Copulatory Behavior Of Taihangshan Macaque(Macaca Mulatta Tcheliensis),Jiyuan,China

Although the study of animal behavior is a small part of biological research,it is indispensable.Animal behavior is related to the Ecology.Animal behavior is affected by external ecological environment and internal physiological factors,and copulatoty behavior is a key research content in animal behavior.Copulation behavior can be divided into three stages: pre-copulation behavior,copulating behavior,and postcupolation behavior.When does copulatory behavior occur,and how does the animal's social structure and mates choice affect it? What are the characteristics of the copulation pattern and evolutionary significance of Taihangshan macaques? These are important contents for studying Macaca species.To explore the above questions,from November 2018 to October 2019,taking the Taihangshan macaque(M.mulatta tcheliensis)distributed in the Wulongkou area of the Taihangshan Macaque National Nature Reserve(TMNNR)as the research object,observing copulatory behavior of adult macaques in the wild.The research mainly includes: 1)Using scan sampling method and instantaneous recording method recording and collecting data on various behavior of adult Taihangshan macaques to focus on analyze their activity time budget,rhythm of copulatory behavior and related influencing factors;2)Focal animal sampling and continuous recording are used to track the copulatory behavior of adult individuals to analyze the copulatory behavior characteristics and copulation patterns of Taihangshan macaques;3)Record all kinds of information on newborn macaques and their mother in Taihangshan area in 2019 to analyze the influence of the social ranking of mothers on the birth order,sex and survival of their babies.The main research contents and results of this article are as follows: 1.Time budget of mating behaviors of Taihangshan macaquesThere are gender differences in the activity time distribution of various behaviors of adult Taihangshan macaques,and there are seasonal differences in copulatory behavior and differences in daytime periods.1)The variation range of adult male individual's behavior types such as resting,hair grooming,moving and foraging are slightly higher than that of adult female.2)Copualtory behavior of Taihangshan macaques is higher in autumn(0.74±2.29%)and lower in spring(0.10±0.77%);3)Copualtory behavior of Taihangshan macaques has two peaks in autumn,and the distribution occurs at 10:30?12:00 and 16:00?17:00,the peak of copualtory activities in the evenings of autumn,winter and summer are successively delayed(autumn: 15:30?16:30,winter: 16:00?17:00,summer: 17:00?18:00),the proportion in spring is low.2.Copulation pattern of Taihangshan macaquesThere are gender differences in the behavior of Taihangshan macaques before and after copulation.1)Pre-cupolation grooming is the main way for Taihangshan macaques to initiate pairing behavior(49.8%,n=3166),and females are the main initiator of pairing behavior(62.5%);2)The mating pattern of Taihangshan macaques belongs to multiple-mount ejaculation type(MME),with an average mating time of 12.0 min,an average mounting time of 3.6 sec,and an average mounting of 11.9 times to reach the ejaculation state,average ejaculation time is 10.4 sec,and the average number of insertions per mounting is 4.5 times.During the mounting interval,the male and female macaques sitting opposite each other or grooming each other;3)After the copulation of the male and female macaques,they will not separate immediately,the female will actively grooming males,sometimes they just sitting next to each other,and no grooming.After 80 mating ejaculations,the female actively grooming the male 31 times,accounting for 38.8% of the total frequency of post-ejaculation behavior.3.Comparison on copulation patterns of species in MacacaBased on literature research,the copulation patterns of Macaca species are obtained,and each species is classified according to different groups and different social styles,and then the relationship between copualtion patterns of Taihangshan macaques and other species is analyzed.The results showed that: 1)The 14 macaques in the Macaca species,the copulation pattern of eight macaques is multiple-mount ejaculation(MME),two macaques are single-mount ejaculation(SME),and the remaining four macaques have both two copulation pattern;2)The silenus–sylvanus group are mainly used(MME),and only Barbary macaque(M.sylvanus)use both two mating pattern.Except the long-tailed macaque(M.fascicullaris)use both two copulation pattern in the fascicullaris group,the other three macaques are mainly used(MME),The sinica–arctoides group are mainly used(SME),the assamese macaque(M.assamensis)and the tibetan macaque(M.thibetana)are used two copulation pattern;3)From the perspective of social style,Tow social styles of grades I and IV use multiple-mount ejaculation(MME)copulation pattern,and the copulation pattern of macaques with social styles of grade III are mainly single-mount ejaculation(SME),while the social style is at level II,two copualtion pattern are used at the same time.4.Reproduction parameters of Taihangshan macaque in Jiyuan areaNewly born macaques in the WLK-1A troop are concentrated in April,and there is no significant correlation between the birth order of baby macaques and the social rank of their mothers.The results show that: 1)The first Taihangshan macaque in WLK-1A troop was born on March 24,2019,and the last macaque was born on July 15,2019.The birth date of this troop of newborn macaques spanned 113 days.The sex ratio at birth is 11:9(female: male).As of October 2019,the average birth rate of newborn babies in Taihangshan macaque WLK-1A troop in 2019 is 64.5%(31 adult female macaques),and the survival rate is 55.6%;2)There is no significant correlation between the social rank of female macaques and the birth order of their infants,nor the gender and survival status of the infants;3)The birth date of infants in the WLK-1A troop is from March to July.April is the peak of birth,and a small peak of birth occurs again in July.The copulatory behavior mainly occurs from October to December,and November is the peak mating period.In summary,the Taihangshan macaques adjust their activity time allocation to adapt to their own internal energy needs and external environmental changes.Their mating behavior differs on different days and seasons;the copulation pattern of Taihangshan macaques belongs to multiple-mount ejaculation(MME);There is no significant correlation between the social ranking of the female macaques and the birth order of their infant,nor the gender and survival status.