Predation Risk and Habitat Use in Chacma Baboons (Papio hamadryas ursinus)

Abstract

Research into the importance of predation is underrepresented in primatology. Furthermore, the literature that does exist has produced inconsistent results. In part this reflects the difficulty one encounters in estimating predation pressure in natural environments. Here we present an introduction into how predation risk might be estimated in terrestrial environments, and we employ this model to explore patterns of habitat use in chacma baboons. The results suggest that baboons respond behaviorally to habitat-specific levels of predation risk, even in a low predatordensity environment. This idea suggests that researcher primate perceptions of predation are not to be simply equated with what is observed in the predator-prey interactions; it is the breaking down of the predation process that offers considerable scope for understanding the impact of predation on primate behavior.