A Homo sapiens sapiens ponders a Gorilla gorilla gorilla
...and vice versa.
Week 4: Primate Behavior This lab exercise is designed to introduce you to studies of primate behavior. First you will consider why living primate behavior is studied by anthropologists interested in human origins and human ancestors, and then you will discuss some examples of living primate behavior. For this lab assignment, you will be required to follow several steps: -- BEFORE COMING TO LAB -- Step 1: Read chapter 6, especially pages 125-139, BEFORE coming to lab. Step 2: Read the article that you were individually assigned in lab Week 3, again BEFORE coming to lab. Each person in your group will read a different article. -- IN LAB -- 5 minutes: Step 3: In your base group, discuss the question listed under Part I below. This question focuses on the information in the textbook. 10 minutes: Step 4: Assemble in "fieldwork" groups with the other people who read the article you were individually assigned. There will be four different groups. Step 5: Discuss the questions in Part II for your article. 10 minutes: Step 6: Re-assemble in your base groups and discuss the conclusion question in Part III. Remainder of lab: Step 7: Discussion of the conclusions and issues in early hominid behavior. Part I. Base Group discussion. 5 MINUTES Base your discussion on your reading of the textbook chapter. 1. Why do we study living primates in order to learn about our own past? 2. What do we gain by studying living primates? 3. What are some potential dangers of using the behaviors of living primates to understand the behavior of early hominids? Part II. Fieldwork Group 1: "Machiavellian Monkeys" 10 MINUTES 1. Explain the difference between programmed, genetically determined deception and tactical deception. (It may help to give examples of each.) Why is tactical deception considered a huge "cognitive leap" on the part of primates? 2. Assume that you can apply the behavior discussed in this article directly to the unknown social life of early humans. What does this suggest about the importance of social intelligence and skill at deception among early humans? Why might these things have been important? 3. Is there a link between deception and intelligence? What kinds of "deception" do modern humans use? How might deception have led to greater intelligence? Part II. Fieldwork Group 2: "Gut Thinking" 10 MINUTES 1. What are the differences in the way spider monkeys and howler monkeys use their environment (both the resources and the space around them)? 2. What makes spider monkeys so much smarter than howler monkeys? 3. What are the implications for this link between differences in diet and differences in intelligence for human evolution? If you found two similar-seeming species of our ancestors living in the same area, but evidence indicated that one ate mostly grasses and seeds while the other ate fruits, nuts, grasses and seeds, would you expect differences in behavior and intelligence between them? Part II. Fieldwork Group 3: "The Myth of the Coy Female" 10 MINUTES 1. In a primate group, who can benefit and how when a male is promiscuous within the group? Who can benefit and how when a female is promiscuous? 2. Does there seem to be a trend for primates to develop permanent pair bonds (that is, monogamy)? Can you see any pattern of sexual behaviors and social relationships within primate groups (perhaps related to diet, environment, or size)? 3. Based on this article, do you think the "nuclear family" (male-female bonded pair and their offspring) was important in the evolution of our human ancestors? If so, why? If not, what kind of social group and sexual behavior do you think may have been important? Part II. Fieldwork Group 4: "Leading Ladies" 1)Under what circumstances do female baboons become "leading ladies"? 2)What factors seem to be responsible for the differences between elder male and elder female roles in baboon societies? 3)Does the situation with baboons have parallels in human societies? Can you think of similar situations in human societies in which elder members of the group carry the most decision-making clout? What does that imply about the ways in which the elderly are treated in this society? Part III. Base Group. Summary Discussion 10 MINUTES Members of your group will each report on the findings of the four different "fieldwork" groups. Based on these reports, what inferences or educated guesses can you make about the behavior of our early human ancestors? You should come up with at least one analogy from each "fieldwork" experience. "Machiavellian Monkeys" "Gut Thinking" "The Myth of the Coy Female" "Leading Ladies" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- For Your Information: A Geological Chart of Primate Fossils: This chart will help you understand where priamte fossils fall in the family tree of primates, as well as what was happening with the earth when they were still living. The chart is arranged with the most recent fossils on top because typically, in archaeology and geology, the oldest layer is the most deeply buried. The new deposits are made on top of older ones. The sequence of fossils and epochs below is therefore a visual analog to the actual sequence of layers found in the ground. Geological Epoch Fossil Finds and Geological Events HOLOCENE 10,000 BP (before present) Ice Age ends (also written 10 kya, .01 mya) CENOZOIC: Age of Mammals Quaternary PLEISTOCENE Climatic fluctuations and glaciations 1.8 - .01 mya Material evidence for human culture appears Appearance of genus Homo Tertiary PLIOCENE Hominid radiation (i.e., variations appear) 5 - 1.8 mya First confirmed bipedalism among primates: Australopiths MIOCENE First terrestrial (ground-dwelling) primates appear 25 - 5 mya Hominoid radiation Phylogenetic evolution toward Hominids occurs in Dryopiths and Ramapiths Proconsul (an early Dryopith) Pliopithecus (?gibbon ancestor) Sivapithecus (?orangutan ancestor) Kenyapithecus (?early hominid?) Gigantopithecus (pongid) OLIGOCENE Anthropoid radiation (monkeys) 37 - 25 mya Fayum fossils laid down in Egypt Anthropoid ancestors appear: Propliopithecus Aegyptopithecus EOCENE Prosimian radiation 53 - 37 mya New World monkeys split off Phylogenetic evolution toward Anthropoids occurs: Pondaungia PALEOCENE Flowering plants appear 65 - 53 mya Mammalian radiation First insectivores First Prosimians Plesiadiapsis MEZOZOIC: Age of Reptiles CRETACEOUS Age of dinosaurs 135 - 65 mya Shrew-like ancestral primate Purgatorius (c. 85 mya)
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