Grooming, rank, and agonistic support in tufted capuchin monkeys

Studies investigating the relation between allogrooming and social rank in capuchin monkeys (genus Cebus) have yielded inconsistent results. In this study, we investigated the relation between grooming, agonistic support, aggression and social rank in a captive group of tufted capuchin monkeys (C. apella). Differently from most previous studies, we based our analyses on a relatively large database and studied a group with known genealogical relationships. Tufted capuchin females did not exchange grooming for rank-related benefits such as agonistic support or reduced aggression. Coherently with this picture, they did not groom up the hierarchy and did not compete for accessing high-ranking grooming partners. It is suggested that a small group size, coupled with a strong kin bias, may make the exchange of grooming for rank-related benefits impossible or unprofitable, thus eliminating the advantages of grooming up the hierarchy. We provide several possible explanations for the heterogeneity of results across capuchin studies that have addressed similar questions.