Olfactory sensitivity of spider monkeys for predator odors
In may 2011 I travelled to Mexico to collect data for my master thesis, My destination was Pipiapan, a research station belonging to Universidad Veracruz outside the town of Catemaco in the Los Tuxtlas region of Veracruz. At this research station Spider monkeys are held in captivity.
Spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) are a relatively large bodied primate species that has few natural enemies in the wild. When it comes to predator detection the traditional view have been that they use their vision and have a poor sense of smell. In general this is the view that spider monkeys rely on their vision and not their smell.
For many mammals the sense of smell play an important role in their social beaviors, location of food and also predator detection.
Supervisor:
Professor Matthias Laska, Linköping University
Responsible for this page:
Director of undergraduate studies Biology
Last updated:
05/18/12