Primates Living in Trees Move to the Ground Due to Global Warming...

Observation Results of 150,000 Hours on 47 Primate Species from America and Madagascar
Monkeys Living in Hotter and Degraded Forests Descend to the Ground to Regulate Body Temperature

Monkeys living in forests with relatively higher temperatures and less dense areas covered by branches are more likely to come down to the ground to regulate their body temperature. Photo by EPA Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Bang Je-il] A study has found that primates such as monkeys, which used to live in trees, are spending more time on the ground to survive due to global warming and deforestation.

On the 10th (local time), according to the British newspaper The Independent, a research team led by Dr. Timothy Epley of the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA) in the United States published research results in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) showing that primates living in trees are coming down to the ground more frequently due to global warming and forest loss.

This study was based on over 150,000 hours of observation records of 47 species, including 32 species of monkeys and 15 species of lemurs, across 68 locations?48 in the Americas and 20 in Madagascar?participated by 124 institutions worldwide.

As a result, monkeys living in forests with relatively higher temperatures and less dense foliage such as branches were found to be more likely to come down to the ground to regulate their body temperature.

The ancestors of monkeys lived in trees. However, some monkeys adapted to environmental changes and came to live on the ground in Africa and Asia. Most monkeys in the Americas and lemurs in Madagascar, which evolved in isolation in Africa, live in trees.

The research team explained that this change can be seen as a kind of "preadaptation."

◆ Primates that consume less fruit and live in groups come down to the ground more often

Preadaptation refers to a trait that was previously unimportant but later expressed due to some cause, leading to an inevitable change in the lifestyle of a particular species, which then adapts accordingly.

The research team explained that such preadaptation could help monkeys increase their chances of survival in new environments created by climate change.

In particular, the team noted that primates that consume less fruit and live in large groups tend to come down to the ground more frequently. In situations where forest areas have decreased due to global warming and deforestation, it is more advantageous for survival to consume a variety of foods on the ground besides fruit and to protect themselves from predators through group living.

The research team warned that environmental factors such as climate change itself pose a survival risk to primates, including monkeys, regardless of their search for new ways of life.

Giuseppe Donati, a co-author of the paper and professor at Oxford Brookes University, said, "Such ecological conditions and species characteristics may have influenced the evolutionary changes of primates living in trees, including hominins, the ancestors of humans," but added, "The current rate of deforestation and climate change clearly puts most primate species at risk."

◆ The higher the maximum temperature, the longer time spent on the ground... 2.5% of activity time spent on the ground

On average, 47 species of tree-dwelling primates spent 2.5% of their activity time on the ground. Although this seems small, the time spent on the ground varied depending on the species and even the environment within the same species.

The higher the maximum temperature, the longer the time spent on the ground. Brown lemurs and red-fronted lemurs in Madagascar living in hot tropical broadleaf forests spent more time on the ground than those living in cool, humid forests. In tropical forests, the temperature of the forest floor or tree trunks is lower than the surroundings, which lemurs use for thermoregulation.

Dr. Epley, who led the research, said, "We conducted this international study focusing on the fact that tree-dwelling monkeys are spending more time on the ground, especially in disturbed forests."

He added, "While some monkeys may mitigate the impacts of forest destruction and climate change by spending more time on the ground, most species that find adaptation difficult urgently need conservation measures."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.