Dispersal patterns exhibited by group-living animals play an important role in individual reproductive success and survival,as well as population and social dynamics(Greenwood,1980;Isbell and van Vuren,1996;Kappeler and van Schaik,2002).Dispersing individuals may emigrate voluntarily,or they may be forcibly evicted by other individuals(Pusey and Packer,1987;Clobert et al.,2001).One cause of individual dispersal is when an extra-group male compels another male to leave a group of females.This phenomenon has been well documented in primates,especially Old World monkey species(e.g.Colobus vellerosus:Saj and Sicotte,2005;Erythrocebus patas:Ohsawa,2003;Macaca fascicularis:van Noordwijk and van Schaik,2001).
Although there are some reports that have described primates eating animals,it is unknown whether predation on vertebrates exists in herbivorous leaf-eating primates.We have witnessed firsthand wild Sichuan snub-nosed monkeys(Rhinopithecus roxellana)preying on and consuming Eurasian blackbirds(Turdus merula)in the Qinling Mountains of China.This event suggests that R.roxellana,which has previously been described as a herbivorous leaf-eating primate,may be partially carnivorous and the correct classification of this species would be omnivorous.Furthermore,food-share behavior among higher-ranked members occurs in a one-male unit when vertebrate prey is hunted by this species.
For group-living primates, the information on postconflict management is crucial for understanding primate competitionand cooperation. However, such information is poorly known for snub-nosed monkeys, especially for wild populations. Inthis study, from September 2007 to June 2008, we investigated postconflict behavior among adult females Sichuan snub-nosedmonkeys Rhinopithecas roxellana within one-male units in a wild, provisioned group in the Qinling Mountains of China bymeans of the time-rule method and the PC-MC method. We obtained a total of 81 PC-MC pairs and each individual was involvedin only 0.004 aggressive behavior per observation hour. The first affiliative behavior was more likely to occur within the firstminute after a conflict. The postconflict affiliative behaviors most often seen were contact-sit, embrace and grooming. The affiliativecontacts between adult females occur due to selective attraction, i.e. reconciliation. The pattern of postconflict affiliationdemonstrates that the R. roxellana belongs to a tolerant
