Stanton Margaret A, Heintz Matthew R, Lonsdorf Elizabeth V, Santymire Rachel M, Lipende Iddi, Murray Carson M
Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052.
Department of Conservation and Science, Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, Illinois 60614; and Committee on Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637.
Int J Primatol. 2015 Jun;36(3):473-488. doi: 10.1007/s10764-015-9836-2.
Individual differences in maternal behavior toward, and investment in, offspring can have lasting consequences, particularly among primate taxa characterized by prolonged periods of development over which mothers can exert substantial influence. Given the role of the neuroendocrine system in the expression of behavior, researchers are increasingly interested in understanding the hormonal correlates of maternal behavior. Here, we examined the relationship between maternal behavior and physiological stress levels, as quantified by fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM) concentrations, in lactating chimpanzees, , at Gombe National Park, Tanzania. After accounting for temporal variation in FGM concentrations, we found that mothers interacted socially (groomed and played) with and nursed their infants more on days when FGM concentrations were elevated compared to days when FGM concentrations were within the range expected given the time of year. However, the proportion of time mothers and infants spent in contact did not differ based on FGM concentrations. These results generally agree with the suggestion that elevated GC concentrations are related to maternal motivation and responsivity to infant cues and are the first evidence of a hormonal correlate of maternal behavior in a wild great ape.
母亲对后代的行为及投入方面的个体差异可能会产生持久影响，在灵长类动物分类群中尤其如此，这些分类群的特点是发育周期较长，在此期间母亲能够施加重大影响。鉴于神经内分泌系统在行为表达中的作用，研究人员越来越有兴趣了解母性行为的激素关联。在此，我们在坦桑尼亚贡贝国家公园，对哺乳期黑猩猩的母性行为与生理应激水平（通过粪便糖皮质激素代谢物（FGM）浓度量化）之间的关系进行了研究。在考虑了FGM浓度的时间变化后，我们发现，与FGM浓度处于一年中该时段预期范围内的日子相比，在FGM浓度升高的日子里，母亲与婴儿进行社交互动（梳理毛发和玩耍）及哺乳的频率更高。然而，母亲和婴儿接触的时间比例并未因FGM浓度而有所不同。这些结果总体上与以下观点一致，即糖皮质激素浓度升高与母亲对婴儿线索的动机和反应性有关，并且是野生大型猿类中母性行为存在激素关联的首个证据。
