Deck 7: Primate Sociality, Social Behavior, and Culture

Question 1

Natural selection favors behaviors that enhance:

A) body size.
B) brain size.
C) population size.
D) survival and reproduction.

Answer 1

survival and reproduction.

Question 2

Grooming involves:

A) the development of alliances between females only.
B) the development of alliances between males only.
C) bonding between individuals of the same rank only, picking through the skin and hair of another individual.
D) bonding between two members of a social group, calming or appeasing the primate being groomed if he or she has a higher dominance.

Answer 2

bonding between two members of a social group, calming or appeasing the primate being groomed if he or she has a higher dominance.

Question 3

Availability of food:

A) is dependent upon kin selection.
B) can be highly variable, depending on season and rainfall.
C) is determined by the alpha male only.
D) is restricted to individuals in the dominant hierarchy.

Answer 3

can be highly variable, depending on season and rainfall.

Question 4

Three key factors that contribute to a female primate's success at feeding are:

A) speed, agility, and strength.
B) source, quantity, and safety.
C) quality, distribution, and availability of food.
D) cooperation, altruism, and quantity for sharing.

Question 5

Variation in predator-specific vocalizations in the monkeys of the Tai Forest:

A) includes stress calls between kin only.
B) includes mating calls between dominant primates only.
C) includes two different alarm calls indicating another group of chimpanzees or humans.
D) includes two different loud alarm calls in response to predators, aerial and terrestrial.

Question 6

Primatologists:

A) explore the relationships between specific social behaviors and reproductive fitness.
B) study just one aspect of primates.
C) study cultural anthropology.
D) know nothing of primate bones.

Question 7

The study of primate vocal communication:

A) has been used to understand the language evolution of all primates.
B) has resulted in chimps and gorillas demonstrating an ability to speak.
C) can give us insights into the selective pressures that may have shaped the evolution of language.
D) demonstrates that gossip is not exclusively human.

Question 8

Sexual dimorphism:

A) relates to sexual courtship rituals in primates.
B) is the study of sexual intercourse between primates.
C) tends to be lower than in groups where males disperse and compete with unrelated males.
D) determines male and female social hierarchy.

Question 9

Altruistic behavior:

A) is behavior that benefits others while causing a disadvantage to the individual.
B) occurs only between primates that are not relatives.
C) is not a beneficial evolutionary adaptation.
D) is not an advantage of cooperation within a society.

Question 10

Kin selection refers to:

A) nonaltruistic behavior toward other members of the kin group.
B) altruistic behavior that increases the donor's inclusive fitness and that of the donor's relatives.
C) altruistic behavior that promotes kin-like bonding among nonkin.
D) altruistic behavior that increases only the donor's inclusive fitness.

Question 11

Sexual selection:

A) is the physical competition for access to females.
B) is the competition for resources to access females.
C) is the frequency of a trait's attractiveness to members of the opposite sex.
D) is the selection of males by females on the basis of disposition, physical appearance, and hierarchical position.

Question 12

Monogamous:

A) refers to a social group that is dominated by a single sex.
B) refers to a social group that includes an adult male, an adult female, and their offspring.
C) refers to primates that live exclusively as a nuclear family.
D) refers to a primate social group that includes an adult male and several adult females with their offspring.

Question 13

Many primate societies are complexly organized, enabling their members to form alliances including by:

A) rank.
B) age.
C) kinship.
D) all of the above

Question 14

Sexual dimorphism:

A) relates to the mating rites of primates.
B) concerns differences in body size and canine size.
C) determines male and female social hierarchy.
D) is the study of sexual intercourse between primates.

Question 15

Polygynous:

A) means "many marriages."
B) means "many offspring."
C) refers to a social group that includes one female and several males.
D) refers to a social group that includes one adult male, several adult females, and their offspring.

Question 16

Polyandrous:

A) refers to a social group that includes one reproductively active female and several adult males and their offspring.
B) refers to a social group that includes one female and several males.
C) means "many offspring."
D) refers to a social group that includes one adult male and several adult females and their offspring.

Question 17

Quality in feeding strategy refers to:

A) the location of food sources.
B) the acquisition of food.
C) the food that can be stored for future consumption.
D) a food's providing energy and protein that are readily digestible.

Question 18

Distribution refers to:

A) the location of food across the landscape.
B) the dispersal of a primate group, particularly regarding food scavenging.
C) the equitable distribution of food among relatives.
D) the adjustment in size of a feeding group.

Question 19

Diversity in primate societies means that:

A) primates express themselves socially through a wide range of behaviors.
B) primates encompass a variety of species with similar behaviors.
C) primates can be classified into particular species exhibiting one type of behavior.
D) primates are just as diverse in their behavior as are humans.

Question 20

Primate societies are diverse in several ways, including that:

A) several species of primates coexist socially.
B) many primate societies are complexly organized.
C) some primate societies are male only.
D) some primate societies are female only.

Question 21

The higher the social rank of a female primate the:

A) lower her access to resources and the lower the survival rate of her offspring.
B) lower her access to resources and the greater the survival rate of her offspring.
C) greater her access to resources, which results in lower birth rates.
D) greater her access to resources, which results in higher birth rates.

