Way more than just monkey business

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Way more than just monkey business

Lani Fouché

It’s not just humans who are deceptive, lying cheaters and then punish each other for their sneaky infidelity. Animals do it, too. More specifically – the Gelada monkeys who are mainly found in Ethiopia.  A researcher from the University of the Free State’s department of zoology and entomoly, Dr Aliza le Roux, studied the behaviour of a group of these animals, also called the Bleeding Heart baboon, together with a group of researchers for several years. What makes this research so significant, is that for the first time ever, researchers have been able to officially witness and concretely document animals’ deceptive behaviour, followed by attempts to cover up their tracks to avoid getting beaten up by an angry boyfriend.

“We found the first solid evidence that monkeys tried to disguise their cheating, and that there was punishment if they were caught. This is a breakthrough for scientists,” said Le Roux.  This study formed a small part of Le Roux’s postdoctoral research at the University of Michigan, where researchers have established a long-term field project investigating Gelada behaviour, hormones, communication and cognition. The males appear to only recognise their closest partners and nobody else. “It was therefore a surprise to discover that Geladas hide their misdemeanours from others,” said Le Roux.

“To not only cheat, but to time your cheating so that the dominant male won’t see you, ánd then to suppress your cries of joy… all of this takes a bit of brain power.” In almost 20% of the cases, cheaters were attacked by the dominant monkey. “This is something that we as humans fully understand,” said Le Roux, “because cheating, deception and punishment is common among humans. Surprisingly, punishment is almost never found in animals. Most aggression is simply competition, instead of punishment. This study was therefore highly unusual in describing not only sneaky sex in monkeys, but the severe consequences of being caught.”

This research now paves the way for further research on animal behaviour, because it can be based on fact that animals behave deceivingly rather than assumptive. “It’s only a matter of time before we prove that fish, birds, bees, and even the cutest little otter, probably all love to monkey around this way,” said Le Roux.

lani@centralmediagroup.co.za

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