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Brief communication: Self-suckling in Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) mothers before and after the death of their infant
- Source :
- American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 140:381-383
- Publication Year :
- 2009
- Publisher :
- Wiley, 2009.
-
Abstract
- We report here self-suckling in four wild female Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus), living in two troops (i.e. ‘‘Flat face’’ and ‘‘Large’’ troop) in the middle-Atlas Mountains, Morocco. The four females lost their infants due to predation or for unknown causes. Self-suckling was observed before and after the infants died in the four females living in the ‘‘Flat face’’ troop. When the infants were still alive, self-suckling was of short duration and it was probably a method to improve milk flow when the infant switched from one nipple to the other. After the infants died, self-suckling lasted significantly longer and the females were apparently drinking their own milk. Self-suckling was never observed among the four lactating females in the ‘‘Large’’ troop (including one monkey who lost her infant) and it could thus represent a cultural difference. Moreover, self-suckling after the death of an infant may be explained by the energetic and immunological benefits that a monkey may gain from drinking their own milk. Finally, selfsuckling may have a stress-releasing effect on the mothers who have lost their infants.
- Subjects :
- Behavior, Animal
biology
Macaca sylvanus
Physiology
Gender studies
Cercopithecidae
biology.organism_classification
Macaque
Prolactin
Animals, Suckling
Predation
medicine.anatomical_structure
Anthropology
biology.animal
Lactation
medicine
Animals
Macaca
Female
Milk flow
Anatomy
Maternal Behavior
Short duration
Stress, Psychological
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 10968644 and 00029483
- Volume :
- 140
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- American Journal of Physical Anthropology
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....2aae525de51eb30e073d57aadc7593b0