Payment for labour in monkeys

Cooperative hunting, in which several individuals pursue prey but only one makes a capture, is central to theories of human social and moral evolution. But among other primates, it is known only from the chimpanzee and a large-brained neotropical monkey, the capuchin. It probably evolved through eit...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature (London) 2000-04, Vol.404 (6778), p.563-563
Main Authors: de Waal, Frans B. M, Berger, Michelle L
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal ethology
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Biological Evolution
brief-communication
Cebus - physiology
Cebus apella
Cooperation
Cooperative Behavior
Feeding Behavior
Female
Food
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Humanities and Social Sciences
Male
Mammalia
Monkeys & apes
multidisciplinary
Mutualism
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Reward
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Vertebrata
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Cooperative hunting, in which several individuals pursue prey but only one makes a capture, is central to theories of human social and moral evolution. But among other primates, it is known only from the chimpanzee and a large-brained neotropical monkey, the capuchin. It probably evolved through either mutualism, in which two or more cooperators benefit simultaneously, or reciprocal altruism, in which one favour is repaid by another. We have found that brown capuchins (Cebus apella) share rewards obtained by a joint effort more readily than rewards obtained individually. Even if hunting in the field involves selfish opportunism, this food incentive will greatly enhance the persistence of cooperation.
ISSN:0028-0836
1476-4687
DOI:10.1038/35007138