birds who make nests for females in order to mate with them and also in insects who give nuptial gifts.

“Pair Living Primates have several unique characteristics that set them apart from other nonhuman primates. Monogamous Primates are two primates of different sexes that mate exclusively with one and other. The unique qualities of these animals are a result of the ecological constraints that these primates face. Because of the exclusive and solitary relationship that is monogamy there is a lack of specialized defensive roles by the adult male, which is also extensively involved in paternal care. Monogamous primates are highly territorial and very closely associated, Morphologically, there is a lack of sexual dimorphism amongst pair living primates, this is due to the exclusively and predictable genetic outcome of these animals mating with only

Orangutans (Figure 3) are our first cousins since they share 97 percent of our genetic material. Contrary to other apes, orangutans are semi solitary which is unique in its social organization (3). Adult males which are the most solitary, and they associate with only their current, former, and potential consorts. For the semi-solitary orangutans, the only playmate is its mother. Even female adults are more social than male ones, rarely they groom, touch, hold hands, chase, or fight. On rare occasions, female adults may groom; however, it lasts only few seconds. Sometimes, female adults meet and travel with one another to express the close relationship. The long call by a male orangutan expresses an alert to others about his presence. Usually, other orangutans only react if the call is close by or aggressive towards them. Male orangutan can use vocalization to express that he is angry and frustrated, and that call signals a threat to another male (3). Female orangutans also produce vocalization when they get upset by the presence of another male.

Bonobos are known to have enormous group orgies with the entire clan if there is a special event or tragedy. Bonobos are the only creature to have the same number of human chromosomes.

Protection and reproduction are the main reasons primates live in social communities or groups. An example of the protection case are baboons. Baboons stick together to provide protection giant big cats, dogs and even hyenas. The reproduction case is pretty simple to explain. Like most humans, non-human primates want to carry on their gene and species.

Analysis on faecal matter showed that turgescence of baboon ano-genital swellings links to the follicular phase of the ovarian cycle, while deturgescence links to the luteal phase, leading to the conclusion that the swellings are under the influence of hormonal control in primates (Gillmann and Gilbert, 1946). This suggests that the role of sexual swellings is to visually indicate the onset of ovulation to male non-human primates. It is observed that swellings indeed attract males independently of olfactory or behavioural cues (Bielert 1982; Saayman 1970) suggesting evolution of this attraction to larger swellings occurred due to the reproductive success associated with it. Males that are able to recognise swellings, discriminate between them and to mate with the female when hers are largest, would have higher chances to sire an infant, resulting in high selection pressure on males to react to swelling state.

Kavanagh, M. & Morris, D. (1983). Complete guide to monkeys, apes and other primates. London: Viking Press.

Although most mammals are not monogamous why do some of them exhibit this behavior? We could address this question by looking at different examples of monogamous mammals and what genetic and environmental factors could have influenced this behavior. We can also look at what hormones could be involved in pair-bonding

The result was that they too resorted to pair-bonding to be assured of mating partners. The result was that humans grew jealousy and passiveness and, eventually, males began taking part in the raising of children. This uniqueness remained a human preserve given that the other primates never outgrew the savagery

I decided to look at the sexual behavior of bonobos because they are known for their frequent sexual behavior. Though they are not one of the types of great apes mentioned in the book, a bonobo is nonetheless a great ape that belongs in the same genus as the common chimpanzee. Furuichi et al. observed bonobos in their naturalistic habitat in Wamba, Democratic Republic

Judson, an evolutionary biologist, portrayed as Dr. Tatiana, a sex columnist, cleverly conveys mind-boggling facts about an array of creatures within the animal kingdom using a satirical approach. “I am a queen bee, and I’m worried. All my lovers leave their genitals inside me then drop dead. Is this normal?” writes a concerned honeybee in regards to the sexual practices of her mate’s. Dr. Tatiana goes on to show understanding for the honeybees concern and explains just why her mates do what they do. As a reader, one gains intriguing information on the sexual idiosyncrasy of honeybees. The author achieves her overall goal of informing the reader of sexual biology by addressing the issue on a personal level, making a claim. Then following up with facts that support the claim.

Addressing the various mating systems of primates and its relation to sexual size dimorphism and behavior contributes to understanding evolutionary processes and patterns. The different methods of mating are significant to study because they demonstrate the outcomes of natural selection on mate choice. These varying mating methods also aide in understanding the origin of

A lek is an aggregation of males that gather to engage in competitive displays that may entice visiting females who are surveying prospective partners for copulation. A lekking species is defined by the following characteristics: male displays, strong female mate choice, and the conferring of male indirect benefits. In David Mcdonald’s article, “Cooperative Display and Relatedness Among Males in a Lek-Mating Bird” discusses about long-tailed manakins who mate in leks and cooperate in multiyear male-male partnerships. An alpha male is responsible for virtually all mating, whereas a beta male assists in the courtship displays. Such altruism by the beta male poses a problem for evolutionary theory because most theoretical treatments and empirical