Chakraborty B, Pithva K, Mohanty S, McCowan B. Lethal dog attacks on adult rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) in an anthropogenic landscape.
Primates 2024;
65:151-157. [PMID:
38446367 PMCID:
PMC11018557 DOI:
10.1007/s10329-024-01122-y]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 03/07/2024]
Abstract
For nonhuman primates living in anthropogenic areas, predation by larger predators is relatively rare. However, smaller predators, such as free-ranging as well as domesticated dogs, can shape the socioecology of urban nonhuman primates, either directly by attacking and killing them or indirectly by modifying their activity patterns. Here, we describe three (two probably fatal) cases of dog attacks on adult rhesus macaques inhabiting an anthropogenic landscape in Northern India and the circumstances surrounding these incidents. We discuss the importance of considering human presence and intervention in dog-nonhuman primate relationships while studying nonhuman primate populations across anthropogenic gradients, and its potential influences on group social dynamics and transmission of zoonotic agents.
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