Anthropologists in Borneo observed a rarified case of a female and a virile Pongo pygmaeus team up up — to down another distaff orangutan . This is the first find time a female - distaff conflict in orangutans has turned lethal , and the room the it went down change what we think we love about orangutan behavior .
archpriest , being known jerks , assault each other fairly often but an attack report in the diary Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology deepen what we screw about one particular type of primate . Anthropologist Anna Marzec , from the University of Zurich in Switzerland , describes the incident which take position in the Mawas Reserve in Indonesia . It sounds pretty grisly .
The fight was instigated by a female mention Kondor . Kondor had some issues with an older orangutan female Sidony ( pictured to the left wing ) , who had hit and spot Kondor when Kondor approached Sidony ’s girl . Kondor , who had no dependent nipper at the meter of the fight , had been hanging out with Ekko , a young male person . Just before the competitiveness commence , Ekko had go to “ sexually inspect ” Sidony but had gone back to mate with Kondor . Kondor broke off the sexual union , take to the woods over to Sidony , and started attack her .
The fight develop into something more than just a few bites or hits . When Sidony tried to get away , Ekko blocked her path . When Kondor stop attacking , Ekko started . For 33 minutes , the two took good turn beating and biting Sidony — with Ekko inflicting more damage due to his larger dogtooth . Then thing got even weirder .
The fight might have go on longer , but another male person , Guapo , jumped into the competitiveness and chase Ekko away . He did not track Kondor away , although he alternately help Sidony get aside and agitate himself between the females when Kondor subsequently attacked Sidony . Sidony mated with Guapo during this prison term . Though Guapo did provide protection from Kondor , Sidony ’s existing injury were too across-the-board . She weakened steadily and died two hebdomad later .
orangutang are relatively only . female and male person almost never interact unless it ’s time to mate — not surprising , since the researchers describe copulate as often due to “ coercion . ” Orangutans are also “ philopatric , ” mean female relatives will settle close enough that their kitchen stove overlap , but they seldom form kin or mathematical group . male sometimes get into serious fights , but the fact that females can get into deadly fights is bad newsworthiness , even if it is one incident .
What ’s more amazing is the fact that female person used the males as “ hired shooter ” to protect them or kill with them . It ’s a disturbingly human act that teach us something raw about orangutan sexual dynamics . According to the report , “ even in a metal money in which coercion is oft observe in male person - distaff interactions , distaff purchase over males can sweet-talk males into put up service , such as coalitionary reenforcement . ” Sounds good , but as we see , that “ coalitionary support , ” has a literal dark side to it .
[ Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology ]
Image : Eric Kilby/ Inline image of Sidony : Anna Marzec
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