Spider monkeys (Ateles sp.) are common in zoological parks, but rare in scientific publications. Studies on tool use in primates have mostly focused on impressive tool users such as chimpanzees. Spider monkeys fulfill several criteria that are known to be associated with tool use. To be able to give an appropriate environment and enrichment for spider monkeys in captivity more knowledge is needed about their cognitive abilities. In this study we wanted to see if five male spider monkeys kept in a zoo could learn to use tools to reach a reward. Experiment 1 examined the subjects’ ability to learn to use a stick-tool to extract honey from a tube and experiment 2 their ability to learn to use a rake-tool to reach a reward. Each experiment consisted of three parts; A – monkeys got tools and treat next to each other; B – monkeys were shown how to use tool to get treat by a keeper and then got tools and treats next to each other; C – monkeys got tools and treats so they just could pull out the tool and get the treat. In both experiments at least two different spider monkeys succeeded with the zero-order manipulation task to pull out the tool and get treat in part C. Longer studies need to be conducted to be able to say if spider monkeys are able to learn a more complex tool using behavior as needed in part A and B.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:liu-58155 |
| Date | January 2010 |
| Creators | Högberg, Sofia |
| Publisher | Linköpings universitet, Institutionen för fysik, kemi och biologi |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/masterThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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