Owl Monkeys, 1st ed. 2023 Biology, Adaptive Radiation, and Behavioral Ecology of the Only Nocturnal Primate in the Americas Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects Series

This book integrates three decades of owl monkey research conducted since 1994 when the first and only book focused on the genus Aotus was published. Owl monkeys were one of the least understood primates then; knowledge from wild populations was only beginning to emerge and there had been some substantial research in colonies of captive individuals. The situation is very different today. Research on captive owl monkeys has continued to develop, with valuable contributions to the health and medical sciences. And there is now enough information on the behavior, ecology, conservation, and biogeography of the genus that merits a synthesis.

The book synthesizes new field data on the biogeography, behavioral ecology, circadian biology, population biology and demography spanning their entire continental range from Panamá to Argentina. It includes theoretical perspectives drawn from evolutionary biology, biological anthropology, anatomy, morphology and physiology, genetics, endocrinology and conservation biology to examine a specic set of adaptations that have allowed owl monkeys to exploit the nocturnal niche while functioning in a pair-living sexually monogamous system with remarkable patterns of paternal care.

The author, with 30 years of research experience with both captive and wild primates, has directed the longest project on any owl monkey species and has conducted extensive original research on their biology, adaptive radiation and behavioral ecology. His expertise and published record on both wild populations and laboratory colonies makes this book one of a kind; it presents information from both captive and wild primates and explores questions through the integration of both approaches.

The volume offers some additional features that make it novel in its approach: (1) brings together a combination of senior researchers who during four decades have established captive owl monkeys as a system of study with a new generation of younger scientists who have, for the last 10-20 years, been spearheading their study in the wild, (2) presents the work of a remarkably diverse range of authors representing all countries where owl monkeys are present, as well as researchers from the U.S and Europe, and (3) offers ?synthesis? chapters; in doing so, it will surely become a reference book for those specifically drawn to owl monkeys, as well as for those interested in the research topics that are covered.

Foreword:  

Preface:

Author: Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*

Color plate with photographs of the 11 recognized owl monkey species

Chapter 1: Cebid or pitheciid: An evolutionary history of Aotus, the Owl Monkey.

Authors: Marcelo Tejedor* & Alfred Rosenberger*

Chapter 2: Phylogeography of owl monkey

Chapter 3: Indigenous records of owl monkeys, early explorers, historical and current review  ofthe studies of owl monkeys (15th-20th centuries)

Eduardo Fernandez-Duque* and a few more TBD (possible: Anthony Rylands, B. Urbani)

Chapter 4: The Owl Monkey Project of Argentina: 30 years of field research, education and conservation

Eduardo Fernandez-Duque* and Marcelo Rotundo*

Chapter 5: Taxonomy and distribution

Authors: TBD

Chapter 6: Genomics.

Jeffrey Rogers*

Chapter 7: Diet, dentition, and jaw shape in Aotus,

Siobhán B. Cooke* and Zachary S. Klukkert*

Chapter 8: Phylogenetics/molecular

Anthony Di Fiore*

Chapter 9: Reproductive Ecology and Behavioral Endocrinology of Owl Monkeys.

Chapter 10: Behavioral, physiological and morphological thermoregulatory adaptations.

Authors: Juan Pablo Perea-Rodriguez*, Horacio de la Iglesia* and Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*

Chapter 11: Field methods for the study of owl monkeys.

Authors: M. Rotundo*, A. Di Fiore* and E. Fernandez-Duque*

Chapter 12: Patterns of nocturnal activity by night monkeys (Aotus spp.) in the tropics.

Authors: A. Link* and Sebastián Montilla*

Chapter 13: Cathemerality in Azara’s owl monkeys of Argentina.

Authors: Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*, Horacio de la Iglesia*

Chapter 14: Social Behavior in Owl Monkeys.

Authors: Alba García de la Chica* and Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*

Chapter 15: Paternal care in owl monkeys

Authors: Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*

Chapter 16: Dispersal: a critical life-history stage influencing populations, social dynamics, and individual fitness.

Authors: Margaret Corley* and Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*

Chapter 17: The great unknown – what we (do not) know about floaters.

Authors: Maren Huck* and Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*

Chapter 18: Intraspecific communication among owl monkeys.

Authors: Andrea Spence-Aizenberg*, Alba Garcia de la Chica*, Sian Evans*, Brenda Bradley*, Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*

Chapter 19: Owl Monkey Diet and Feeding Ecology.

Authors: Griëtte van der Heide*,  Victor Dávalos*, Sian Evans*, Eduardo Fernandez-Duque*

Chapter 20: Correlates of population densities and occupancy rates in night monkeys. 

Authors: Nestor Allgas*and Lorena Fernandez*

Chapter 21: Population Status and Conservation of the Panamanian Night Monkey Aotus zonalis.

Authors: Pedro A. González-Hernández* and Pedro Méndez-Carvajal*

Chapter 22: Population assessment and strategies for the conservation of Nancy Ma’s night monkey populations at the Colombian-Peruvian Amazon border.

Chapter 23: Conservation of Aotus sp. in anthropogenic habitats in the Andes.

Authors: Sam Shanee*

Chapter 24: Trade in owl monkeys.

Authors: Sam Shanee*, Magdalena Svensson* and Angela Maldonado*

Chapter 25: The owl monkey colony at the Michale Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine.

Authors: Lawrence Williams*

Chapter 26: The owl monkeys of the DuMond Conservancy in Miami, USA – a scientific, educational and community asset.

Dr. Eduardo Fernandez-Duque is Professor of Anthropology and the School of the Environment at Yale University. He is a cofounder of Fundación ECO, a not-for-profit organization promoting education in northern Argentina, a corresponding member of the Argentine Council for Science and Technology (CONICET), a National Geographic Explorer and an Invited Professor of the Universidad Nacional de Formosa of Argentina and the Universidad San Francisco de Quito of Ecuador.

Born in Argentina, Dr. Fernandez-Duque completed his first degree in biology at the University of Buenos Aires before receiving his PhD in animal behavior at the University of California, Davis. He was a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University, the Smithsonian Institution, the Zoological Society of San Diego and a faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania. His research program, which bridges the fields of evolutionary anthropology, psychology and primatology, focuses on examining the behavioral, physiological, and ecological correlates of male-female relationships, pair-bonding, and parental care.

For 30 years he has studied pair living and monogamous primates, including the owl monkeys discussed in this volume, at field sites in the Ecuadorian and Peruvian Amazon, the Argentinean Chaco, and National Primate Centers in the US. He has published over 150 articles and has contributed to the training of more than 400 students from 20 different countries.

Brings together a combination of well-established researchers

Draws from a remarkably diverse range of authors representing all countries

Focuses on presenting “synthesis” chapters