THE NATURAL HISTORY OF MODEL ORGANISMS Insights into the evolution of social systems and species from baboon studies

International audienceBaboons, members of the genus Papio, comprise six closely related species distributed throughout sub-Saharan Africa and southwest Arabia. The species exhibit more ecological flexibility and a wider range of social systems than many other primates. This article summarizes our current knowledge of the natural history of baboons and highlights directions for future research. We suggest that baboons can serve as a valuable model for complex evolutionary processes, such as speciation and hybridization. The evolution of baboons has been heavily shaped by climatic changes and population expansion and fragmentation in the African savanna environment, similar to the processes that acted during human evolution. With accumulating long-term data, and new data from previously understudied species, baboons are ideally suited for investigating the links between sociality, health, longevity and reproductive success. To achieve these aims, we propose a closer integration of studies at the proximate level, including functional genomics, with behavioral and ecological studies

Data from: To grunt or not to grunt: factors governing call production in female olive baboons, Papio anubis

Vocal signals often play an important role in synchronizing the activities of group members, coordinating decisions about when and where to travel, and facilitating social interactions in which there are potential conflicts of interest. In chacma baboons, Papio ursinus, low amplitude grunts facilitate nonaggressive social interactions and reconcile conflicts. Grunts seem to function as signals of benign intent and reduce uncertainty about the signaler's subsequent behavior. Here, we replicate and extend these findings in another species of savanna baboons, the olive baboon, Papio anubis. As in chacma baboons, female olive baboons are more likely to grunt as they approach lower ranking females than as they approach higher ranking females and are less likely to grunt as they approach their own mothers and daughters than as they approach other females. Taken together, these data support the hypothesis that baboons modify their call production for different listeners in different social contexts, and support the view that the mechanisms underlying call production may overlap with the mechanisms underlying call perception

Insights into the evolution of social systems and species from baboon studies

Baboons, members of the genus Papio, comprise six closely related species distributed throughout sub-Saharan Africa and southwest Arabia. The species exhibit more ecological flexibility and a wider range of social systems than many other primates. This article summarizes our current knowledge of the natural history of baboons and highlights directions for future research. We suggest that baboons can serve as a valuable model for complex evolutionary processes, such as speciation and hybridization. The evolution of baboons has been heavily shaped by climatic changes and population expansion and fragmentation in the African savanna environment, similar to the processes that acted during human evolution. With accumulating long-term data, and new data from previously understudied species, baboons are ideally suited for investigating the links between sociality, health, longevity and reproductive success. To achieve these aims, we propose a closer integration of studies at the proximate level, including functional genomics, with behavioral and ecological studies