Question 22

Monogamous behavior is characteristic of which species?

A) baboon
B) gibbon
C) orangutan
D) chimpanzee

Question 23

Female reproductive strategies emphasize:

A) bonding with the dominant male monogamously.
B) having one birth per year.
C) having twin births every year.
D) caring for young and ensuring access to food.

Question 24

Vocalizations enable primates to:

A) communicate as humans do.
B) solve distressing situations among primate groups.
C) name resources and monitor the social group.
D) communicate, but only between members of the same hierarchy.

Question 25

Male primates most often compete for mates while female primates compete for other resources, demonstrating that:

A) reproduction places different energy demands on males and females, resulting in varying reproductive strategies.
B) reproduction has similar energy demands for both sexes, so males and females respond accordingly.
C) primates do not vary in their ability to respond to differing energy requirements.
D) females acquire resources to ensure the survival of their offspring.

Question 26

Polyandrous residence patterns represent:

A) a social grouping that includes multiple adult males and females.
B) common observations in prosimians and Old World monkeys.
C) a social grouping in which males cooperate in parenting activities.
D) a social grouping that includes one male and multiple females.

Question 27

Chimpanzee communication involves different combinations of sounds, such as:

A) screams, gnashing, and hissing.
B) grunts, pants, and hoots.
C) howling, hoots, and high-pitched screams.
D) pants, coos, and gurgles.

Question 28

How do primates communicate?

A) through a system of adaptation that varies among social groups
B) through the use of symbols
C) through speech learned from primatologists
D) through vocalizations that serve a range of functions and contexts

Question 29

What is special about primate societies and social behavior?

A) They are not diverse.
B) They welcome newcomers as humans do.
C) They are highly diverse.
D) They share and cooperate as humans do not.

Question 30

Male reproductive strategies emphasize:

A) competition between males for access to reproductive-age females.
B) risk-taking behavior.
C) violence against competitors for female access.
D) care of young.

Question 31

Which of the following are NOT known primate residence patterns?

A) one-male, multifemale; all-male; solitary
B) one-female, multimale; one-male, multifemale; one-male, one-female
C) one-male, multifemale; multimale, multifemale; solitary
D) all-female; multimale, one female; solitary

Question 32

All-male groups of nonhuman primates:

A) are often polyandrous, before females join other existing groups.
B) often exist together with multimale, multifemale groups.
C) become permanent groups with rigid ranking systems.
D) do not exist in the wild.

Question 33

How do primates acquire food?

A) through cooperation among kin groups, mostly by hunting
B) through a wide variety of food-foraging strategies
C) through a limited set of highly specialized foraging strategies
D) through the use of highly developed material culture

Question 34

Why are primates social in the short term?

A) to increase female fecundity in dominant females only
B) to increase interaction between sexually mature males and females
C) to establish social relationships to prevent attacks from predators
D) to share food sources

Question 35

Altruistic behavior benefits others while being a disadvantage to the altruistic individual. Which of the following reasons does NOT explain why it exists in primate societies?

A) Altruistic behavior is not directed randomly, but toward related individuals.
B) Altruistic behavior is an example of kin selection.
C) Altruistic behavior is likely to be observed in groups where there is high genetic relatedness among individuals.
D) Altruistic behavior is random.

Question 36

Predator-specific vocalizations in Diana monkeys vary based on:

A) the type of predator and the predator's attack strategy.
B) lessons taught by primatologists.
C) emotional impulses produced randomly and involuntarily.
D) individual factors, as in humans.

Question 37

Male primates compete for access to females and to maintain social groupings through all of the following social strategies EXCEPT:

A) infanticide.
B) vocalizing through loud territorial calls.
C) fighting to maintain dominance of a one-male, multifemale group
D) forming long-term cooperative relationships with multiple females.

Question 38

A male and female gibbon that are similar in size are likely showing:

A) the lack of sexual dimorphism due to the polygamous social structure in gibbons.
B) the lack of sexual dimorphism as the result of unequal access to resources within their environment.
C) the lack of sexual dimorphism due to decreased competition for mates in a monogamous social structure.
D) the lack of sexual dimorphism, which is not related to social structure in gibbons.

Question 39

Why are primates social in the long term?

A) to reduce stress, promote longevity, and enhance reproductive success
B) to increase relationships between kin for the improvement of the society
C) to emphasize care of the young
D) to develop support for females to increase fecundity

Question 40

Vocalization in chimp groups:

A) occurs only to communicate a food source.
B) exists only among the dominant hierarchies.
C) sounds like howls and growls.
D) is unique to specific groups or regions.

Question 41

Sociality among primates is likely the result of which of the following selective pressures?

A) predation
B) niche competition
C) adaptive radiation
D) habitat

Question 42

What have scientists learned about the function of primate vocalizations and how they relate to the evolution of human language?

Question 43

Describe the range of primate residence patterns. Relate social grouping to food and reproduction.

Question 44

Why are primates social?

Question 45

Describe some examples of learned behavior and cultural traditions among primates.

Question 46

Compare and contrast male and female primates in terms of reproductive strategies and competition.