Maternal caretaking behavior towards a dead juvenile in a wild, multi-level primate society

Maternal caretaking and transport of dead infants are widespread among nonhuman primates, having been reported in numerous species of monkeys and apes. By contrast, accounts of such behaviors toward dead juveniles are scarce. Here, we describe responses by the mother and other group members to the d...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2022-03, Vol.12 (1), p.4780-4780, Article 4780
Main Authors: Yang, Bin, Anderson, James R, Mao, Min, Wang, Kaifeng, Li, Baoguo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Babies
Behavior
Cadaver
China
Colobinae - physiology
Death & dying
Empathy
Fatalities
Female
Females
Humans
Infants
Juveniles
Laboratories
Male
Males
Maternal Behavior
Monkeys & apes
Mothers
Physiology
Presbytini
Primates
Social Behavior
Social research
Society
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Summary:Maternal caretaking and transport of dead infants are widespread among nonhuman primates, having been reported in numerous species of monkeys and apes. By contrast, accounts of such behaviors toward dead juveniles are scarce. Here, we describe responses by the mother and other group members to the death of a juvenile in a wild, multi-level group of Sichuan snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana). Following the juvenile's fatal accident, his mother transported and cared for the corpse for four days. Immature monkeys belonging to the same one-male unit, and some individuals from other social units also showed interest in and tended the corpse. Comparisons of this case with those involving the deaths of infants and an adult female in the same population highlight possible effects of physiological, psychological and emotional factors in primate thanatological responses, and provide an additional perspective on the origin and evolution of compassionate acts.
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/s41598-022-08660-9