Abstract
A semiisolated study population of 162 Barbary macaques (six groups) inhabiting the Ghomaran fir forests of the Moroccan Rif mountains has a density of 6.73 individuals/km 2. The adult sex ratio is 0.725, and immatures comprise 46.9% of the population. Births are seasonal, occurring from April to June, and the adult female birth rate is 0.58 per annum. Mortality appears relatively low in all age classes until old age. Group size ranges from 12 to 59 individuals, with a median value of 24. Home-range sizes vary between 3 and 9 km2, with a mean of 7.2 km2. Home-range overlap is approximately 80%. On the basis of macaque density, conifer density, and herding competition from domestic animals, the Ghomaran environment can be considered “marginal” compared to the Moyen Atlas. Despite the marginal habitat of the Ghomaran population, it is surprisingly similar in demographic characteristics to a Barbary macaque population in the Moyen Atlas. Two characteristics of the population dynamics in the Ghomara differentiate it from the former. (1) The mean home range is five times larger in the Ghomara, roughly inversely proportional to the sixfold decrease in macaque density, confirming Caldecott’s (1986) principle that, in macaque species, range size adjustments are a primary proximate response to poor-quality habitat. (2) Smaller groups in the marginal habitat of the Ghomara appear to have better rates of growth than small groups in prime habitat. This may result from an overall decreased home-range defensibility in marginal habitat (larger home ranges), resulting in an ecological and demographic release of small groups from the levels of intergroup competition they would normally experience in prime habitat.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Altmann, S., and Altmann, J. (1970).Baboon Ecology, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Caldecott, J. A. (1986). Mating patterns, societies and the ecogeography of macaques.Anim. Behav. 34: 208–220.
Clutton-Brock, T. H. (1972).Feeding and Ranging Behaviour of the Red Colobus Monkey, Ph.D. dissertation, University of Cambridge, Cambridge.
Clutton-Brock, T. H., and Harvey, P. H. (1977b). Species differences in feeding and ranging behavior in primates. In Clutton-Brock, T. H. (ed.),Primate Ecology: Studies of Feeding and Ranging Behaviour in Lemurs, Monkeys and Apes, Garland, New York, pp. 557–584.
Cords, M. (1987). Forest guenons and patas monkeys: Male-male competition in one-male groups. In Smuts, B. B., Cheney, D. L., Seyfarth, R. M., Wrangham, R. W., and Struhsaker, T. T. (ed.),Primate Societies, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, pp. 98–111.
Deag, J. M. (1974).A Study of the Social Behaviour and Ecology of the Wild Barbary Macaque (Macaca sylvanus L.), Ph.D. dissertation, University of Bristol, Bristol.
Deag, J. M. (1977). The status of the Barbary macaque,Macaca sylvanus in captivity and factors influencing its distribution in the wild. In H. S. H. Prince Rainier and Bourne, G. H. (ed.),Primate Conservation, Academic Press, London, pp. 267–287.
Deag, J. M. (1984). Demography of the Barbary macaque at Ain Kahla in the Moroccan Moyen Atlas. In Fa, J. E. (ed.),The Barbary Macaque: A Case Study in Conservation, Plenum Press, London, pp. 113–133.
Dittus, W. P. J. (1975). Population dynamics of the toque monkey (Macaca sinica). In Tuttle, R. H. (ed.),Socioecology and Psychology of Primates, Aldine, Chicago, pp. 125–151.
Drucker, G. R. (1984). The feeding ecology of the Barbary macaque and cedar forest conservation in the Moroccan Moyen Atlas. In Fa, J. E. (ed.),The Barbary Macaque: A Case Study in Conservation, Plenum Press, London, pp. 135–164.
Fa, J. E. (1982). A survey of population and habitat of the Barbary macaqueMacaca sylvanus in northern Morocco.Bio. Conserv. 24(1): 45–56.
Fa, J. E. (1984a). Habitat distribution and habitat preference in Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus).Int. J. Primatol. 5(3): 273–286.
Fa, J. E. (1984b). Definition of age-sex classes for the Barbary macaque (appendix I). In Fa, J. E. (ed.),The Barbary Macaque: A Case Study in Conservation, Plenum Press, London, pp. 335–346.
Fa, J. E., Taub, D. M., Ménard, N., and Stewart, P. J. (1984). The distribution and current status of the Barbary macaque in North Africa. In Fa, J. E. (ed.),The Barbary Macaque: A Case Study in Conservation, Plenum Press, London, pp. 79–101.
Freeland, W. J. (1979). Mangabey (Cercocebus albigena) social organization and population density in relation to food use and availability.Folia primatol. 32: 108–124.
Gartlan, J. S., and Brain, C. K. (1968). Ecology and social variability inCercopithecus aethiops andC. mitus. In Jay, P. (ed.),Primates: Studies in Adaptation and Variability, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, pp. 253–292.
Geraldin, V., and Lecompte, M. (1975).Carte de la végétation forestière de Talassemtane, Institut Scientifique Chérifien, Rabat, Morocco.
Hall, K. R. L. (1963). Variations in the ecology of the chacma baboon.Symp. zool. Soc. Lond. 10: 1–28.
Ikeda, H. (1982). Population changes and ranging behavior of wild Japanese monkeys at Mt. Kawaradake in Kyushu, Japan.Primates 23(3): 338–347.
Iwamoto (1978). Food availability as a limiting factor on population density of the Japanese monkey and Gelada baboon. In Chivers, D. J., and Herbert, J. (ed.),Recent Advances in Primatology, Vol. I, Academic Press, London, pp. 287–303.
