Titi Monkey Neophobia and Visual Abilities Allow for Fast Responses to Novel Stimuli

Overview

Journal Sci Rep

Specialty Science

Date 2021 Jan 29

PMID 33510399

Citations 6

Authors

Allison R Lau

Mark N Grote

Madison E Dufek

Tristan J Franzetti

Karen L Bales

Lynne A Isbell

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The Snake Detection Theory implicates constricting snakes in the origin of primates, and venomous snakes for differences between catarrhine and platyrrhine primate visual systems. Although many studies using different methods have found very rapid snake detection in catarrhines, including humans, to date no studies have examined how quickly platyrrhine primates can detect snakes. We therefore tested in captive coppery titi monkeys (Plecturocebus cupreus) the latency to detect a small portion of visible snake skin. Because titi monkeys are neophobic, we designed a crossover experiment to compare their latency to look and their duration of looking at a snake skin and synthetic feather of two lengths (2.5 cm and uncovered). To test our predictions that the latency to look would be shorter and the duration of looking would be longer for the snake skin, we used survival/event time models for latency to look and negative binomial mixed models for duration of looking. While titi monkeys looked more quickly and for longer at both the snake skin and feather compared to a control, they also looked more quickly and for longer at larger compared to smaller stimuli. This suggests titi monkeys' neophobia may augment their visual abilities to help them avoid dangerous stimuli.

Citing Articles

Pairing status and stimulus type predict responses to audio playbacks in female titi monkeys.

Lau A, Cunningham A, Bales K Front Ecol Evol. 2024; 11.

PMID: 38584610 PMC: 10997360. DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2023.1145205.

Spot the odd one out: do snake pictures capture macaques' attention more than other predators?.

Zeller K, Ballesta S, Meunier H, Duboscq J, Morino L, Rimele A Anim Cogn. 2023; 26(6):1945-1958.

PMID: 37855842 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-023-01831-9.

Ecological, social, and intrinsic factors affecting wild orangutans' curiosity, assessed using a field experiment.

Schuppli C, Nellissen L, Carvajal L, Ashbury A, Oliver-Caldwell N, Rahmaeti T Sci Rep. 2023; 13(1):13184.

PMID: 37580333 PMC: 10425418. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-39214-2.

Familiarity mediates apes' attentional biases toward human faces.

Leinwand J, Fidino M, Ross S, Hopper L Proc Biol Sci. 2022; 289(1973):20212599.

PMID: 35473378 PMC: 9043736. DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.2599.

The Saliency of Snake Scales and Leopard Rosettes to Infants: Its Relevance to Graphical Patterns Portrayed in Prehistoric Art.

Coss R, Charles E Front Psychol. 2021; 12:763436.

PMID: 34880813 PMC: 8645795. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.763436.

References

Barton R . Visual specialization and brain evolution in primates. Proc Biol Sci. 1998; 265(1409):1933-7. PMC: 1689478. DOI: 10.1098/rspb.1998.0523. View

Overman Jr W, Doty R . Hemispheric specialization displayed by man but not macaques for analysis of faces. Neuropsychologia. 1982; 20(2):113-28. DOI: 10.1016/0028-3932(82)90002-1. View

Judge P, Kurdziel L, Wright R, Bohrman J . Picture recognition of food by macaques (Macaca silenus). Anim Cogn. 2011; 15(3):313-25. DOI: 10.1007/s10071-011-0455-9. View

Schrago C, Russo C . Timing the origin of New World monkeys. Mol Biol Evol. 2003; 20(10):1620-5. DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msg172. View

Fragaszy D . Comparative studies of squirrel monkeys (Saimiri) and titi monkeys (Callicebus) in travel tasks. Z Tierpsychol. 1980; 54(1):1-36. DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0310.1980.tb01061.x. View

Machado T, Silva V, Silva M . Phylogenetic relationships within Bothrops neuwiedi group (Serpentes, Squamata): geographically highly-structured lineages, evidence of introgressive hybridization and Neogene/Quaternary diversification. Mol Phylogenet Evol. 2013; 71:1-14. DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2013.10.003. View

Boysen S, Berntson G . Cardiac correlates of individual recognition in the chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes). J Comp Psychol. 1986; 100(3):321-4. View

Isbell L . Snakes as agents of evolutionary change in primate brains. J Hum Evol. 2006; 51(1):1-35. DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2005.12.012. View

Wombolt J, Caine N . Patterns on serpentine shapes elicit visual attention in marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). Am J Primatol. 2016; 78(9):928-36. DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22563. View

10.

Soares S, Kessel D, Hernandez-Lorca M, Garcia-Rubio M, Rodrigues P, Gomes N . Exogenous attention to fear: Differential behavioral and neural responses to snakes and spiders. Neuropsychologia. 2017; 99:139-147. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2017.03.007. View

11.

Le Q, Isbell L, Matsumoto J, Nguyen M, Hori E, Maior R . Pulvinar neurons reveal neurobiological evidence of past selection for rapid detection of snakes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2013; 110(47):19000-5. PMC: 3839741. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1312648110. View

12.

Anderson J, Kuroshima H, Paukner A, Fujita K . Capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) respond to video images of themselves. Anim Cogn. 2008; 12(1):55-62. PMC: 3639483. DOI: 10.1007/s10071-008-0170-3. View

13.

Hodgson J, Sterner K, Matthews L, Burrell A, Jani R, Raaum R . Successive radiations, not stasis, in the South American primate fauna. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2009; 106(14):5534-9. PMC: 2667060. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0810346106. View

14.

Tardif S, Bales K, Williams L, Moeller E, Abbott D, Schultz-Darken N . Preparing New World monkeys for laboratory research. ILAR J. 2006; 47(4):307-15. DOI: 10.1093/ilar.47.4.307. View

15.

Falotico T, Verderane M, Mendonca-Furtado O, Spagnoletti N, Ottoni E, Visalberghi E . Food or threat? Wild capuchin monkeys (Sapajus libidinosus) as both predators and prey of snakes. Primates. 2017; 59(1):99-106. DOI: 10.1007/s10329-017-0631-x. View

16.

Crofoot M . Why mob? Reassessing the costs and benefits of primate predator harassment. Folia Primatol (Basel). 2013; 83(3-6):252-73. DOI: 10.1159/000343072. View

17.

Van Strien J, Isbell L . Snake scales, partial exposure, and the Snake Detection Theory: A human event-related potentials study. Sci Rep. 2017; 7:46331. PMC: 5384215. DOI: 10.1038/srep46331. View

18.

Bovet D, Vauclair J . Picture recognition in animals and humans. Behav Brain Res. 2000; 109(2):143-65. DOI: 10.1016/s0166-4328(00)00146-7. View

19.

Plimpton E, Swartz K, Rosenblum L . Responses of juvenile bonnet macaques to social stimuli presented through color videotapes. Dev Psychobiol. 1981; 14(2):109-15. DOI: 10.1002/dev.420140204. View

20.

Sackett G . RESPONSE OF RHESUS MONKEYS TO SOCIAL STIMULATION PRESENTED BY MEANS OF COLORED SLIDES. Percept Mot Skills. 1965; 20:SUPPL:1027-8. DOI: 10.2466/pms.1965.20.3c.1027. View