Papers by Christopher A Schmitt
Behavioral Ecology of Savanna Monkeys
Savanna Monkeys
ABSTRACTThe Tropical Andes Biodiversity Hotspot holds a remarkable number of species at risk of e... more ABSTRACTThe Tropical Andes Biodiversity Hotspot holds a remarkable number of species at risk of extinction due to anthropogenic habitat loss, hunting and climate change. One of these species, the Critically Endangered yellow-tailed woolly monkey (Lagothrix flavicauda), was recently sighted in Junín region, 206 kilometres south of its previously known distribution. The range extension, combined with continued habitat loss, calls for a re-evaluation of the species’ distribution and available suitable habitat. Here, we present novel data from surveys at 53 sites in the regions of Junín, Cerro de Pasco, Ayacucho and Cusco. We encountered L. flavicauda at 9 sites, all in Junín, and the congeneric L. l. tschudii at 20 sites, but never in sympatry. Using these new localities along with all previous geographic localities for the species, we made predictive Species Distribution Models based on Ecological Niche Modelling using a generalized linear model and maximum entropy. Each model incorpo...
Differential preservation of population history in vervet skull anatomy
Genetically patterned dental phenotypes show evidence for diet-related evolutionary change in platyrrhine primates
Comparative developmental morphology within the genus Chlorocebus
Evidence of selection in the uncoupling protein 1 gene region suggests local adaptation to solar irradiance in savannah monkeys ( Chlorocebus spp.)
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
In the last 300 thousand years, the genus Chlorocebus expanded from equatorial Africa into the so... more In the last 300 thousand years, the genus Chlorocebus expanded from equatorial Africa into the southernmost latitudes of the continent, where colder climate was a probable driver of natural selection. We investigated population-level genetic variation in the mitochondrial uncoupling protein 1 ( UCP1 ) gene region—implicated in non-shivering thermogenesis (NST)—in 73 wild savannah monkeys from three taxa representing this southern expansion ( Chlorocebus pygerythrus hilgerti, Chlorocebus cynosuros and Chlorocebus pygerythrus pygerythrus ) ranging from Kenya to South Africa. We found 17 single nucleotide polymorphisms with extended haplotype homozygosity consistent with positive selective sweeps, 10 of which show no significant linkage disequilibrium with each other. Phylogenetic generalized least-squares modelling with ecological covariates suggest that most derived allele frequencies are significantly associated with solar irradiance and winter precipitation, rather than overall low...
Hidden from History, Searching for a Future: A Commentary on the Unverified Homosexual Tendencies of Biological Anthropologists
American Anthropologist, 2020
ABSTRACTAnthropogenic landscapes are rapidly replacing natural nonhuman primate habitats. Yet, th... more ABSTRACTAnthropogenic landscapes are rapidly replacing natural nonhuman primate habitats. Yet, the access to anthropogenic resources on primate biology, health, and fitness remain poorly studied. Given their ubiquity across a range of human impacted landscapes, from cities to national parks, savanna monkeys (Chlorocebus spp.) provide an excellent study system in which to test these effects. We compared body condition and reproductive maturation in vervets (Chlorocebus pygerythrus) inhabiting a private farm in !Gariep Dam, with ample access to anthropogenic foods, and wild-foraging vervets in Soetdoring Nature Reserve, South Africa. Overall, vervets in !Gariep show significantly thicker skin folds, and higher BMI and body mass, than those in Soetdoring, suggesting increased fat deposition. Males in !Gariep have larger relative testis volumes at peri-pubescent ages compared to those in Soetdoring, suggesting early reproductive maturation associated with age-specific increases in body ...
Worldwide savanna monkey (Chlorocebus spp.) body measures
Objectives: Direct comparative work in morphology and growth on widely dispersed wild primate tax... more Objectives: Direct comparative work in morphology and growth on widely dispersed wild primate taxa is rarely accomplished, yet critical to understanding ecogeographic variation, plastic local varia- tion in response to human impacts, and variation in patterns of growth and sexual dimorphism. We investigated population variation in morphology and growth in response to geographic variables (i.e., latitude, altitude), climatic variables (i.e., temperature and rainfall), and human impacts in the vervet monkey (<em>Chlorocebus</em> spp.). Methods: We trapped over 1,600 wild vervets from across Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean, and compared measurements of body mass, body length, and relative thigh, leg, and foot length in four well-represented geographic samples: Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, and St. Kitts & Nevis. Results: We found significant variation in body mass and length consistent with Bergmann's Rule in adult females, and in adult males when excluding the St...
