title: Seed predation by bonobos (Pan paniscus) at Kokolopori, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
abstract: We compared the feeding ecology of the Hali-Hali community of bonobos (Pan paniscus) at Kokolopori, a new field site in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, between two periods 5 months apart. During the first study period (SP1), bonobos relied heavily on the dry seeds of Guibourtia (Caesalpiniaceae), mostly eaten from the ground. The second period (SP2) was characterized by high consumption of ripe tree fruit. Terrestrial herbaceous vegetation (THV) contributed little to the diet in either study period. The low amount of ripe fruit and the high reliance on seeds in the diet during SP1 were associated with high cortisol production and low levels of urinary C-peptide in females, suggesting nutritional stress. However, female gregariousness was not constrained during the fruit-poor period, probably because high seed abundance on the ground ameliorated scramble feeding competition. This is the first description of extensive seed predation by bonobos. It suggests that bonobo feeding ecology may be more similar to that of chimpanzees than previously recognized.
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Peabody Museum, 11 Divinity Ave, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. georgiev@fas.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Alexander V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Georgiev
authors.forename: Melissa Emery
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.forename: Albert Lotana
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Lokasola
authors.forename: Richard W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Wrangham
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002096:C-Peptide / Q000652:urine; D015023:Democratic Republic of the Congo; D007887:Fabaceae; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences; D005638:Fruit / Q000145:classification; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000652:urine; D008297:Male; D009752:Nutritional Status; D019974:Pan paniscus / Q000502:physiology* / Q000652:urine; D012621:Seasons; D012639:Seeds / Q000145:classification*; D012919:Social Behavior; D014197:Trees
chemical_list: D002096:C-Peptide; D006854:Hydrocortisone