SOCIAL-BEHAVIOR OF BLACK-HANDED SPIDER MONKEYS (ATELES-GEOFFROYI) REARED AS HOME PETS

We studied the interactions between and within sexes of 7 molar catego ries of behavior-aggression, submission, avoid-retreat, social groomin g, together, social play, and sexual interest-in a newly formed captiv e group of spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) reared as pets and unacqu ainted with each other. Free-ranging Ateles geoffroyi show a character istic sex-determined patterning of intragroup social interactions and relationships: males are more affiliative with males, and females are more solitary and more prone to be attacked by males. Our rationale, u sing socially handicapped subjects, was to test whether the monkeys we re able to develop species-typical social relationships and constitute a cohesive group. We studied the group of 8 males and 6 females in an outdoor cage throughout 31 weeks, starting I week after the formation of the group. Their rate of interactions is not much different from t hose reported for natural groups. The patterning of interactions for a lmost all behaviors is similar to that which has been observed in wild groups. Our findings suggest that spider monkeys, despite unnatural n urturing, follow an innate species specific motivational script in the patterning of their interactions.