Mimetic muscles in a despotic macaque (Macaca mulatta) differ from those in a closely related tolerant macaque (M. nigra)

Tools

Burrows, AM, Waller, BM ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6303-7458 and Micheletta, J, 2016. Mimetic muscles in a despotic macaque (Macaca mulatta) differ from those in a closely related tolerant macaque (M. nigra). Anatomical Record: Advances in Integrative Anatomy and Evolutionary Biology, 299 (10), pp. 1317-1324. ISSN 1932-8486

Preview

Text
1383840_Waller.pdf - Post-print
Download (542kB) | Preview

Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/ar.23393

Abstract

Facial displays (or expressions) are a primary means of visual communication among conspecifics in many mammalian orders. Macaques are an ideal model among primates for investigating the co‐evolution of facial musculature, facial displays, and social group size/behavior under the umbrella of “ecomorphology”. While all macaque species share some social behaviors, dietary, and ecological parameters, they display a range of social dominance styles from despotic to tolerant. A previous study found a larger repertoire of facial displays in tolerant macaque species relative to despotic species. The present study was designed to further explore this finding by comparing the gross morphological features of mimetic muscles between the Sulawesi macaque (Macaca nigra), a tolerant species, and the rhesus macaque (M. mulatta), a despotic species. Five adult M. nigra heads were dissected and mimetic musculature was compared to those from M. mulatta. Results showed that there was general similarity in muscle presence/absence between the species as well as muscle form except for musculature around the external ear. M. mulatta had more musculature around the external ear than M. nigra. In addition, M. nigra lacked a zygomaticus minor while M. mulatta is reported to have one. These morphological differences match behavioral observations documenting a limited range of ear movements used by M. nigra during facial displays. Future studies focusing on a wider phylogenetic range of macaques with varying dominance styles may further elucidate the roles of phylogeny, ecology, and social variables in the evolution of mimetic muscles within Macaca.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Anatomical Record: Advances in Integrative Anatomy and Evolutionary Biology
Creators:	Burrows, A.M., Waller, B.M. and Micheletta, J.
Publisher:	Wiley
Date:	October 2016
Volume:	299
Number:	10
ISSN:	1932-8486
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1002/ar.23393 DOI 1383840 Other
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	Linda Sullivan
Date Added:	03 Nov 2020 09:18
Last Modified:	31 May 2021 15:14
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/41464