More Like this

1. Coming to the Caribbean—acclimation of Rhesus macaques ( Macaca mulatta ) at Cayo Santiago

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24748  

   Francis, George; Wang, Qian (April 2023, American Journal of Biological Anthropology)

   Abstract ObjectivesTo investigate whether the Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico (Latitude: 18.1564°N; temperature range 19°C to 32°C) rhesus macaque population has acclimated to their tropical island conditions since arriving from Lucknow, India (Latitude: 26.8470°N; temperature range 8°C to 41°C) in 1938. Materials and MethodsUsing the derived skeletal collection, measurements were taken of long bone lengths, diaphyseal circumference, and body weight using 635 (237 males and 398 females) skeletally mature individuals. Measurements sampled colony members born over a 51‐year time span at Cayo Santiago, from 1951 to 2002. ResultsResults demonstrated that body weights and diaphyseal circumferences significantly declined in both males and females. Long bone lengths relative to body weight and diaphyseal circumference also increased in females. Whereas body weight, long bone length and diaphyseal circumference declined at near parallel rates in males. DiscussionThe population has acclimated to homogenous, tropical, conditions of the Caribbean island since their arrival over 80 years ago. Trends in both sexes aligned with Bergmann's rule, though females displayed a greater decline in body weight, as well as greater affinity with Allen's rule, than did males. Buffering effects related to male competition may be responsible for this discrepancy. Overall, the Cayo Santiago populations, as shown over a significant period (1951–2002) of their history, have acclimated to their island conditions by decreasing in size and altering body proportions. 

   more » « less
2. Relationships between sex, body mass and tooth wear in Cayo Santiago rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta)

   Guatelli-Steinberg, Debbie; Maldonado, Elizabeth; Kensler, Terry B; Kohn, Luci AP; Zhao, Martin Q; Wang, Q. (January 2021, American journal of physical anthropology)

   null (Ed.)

   Understanding factors affecting tooth wear in primates is of interest because as teeth wear, their chewing efficiency can change—in some species positively and in others negatively. It is well known that teeth wear with age, but relationships between sex and tooth wear and between body size and tooth wear are less well understood. Here we analyze molar wear scores from a cross-sectional sample of 212 Cayo Santiago rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) adults examined in 1985. Because males are generally larger than females --potentially processing more food over their lifetimes--we hypothesized that with age included in an ordinal logistic regression model, males would exhibit significantly greater wear than females. We further hypothesized that males of larger body mass would exhibit greater wear than males of smaller body mass. Finally, because many of the females were pregnant or lactating at the time of dental examination, we hypothesized that there would be no relationship between body mass and wear in females. We found that with age included in ordinal logistic regression models, males had significantly more worn molars than females, larger males had more worn molars than smaller males, and that for females, molar wear was not significantly related to body mass. These results suggest that over the life course, animals with larger body sizes (males vs. females and larger vs. smaller males) may accumulate more wear than those with smaller body sizes. Future analyses to be conducted on the Cayo Santiago monkeys’ skeletal remains will further evaluate this possibility. Funding Sources: The Cayo Santiago colony is supported by NIH 5P40OD012217. This project is supported by NSF grants to DG-S., LK., MZ, and QW (NSF #1926528, 1926481, 1926402, and 1926601). 

   more » « less
3. Relationships between sex, body mass and tooth wear in Cayo Santiago rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta)

   Guatelli-Steinberg, Debbie; Maldonado, Elizabeth; Kensler, Terry B; Kohn, Luci AP; Zhao, Martin Q; Wang, Q. (January 2021, American journal of physical anthropology)

   null (Ed.)

   Understanding factors affecting tooth wear in primates is of interest because as teeth wear, their chewing efficiency can change—in some species positively and in others negatively. It is well known that teeth wear with age, but relationships between sex and tooth wear and between body size and tooth wear are less well understood. Here we analyze molar wear scores from a cross-sectional sample of 212 Cayo Santiago rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) adults examined in 1985. Because males are generally larger than females --potentially processing more food over their lifetimes--we hypothesized that with age included in an ordinal logistic regression model, males would exhibit significantly greater wear than females. We further hypothesized that males of larger body mass would exhibit greater wear than males of smaller body mass. Finally, because many of the females were pregnant or lactating at the time of dental examination, we hypothesized that there would be no relationship between body mass and wear in females. We found that with age included in ordinal logistic regression models, males had significantly more worn molars than females, larger males had more worn molars than smaller males, and that for females, molar wear was not significantly related to body mass. These results suggest that over the life course, animals with larger body sizes (males vs. females and larger vs. smaller males) may accumulate more wear than those with smaller body sizes. Future analyses to be conducted on the Cayo Santiago monkeys’ skeletal remains will further evaluate this possibility. Funding Sources: The Cayo Santiago colony is supported by NIH 5P40OD012217. This project is supported by NSF grants to DG-S., LK., MZ, and QW (NSF #1926528, 1926481, 1926402, and 1926601). 

