The Behavioural Ecology of the Northern Muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus) at the Reserva Particular Patrimônio Natural- Feliciano Miguel Abdala (RPPN- FMA), Minas Gerais, Brazil. Tommy Charles Burch 2020 School of Science, Engineering and Environment MSc (by Research) Thesis Table of Contents List of Tables .......................................................................................................................... 7 List of Figures ........................................................................................................................ 9 List of Appendices ............................................................................................................... 13 Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. 15 Abstract ................................................................................................................................ 16 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 18 1.1. Objectives, Hypothesis, and Predictions ....................................................................... 20 1.2. Literature Review .......................................................................................................... 21 1.2.1. Taxonomy and Morphology .................................................................................. 21 1.2.2. Geographic Range and Population Size ................................................................. 25 1.2.3. Main Threats .......................................................................................................... 28 1.2.4. Muriqui Social Organisation and Behavioural Traits ............................................ 30 1.2.5. Male Philopatry and Puberty ................................................................................. 32 1.2.6. Female Dispersal, Puberty, and Motherhood ......................................................... 33 2 1.2.7. Sexual Behaviour ................................................................................................... 34 1.2.8. Activity Budgets and Diurnal Activity Cycles of Muriquis .................................. 35 1.2.9. Muriqui Home Range and Day Range Travel Length ........................................... 37 1.2.10. Terrestrial Habituation ......................................................................................... 38 1.2.11. Evolutionary Adaptations for Diet ....................................................................... 40 1.2.12. Dietary Items ........................................................................................................ 42 1.2.13. Feeding Time Analyses ........................................................................................ 42 1.2.14. Seasonal Variability in Feeding Time.................................................................. 44 1.2.15. Sex Differences in Feeding Time ........................................................................ 44 1.2.16. Seed Consumption and Dispersal ........................................................................ 45 1.2.17. The Importance of Conserving Muriquis ............................................................. 45 1.2.18. Further Research Required .................................................................................. 46 2. Methods............................................................................................................................ 47 2.1. Study Site ...................................................................................................................... 47 2.1.1. Disturbances at this Site ......................................................................................... 49 3 2.2. Study Group .................................................................................................................. 49 2.3. Habituation of the Jaó Group ........................................................................................ 50 2.4. Behavioural Sampling ................................................................................................... 50 2.5. Data Analyses ................................................................................................................ 51 3. Results .............................................................................................................................. 55 3.1. Overall Activity Budget and Intermonthly Variation ................................................... 55 3.2. Diurnal Activity Cycles ................................................................................................. 57 3.2.1. Wet Season Diurnal Activity Cycle ....................................................................... 58 3.2.2. Dry Season Diurnal Activity Cycle ....................................................................... 59 3.3. Age-Sex Class Variation in Activity Budgets ............................................................... 60 3.4. Correlations Between Activities and/or Foraging Patterns ........................................... 63 3.5. Overall Diet and Intermonthly Variation ...................................................................... 66 3.6. Age-Sex Class Variation in Diet ................................................................................... 71 3.7. Day Range Travel Length ............................................................................................. 77 4. Discussion ........................................................................................................................ 78 4.1. Activity Budget and Feeding Time Comparison........................................................... 78 4 4.1.1. Intermonthly Variation in Activity Budgets and Feeding Time ............................ 86 4.1.2. Age-Sex Class Differences in Activity Budgets and Feeding Time ...................... 88 4.2. Diurnal Activity Cycles Comparison ............................................................................ 92 4.2.1. Seasonal Variation in Diurnal Activity Cycles ...................................................... 93 4.3. Day Range Travel Length Comparison ......................................................................... 95 4.4. Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 99 References .............................................................................................................................. 106 Appendices ............................................................................................................................. 117 Appendix I. ......................................................................................................................... 117 Appendix II. ....................................................................................................................... 118 Appendix III. ...................................................................................................................... 121 Appendix IV. ...................................................................................................................... 122 Appendix V. ....................................................................................................................... 123 Appendix VI. ...................................................................................................................... 124 Appendix VII...................................................................................................................... 126 Appendix VIII. ................................................................................................................... 127 5 Appendix IX. ...................................................................................................................... 132 Appendix X. ....................................................................................................................... 133 Appendix XI. ...................................................................................................................... 134 Appendix XII...................................................................................................................... 135 6 List of Tables Table I: The overall and intermonthly variation of time devoted to each activity over sample periods in percentage. .............................................................................................................. 56 Table II: The proportion of time (%) devoted to each activity over the entire sample period for each of the three groups. Sorted by means in descending order. ....................................... 62 Table III: Correlation between Rest, Travel, Feed, Fruit, Leaf, Flower*. Cell Contents: Pearson correlation (above), p Value (below). Significant Results are in bold. ...................... 63 Table IV: Correlation between Rest, Travel, Feed, Mature Fruit (MtFr), Immature Fruit (ImFr), Mature Leaf (MtLv), Immature Leaf (ImLv), Flower (Flow), Bud, and Nectar (Nect). Cell Contents: Pearson correlation (above), p Value (below). Significant Results are in Bold. .................................................................................................................................................. 64 Table V: The overall and intermonthly variation of time devoted to each food type over