BEHAVIORAL CHARACTERIZATION OF SLEEP IN STUMPTAIL MACAQUES (MACACA ARCTOIDES) IN EXTERIOR CAPTIVITY BY MEANS OF HIGH-SENSITIVITY VIDEORECORDING

There are reasons to consider incomplete the description of sleep in m any non-human primate species. Recording animals by highly sensitive v ideos to obtain detailed descriptions of nighttime behavior and eviden ce of muscle activity while in a resting posture, seems a promising ap proach to the non-invasive study of sleep in non-human primates. The p resent work describes the use of ultrasensitive videocameras to record and analyze spontaneous nighttime behaviors in captive non-human prim ates. Its main purpose is to emphasize the utility of videorecordings to analyze nighttime behavior. A heterosexual group of nine stumptail macaques (M. arctoides) was studied. It was possible to identify resti ng postures: immobility or lying on the floor as well as sleep movemen ts and behavioral signs of sleep. This procedure permits recognition o f each animal individually and the data suggest that videorecordings, among other techniques available, may be a useful, non-invasive method to study sleep. (C) 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.