Additional file 1 of Shifts in microbial diversity, composition, and functionality in the gut and genital microbiome during a natural SIV infection in vervet monkeys
Additional file 1 : Supplementary Figure 1. Geographic origins of study animals. Supplementary Fi... more Additional file 1 : Supplementary Figure 1. Geographic origins of study animals. Supplementary Figure 2. Maps of sampling sites. The maps were generated using GPS Visualizer [90] with Google Hybrid Map as a background using Map data © 2020 AfriGIS (Pty) Ltd Imagery© 2020 NASA, TerraMetrix. Supplementary Figure 3. Vaginal microbiome in South African vervets in our study compared to Caribbean-origin vervets and other NHPs based on the Yildrim et al. 2014 data [35]. (A) Average community structure in South African vervets (by SIV status), Caribbean origin vervets and other NHPs [35]. Species demarcation: African vervets (SIV Pos and SIV Neg), free-ranging Caribbean vervets (Vw), captive Caribbean-origin vervets (Vc), mangabeys (M), red colobus (Rc), yellow baboon (Bab), olive baboon (Bc), chimpanzee (Chimp), humans (H), lemurs (L), black howler (Bh). (B) Microbial community structure per individual in South African vervets, (C) Community structure per individual in Caribbean-origin ver...
Additional file 2 of Shifts in microbial diversity, composition, and functionality in the gut and genital microbiome during a natural SIV infection in vervet monkeys
Additional file 2 : Supplementary Table 1. Characteristics of microbial samples and individuals u... more Additional file 2 : Supplementary Table 1. Characteristics of microbial samples and individuals used in the studies. Supplementary Table 2. Relative abundances at the phylum and at the genus level within the bacterial communities in four sample type. Showing taxa with > 1% relative abundance in at least one sample type. Supplementary Table 3. Relative abundances of predicted metagenome categorized by function across fecal enterotypes. Only showing genes with significant differential abundance between the enterotypes and at a relative abundance > 0.1%. Data is expressed as relative abundance (%). Supplementary Table 4. Vaginal pH.
Rodriguez et al BJLS vervet allometry trait types
Allometric slopes and condition dependence values by trait categor
Data from: The static allometry of sexual and non-sexual traits in vervet monkeys
Sexual traits vary tremendously in static allometry. This variation may be explained in part by b... more Sexual traits vary tremendously in static allometry. This variation may be explained in part by body size-related differences in the strength of selection. We tested this hypothesis in two populations of vervet monkeys, using estimates of the level of condition dependence for different morphological traits as a proxy for body size-related variation in the strength of selection. In support of the hypothesis, we found that the steepness of allometric slopes increased with the level of condition dependence. One trait of particular interest, the penis, had shallow allometric slopes and low levels of condition dependence, in agreement with one of the most consistent patterns yet detected in the study of allometry, namely that of genitalia exhibiting shallow allometries
This preliminary analysis revealed distinctive adult morphologies across sex and taxon that may b... more This preliminary analysis revealed distinctive adult morphologies across sex and taxon that may be reached, in part, by unique allometric relationships in each developmental stage characterized by a general increase in scores for PC2 to Dental Age 4, after which scores rapidly drop as they approach adulthood. Males, in particular, and Kenyan C. pygerythrus appear to deviate the most from a more general pattern. Static allometry within each age, sex, and taxon must be analyzed separately [7, 8] to better understand how these patterns truly differ across taxon and sex during development.
Population Genetics and Savanna Monkeys
Savanna Monkeys, 2019
A genotype:phenotype approach to testing taxonomic hypotheses in hominids
Die Naturwissenschaften, 2020
Paleontology has long relied on assumptions about the genetic and developmental influences on ske... more Paleontology has long relied on assumptions about the genetic and developmental influences on skeletal variation. The last few decades of developmental genetics have elucidated the genetic pathways involved in making teeth and patterning the dentition. Quantitative genetic analyses have refined this genotype:phenotype map even more, especially for primates. We now have the ability to define dental traits with a fair degree of fidelity to the underlying genetic architecture; for example, the molar module component (MMC) and the premolar-molar module (PMM) that have been defined through quantitative genetic analyses. We leverage an extensive dataset of extant and extinct hominoid dental variation to explore how these two genetically patterned phenotypes have evolved through time. We assess MMC and PMM to test the hypothesis that these two traits reveal a more biologically informed taxonomy at the genus and species levels than do more traditional measurements. Our results indicate that...
Two-year understory production was determined on 6 major forest soils across 2 geomorphic regions... more Two-year understory production was determined on 6 major forest soils across 2 geomorphic regions in the Black Hiils of South Dakota. Stepwise multiple regression was used to determine those variables beat espiaining yield variability. Canopy cover, basai area, soils, May-June precipitation, and soil X cover interactions further improved the modeis, which accounted for 65 to 76% of the variability in herbage production. Footslope, nonskeletai soils had the highest herbage production (yielding 1,800 kg/ha at 0% canopy cover). The least developed, backslope, skeletal soil had the loweat herbrge production (producing only 550 kg/ha at 0% canopy cover) from comparable areas of the Biack Hills. Developed models can be used in conjunction with soil survey reports to estimate the forage potential of a given soil mapping unit. Results from this study emphasize the importance of considering the understory vegetation production potential of individual soil series when developing grazable woodland management plans. Soil-related production differences were most strongly expressed under conditions of ihnited overstory canopy cover.
Ethnoprimatology and Savanna Monkeys
Savanna Monkeys, 2019
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Papers by Christopher A Schmitt