Mating Systems In Primate Mating System

Primates are one of the most interesting mammals on earth, not only because of their complex social structures, but because they hold so many similar characteristics to humans. Primates are often cited as our closest living relatives and on two separate occasions I observed four separate species of primates at the San Diego Zoo that can justify their use of their physical characteristics and behaviors that may be similar as well as different to the other primates and ours.

Within this essay, we will study more in depth the behavioral as well as physical traits of two primates at a zoo from their interaction with their peers to their place in the group. This observation would enable us to further understand the possible existing correlation between humans and primates. First, I studied a female chimpanzee with her baby, and then, a dominant male gorilla, in San Francisco Zoo at about noon, on May 23, 2015, for an hour each. Even though they share some similarities such as having a large brain, living for a long time, and being bored in their enclosure, they are still different; when gorillas are the largest, chimpanzees are the smartest. In fact, chimps use tools to catch food, they would not be able to reach

Reproductive monogamy is defined as an exclusive sexual relationship between a female and a male based on their sexual interactions. Social Monogamy refers to male and female’s social living arrangement without sexual interactions. It refers to the living patterns, raising offsprings, and obtaining food. Monogamy is common in birds, but also occurs in invertebrates. Why would a male mammal choose to mate with one female when he can mate with more than one? Why would the male stay around instead of finding another female to live with? Many researchers have attempted to answer this question of why some mammals prefer monogamy over polygamy. Vole rats, one of the species that perform monogamous mating, demonstrate pair boding. Male and female pairs of vole rats have been observed together over several months, and the males stay with females even when the female is not reproductively active. A typical vole family in the wild is almost always consisted of one male, one female, and their offspring. In addition, unlike other species in which females are the only ones taking care of the offspring, vole rats share parental roles and even build nests together. Because they show these monogamous behaviors, they have served as a good species/model to learn about monogamy for neuroscientists. In this paper, monogamy, specifically in vole rats, will be explained along with its proximate and ultimate causes of this adaptation.

In his article, The Strategies of Finding a Mate, David M. Buss discusses the act of finding a mate and the characteristics that people are drawn to in a mate. He begins the article with a brief look at the history of mating and the theories that have previously been proposed. In particular he addressed Charles Darwin’s theory of sexual evolution and belief in preferential mate choice. Buss proposes that there are three components to human mating. He states that “human mating is inherently strategic… mating strategies are context-dependent… [and that] men and women have faced different mating problems over the course of human evolution and, as a consequence, have evolved different strategies” (Buss, 1994, p. 241). He uses this theory to propose nine different hypotheses to prove that despite humans being varied and different from each other, all humans look for similar characteristics when trying to find a mate (Buss, 1994).

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.

During my research of Orangutans and Mandrills I observed them in captivity at the San Diego Zoo. My observations included a 20 minute observation of each primate as it cohabitated with other Primates and with other members of its own species. My findings will support the research of Orangutans and Mandrills through firsthand observations.

Due to the higher degree of intelligence, different types of primates engage in different complex social groups. The three main ways to group primate societies are monogamous, polygynous and multi male multi female groups.

Many scientists and theorists have used primates to determine what early human sexuality might have been like. We have all descended from primates, Homo Sapiens are 1 of 5 surviving species of great apes; Alongside Chimpanzees, Bonobos, Gorillas and Orangutans. Evolutionary theorists Ryan and Jetha used primates, specifically Bonobos, to prove our ancestors promiscuity. Zuk however, uses example from all primates to show various types of living, not just promiscuity. By

In 1981 Owen Lovejoy suggested that behavioral mechanisms were a factor in the switch to bipedalism. This behavioral mechanism helped hominids in reproductive processes. Having the hands free to carry food and other things to the mate and offspring is seen to be a strong selection factor for choosing a mate. Having a such factor helps with reproductive success in a monogamous mating structure similar to what humans have today (Jacobs, 90). When

Buss et al. conducted a study in 1993 about the evolution of sexual strategies among human animals. These researchers looked at short term mating and long term mating as well as tendency to be non-monogamous despite what some social conventions dictate. Through the years

The first few chapters discuss in depth both the general rules for mate selection and the differences in mate selection and varying preferences for male and female genders. As explained in the intro the author theorizes that the current behavior of humans in relation to mating behavior can be linked to our evolutionary past. He references Charles Darwin 's theory of evolution and his idea of natural selection, which is the the process through which organisms adapt to their environment and in doing so tend to

It may seem obvious to some why people mate, however there are many facets to human mating. Psychology has shown that reasons for mating have gone beyond the scope of love and physical attractiveness. People may search for mates who resemble archetypical images of the opposite-sex parent, mates with characteristics that are either complementary or similar to one's own qualities, or mates with whom to make an exchange of valuable resources (Buss 238). Although these theories play a key role in understanding patterns in human mating preferences, evolutionary psychology and sexual selection theory provide more concrete frameworks for explaining human mating.

Animal species that reproduce sexually have developed mating systems that allow them to produce the most successful offspring possible. To produce successful offspring, individuals choose a mate based on the characteristics that will be passed on to their young. Mating systems have developed by organisms learning to recognize which potential mates possess traits that would be beneficial to future generations. Individuals chose their mates based on many factors, two of the most important ones being the physical characteristics and territorial acquisitions of the potential mates (Vehrencamp and Bradbury 1984). Both of these factors that influence mate choice are examples of sexual selection existing in nature. The theory of sexual selection revolves around the assumption that some members of a species are born with a genetic makeup that allows them to have a mating advantage over other members of that species. This mating advantage comes from the individual possessing traits that are more desirable by the opposite sex, as far

In their discussion of parental investment Daly and Wilson specify three different types of division. Larger females and smaller males characterize the first category called polyandry. In polyandrous species we see males making the larger parental investment, females being more combative, and males tending to out live their female counterparts. The second category is known as a monogamous breeding system. In this system the male and female parental investments are identical, the number of offspring each sex can have is identical and the fitness variances are equal. In monogamous species the male and female tend to be indistinguishable in that they are often the same size and carry the same markings. Monogamous species also have nearly the life expectancy. The final category is known as polygamy. Polygamy is a system in which the female makes the biggest parental investment. In polygamous species the male is often larger and more combative than the female and tends to live a shorter life. According to Daly and Wilson humans best fit into this last group. According to Daly and Wilson humans "are the products of a mild but sustained polygynous competition."

A number of factors play into the decision of one individual to mate with another, and in many species the females are the ones making these mating decisions. In terms of successfully reproducing, the number of offspring a male produces is limited by the number of females he gets to mate with, whereas females are limited by the amount of resources available to her. Thus, if males want to maximize the number of offspring they can produce they will choose to mate with those females who have access to the most resources and therefore are the most fertile. So, in a species dominated by male choice, research has suggested that males will tend to choose those females whose physical characteristics indicate high fertility. Those females who are