   more » « less
4. Relationships between sex, body mass and tooth wear in Cayo Santiago rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta)

   Guatelli-Steinberg, Debbie; Maldonado, Elizabeth; Kensler, Terry B; Kohn, Luci AP; Zhao, Martin Q; Wang, Q. (January 2021, American journal of physical anthropology)

   null (Ed.)

   Understanding factors affecting tooth wear in primates is of interest because as teeth wear, their chewing efficiency can change—in some species positively and in others negatively. It is well known that teeth wear with age, but relationships between sex and tooth wear and between body size and tooth wear are less well understood. Here we analyze molar wear scores from a cross-sectional sample of 212 Cayo Santiago rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) adults examined in 1985. Because males are generally larger than females --potentially processing more food over their lifetimes--we hypothesized that with age included in an ordinal logistic regression model, males would exhibit significantly greater wear than females. We further hypothesized that males of larger body mass would exhibit greater wear than males of smaller body mass. Finally, because many of the females were pregnant or lactating at the time of dental examination, we hypothesized that there would be no relationship between body mass and wear in females. We found that with age included in ordinal logistic regression models, males had significantly more worn molars than females, larger males had more worn molars than smaller males, and that for females, molar wear was not significantly related to body mass. These results suggest that over the life course, animals with larger body sizes (males vs. females and larger vs. smaller males) may accumulate more wear than those with smaller body sizes. Future analyses to be conducted on the Cayo Santiago monkeys’ skeletal remains will further evaluate this possibility. Funding Sources: The Cayo Santiago colony is supported by NIH 5P40OD012217. This project is supported by NSF grants to DG-S., LK., MZ, and QW (NSF #1926528, 1926481, 1926402, and 1926601). 

   more » « less
5. History of Health at Cayo Santiago—An Investigation of Environmental and Genetic Influences on the Skeletal Remains of the Introduced Rhesus Macaque ( Macaca mulatta ) Colony

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.23722  

   Francis, George; Wang, Qian (January 2025, American Journal of Primatology)

   ABSTRACT The Cayo Santiago rhesus macaque colony is a renowned primate population that has experienced significant natural and anthropogenic ecological variation in their 85‐year history. Demographic and familial information is also tracked and collated for the majority of monkeys. Thus, the health history of rhesus macaques at Cayo Santiago should reflect the impacts of both environmental and genetic factors. In this study, we utilized a sample of skeletal remains comprised of 2787 individuals (1571 females, 1091 males), born between 1938 and 2017 from the derived skeletal collection of the primate colony to assess variation in survivorship, pathology, bone mineral density (BMD), and dental eruption status, in the context of hurricane impacts, nutritional fluctuations, and matriline genealogy. Results demonstrated that rhesus macaques at Cayo Santiago exhibit a range of skeletal pathologies that encompass biomedical and archaeological significance, multiple etiologies, severities, locations, and types, in addition to a secular trend of declining BMD that is hypothesized to reflect decreasing physical activity levels under increasing population densities. Specifically, hurricane impacts were found to increase the rate of systemic disease, decrease BMD in young adults, and delay eruption of the primary dentition. Certain matrilines exhibited heightened levels of systemic disease at early ages while others exhibited greater rates of congenital disease. Early‐life adversity, through the experience of major hurricanes, may enhance inflammatory pathways, heightening the risk of disease and accelerating the aging process leading to reduced BMD. Such impacts may underly greater levels of observed infection post‐hurricane through intensification of pathogen transmission and disease rates brought on by hurricane‐adaptive social strategies that favor closer proximity. Familial susceptibility to disease indicates heritable host genetic factors are likely influencing disease patterning in the population. A cluster of congenital diseases may most convincingly illustrate this, or alternatively reflects low levels of genetic diversity in the population. 

   more » « less