ABSTRACT
In my study, I examined several models that have been proposed to explain and predict female primate social behavior (Isbell 1991; van Schaik 1989; Sterck, Watts, & van Schaik 1997; Wrangham 1980). Here, I evaluate the accuracy of these models in predicting the female social relationships characteristic of vervets and patas monkeys on Segera, based on the data collected in my study. In particular, I assess the utility of using broad categories of food availability to predict female social relationships in these species. I review the ways in which specific characteristics of foods and primates’ feeding behavior influenced contest competition among vervets and patas monkeys and, subsequently, how patterns of feeding competition influenced adult female dominance relationships in these species. Although a number of models use food availability to predict the competitive regimes of female primates living in groups and, subsequently, social organization, data used to support the underlying theory are complex, and patterns of food distribution and abundance are inadequately measured for most primates. Additionally, female primates contest one another over resources as varied as mates, space, and grooming partners (e.g., Schino 2001).
