The effects of social status on food-associated calling behaviour in captive cotton-top tamarins

We examined the effects of social environment on food-asociated calling of cotton-top tamarins, Saguinus oedipus, in two experiments. In experiment 1, we compared the food-associated calling behaviour of six juvenile tamarins living in their natal groups with their calling behaviour 9 months after being removed from family groups and paired. In experiment 2, we studied food-associated calling behaviour of nine cotton-top tamarins immediately before and after removal from their natal groups and pairing. The tamarins underwent three separate developmental processes in their calling behaviour. Animals removed from their natal groups showed an immediate reduction in vocalizations other than food-associated calls (C and D chirps). The development of precise adult forms of C and D chirps was more gradual and was a function of time since removal from their natal group rather than time since pairing. Finally, the postremoval tamarins persisted in applying C chirps to nonfood objects and showed no correlation between C-chirp rate and food preference, which is typical of immature tamarins. We conclude that social status plays an important role in the development of adult forms and usage of food-associated calls. Copyright 1999 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.