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Natal Attraction in Adult Female Baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus) in the Moremi Reserve, Botswana by Joan B. Silk; Drew Rendall; Dorothy L. Cheney; Robert M. Seyfarth is a Agricultural and Biological Sciences article available to read on EtoBox.

What is Natal Attraction in Adult Female Baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus) in the Moremi Reserve, Botswana about?

## Abstract Mammalian females are strongly attracted to infants and interact regularly with them. Female baboons make persistent attempts to touch, nuzzle, smell and inspect other females’ infants, but do not hold them for long periods, carry them, or provide other kinds of care for them. Mothers generally tolerate these interactions, but never initiate them. The function of these brief alloparental interactions is not well understood. Infant handling might be a form of reproductive competition if females’ interest in infants causes distress to mothers or harm to their infants. Alternatively, infant handling might be the product of selection for appropriate maternal care if females who are highly responsive to infants are the most successful mothers. We test several predictions derived from these hypotheses with data collected in a free‐ranging group of baboons (__Papio cynocephalus ursinus__) in the Moremi Reserve of Botswana. Infants were most attractive when they were very young. Mothers of young infants were approached by other adult females on average once every 6 min, and other females attempted to handle their infants approximately once every 9 min. By the time infants were

Who reads Natal Attraction in Adult Female Baboons (Papio cynocephalus ursinus) in the Moremi Reserve, Botswana?

Author

Joan B. Silk; Drew Rendall; Dorothy L. Cheney; Robert M. Seyfarth

Publisher

John Wiley and Sons; Wiley (Blackwell Publishing); Blackwell Publishing Inc.; Wiley (ISSN 1439-0310)

Published

2003

Language

EN

Field

Agricultural and Biological Sciences (Life Sciences)