Khalil, M. A. K., and Robertson, A. W. (1984).Conifers for Biomass Production, Vol. 1. Report No. 1, Programme Group ’B,’ Forestry Energy Programme, Canadian Forestry Service.
Kuester, J., and Paul, P. (1984). Female reproductive characteristics in semifree-ranging Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus L. 1758).Folia Primatol. 43: 69–83.
Mehlman, P. T. (1984). Aspects of the ecology and conservation of the Barbary macaque in the fir forest habitat of the Moroccan Rif mountains. In Fa, J. E. (ed.),The Barbary Macaque: A Case Study in Conservation, Plenum Press, London, pp. 67–81.
Mehlman, P. T. (1986a). Male intergroup mobility in a wild population of the Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus), Ghomaran Rif mountains, Morocco.Am. J. Primatol. 10: 67–81.
Mehlman, P. T. (1986b).Population Ecology of the Barbary Macaque (Macaca sylvanus)in the Fir Forests of the Ghomara, Moroccan Rif Mountains, Ph.D. dissertation, University of Toronto, Toronto.
Mehlman, P. T. (1988). Food resources of the Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) in the fir forests of the Ghomara, Moroccan Rif, Morocco.J. Zool. Lond. 214: 469–490.
Mehlman, P. T., and Parkhill, R. S. (1988). Intergroup interactions in wild Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus).Am. J. Primatol. 15: 31–44.
Metro, A. (1958). ForÊts du Maroc. InNotices Explicatives, Atlas du Maroc, Comité de Géographie du Maroc, Rabat.
Ménard, N. (1985). Le régime alimentaire deMacaca sylvanus dans différents habitats d’Algérie. I. Régime en ChÊnaie décidué.Rev. Ecol. (Terre Vie) 40: 452–466.
Ménard, N., and Vallet, D. (1986). Le régime alimentaire deMacaca sylvanus dans différents habitats d’Algérie. II. Régime en forÊt sempervirente et sur le sommets rocheux.Rev. Ecol. (Terre Vie) 41: 173–192.
Ménard, N., Vallet, D., and Gautier-Hion, A. (1985). Démographie et réproductionde Macaca sylvanus dans différents habitats en Algérie.Folia Primatol. 44: 65–81.
Mitchell, A. F. (1972).Conifers in the British Isles, Forestry Commission Booklet No. 33, Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, London.
Neville, M. K. (1968). Ecology and activity of Himalayan foothill rhesus monkeys (Macaca sylvanus).Ecology 40: 110–123.
Paul, A., and Kuester, J. (1985). Intergroup transfer and incest avoidance in semifree-ranging Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus) at Salem (FRG).Am. J. Primatol. 8: 317–322.
Paul, A., and Kuester, J. (1988). Life history patterns of Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus) at Affenberg Salem. In Fa, J. E., and Southwick, C. H. (ed.),The Ecology and Behavior of Food-Enhanced Primate Groups, Alan R. Liss, New York.
Paul, A., and Thommen, D. (1984). Timing of birth, female reproductive success and infant sex ratio in semifree-ranging Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus).Folia Primatol. 42: 2–16.
SCET-International (1973).ForÊt Domaniale de Talassemtane, 2617.3 hectares: Projet de Procès Verbal d’Aménagement (1976–1999), République Francaise, Ministère des Affaires Etrangères, Charia Alamiyane, Rabat, Morocco.
Siegel, S. (1956).Nonparametric Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Sokal, R. R., and Rohl, F. J. (1981).Biometry, W. H. Freeman, New York.
Southwick, C. H., Richie, T., Taylor, H., Teas, J. H., and Siddiqi, M. F. (1980). Rhesus monkey populations in India and Nepal: Patterns of growth, decline, and natural regulation. In Cohen, M. N., Malpass, R. S., and Klein, H. G. (ed.),Biosocial Mechanisms of Population Regulation, Yale University Press, New Haven, Conn. pp. 151–169.
Struhsaker, T. T. (1975).The Red Colobus Monkey, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Sugiyama, Y. (1976). Life history of male Japanese monkeys. In Rosenblatt, J. S. (ed.),Advances in the Study of Behavior, Academic Press, New York, pp. 255–284.
Takasaki, H. (1981). Troop size, habitat quality, and home range area in Japanese macaques.Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 9: 277–281.
Taub, D. M. (1977). Geographic distribution and habitat diversity of the Barbary macaque,Macaca sylvanus L..Folia Primatol. 27: 108–133.
Taub, D. M. (1978).Aspects of the Biology of the Wild Barbary Macaque (Primates, Cercopithecinae, Macaca sylvanusL. 1758): Biogeography, the Mating System, and Male-Infant Associations, Ph.D. dissertation, University of California, Davis.
Taub, D. M. (1984). A brief historical account of the recent decline in geographic distribution of the Barbary macaque in north Africa. In Fa, J. E. (ed.),The Barbary Macaque: A Case Study in Conservation, Plenum Press, New York, pp. 71–78.
Thirgood, J. V. (1984). The demise of Barbary macaque habitat —past and present forest cover. In Fa, J. E. (ed.),The Barbary Macaque: A Case Study in Conservation, Plenum Press, New York, pp. 19–69.
Whiten, A., and Rumsey, T. J. (1973). “Agonistic buffering” in the wild Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus L.).Primates 14: 421–425.
Yoshiba, K. (1968). Local and intergroup variation in ecology and social behavior of common Indian langurs. In Jay, P. (ed.),Primates: Studies in Adaptation and Variability, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York, pp. 217–242.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Mehlman, P.T. Comparative density, demography, and ranging behavior of Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus) in marginal and prime conifer habitats. Int J Primatol 10, 269–292 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02737418
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02737418