Doctoral Dissertation Improvement: Vertical Climbing Efficiency in Primates

Duke University, Durham NC

Investigators

Abstract

Vertical climbing is thought to have played a major role in the evolution of locomotor specializations within primates. As a primarily arboreal radiation, all primates regularly climb. However, almost nothing is known about energetic costs of climbing in primates or any other mammals. As a result they are an ideal group in which to address questions concerning the mechanics of vertical climbing. Some primates, such as apes, spider monkeys, and lorises, have putative morphological and behavioral adaptations for climbing. These adaptations, like long limbs and long stride lengths, are argued to have been important in the evolution of suspensory locomotion and bipedalism. The data collected for the project proposed here will fill a critical gap in our knowledge concerning the mechanics of climbing and the relationship between postcranial anatomy and metabolic costs for this important locomotor behavior. This research will collect data on the energy costs of climbing in primates and compare these costs to step length in order to determine whether long steps provide an energetic advantage during climbing. Research will be conducted at the Duke University Primate Center, Durham, NC, and the Monkey Jungle/DuMond Conservancy, Homestead, FL. Five species of primates will be examined, three species with long limbs and two, more generalized species. Subjects of each of these species will be videotaped during climbing on a novel, vertical rope treadmill while the researchers collect oxygen consumption data to estimate energetic cost. The results of this study will provide the first quantitative data on the energetic costs of climbing in non-human primates, and contribute to a broader knowledge of climbing dynamics. Such data will be important for understanding primate adaptations to climbing, and ultimately the evolution of specialized locomotion like bipedalism. The broader impacts of this study are three-fold. First, this project supports the development of women in science as both first-rate teachers and researchers by contributing to a female graduate student's dissertation research. Second, the methods and conclusions developed in this project will be included in undergraduate anthropology classes taught by the PI and Co-PI. Finally, this project intends to directly involve undergraduates from both Duke University and the University of Florida in this research.