Social Organization of Simakobu Monkeys (Nasalis concolor) in Siberut Island, Indonesia

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Abstract
Simakobu monkeys (Nasalis concolor) are restricted to the four Mentawai Islands off the western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. Data were collected during 348 days between September 1972 and October 1974 at a 200 ha field site on the largest island of Siberut. Social structure among families of two to five animals (mean = 3.5) was determined for groups living in the central primary rain forest. Families occupy a home range of ca. 25–30 ha partially overlapping the space of adjacent families. The rare intergroup conflicts are male to male interactions dominated by loud vocalizations. Simkobu evade human predation by minimizing conspicuous movements and vocalizations, by concealment in the canopy, or by rapid terrestrial flight when detected. This cryptic behavior associated with the monogamous social group, unique among Asian Cercopithecidae, may be a behavioral adaptation to avoid human predation. The dominance of primates in the depauperate Mentawai Island's mammalian fauna and absence of other relevant predators are considered responsible for Simakobu's specialized defenses against man.

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