SBU Summer Study Abroad Present at the University of Fianarantsoa

As more of the forests of Madagascar are destroyed each year because of anthropogenic activities, the black and white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata) becomes increasingly important to study as one of Madagascar’s best seed dispersers. The Varecia is one of the most effective seed dispersers among primates. The goal of this study is to identify the potential species of food that the black and white ruffed lemurs eat, the number of seeds they disperse, and determine which species is the most dispersed. We hypothesize that the black and white ruffed lemurs have their preferred fruits and would be the most dispersed. We observed that black and white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata) consumed primarily ripe fruits followed by unripe fruits and sometimes leaves. Then, we collected 31 fecal samples, we found that 16 of them were without seeds and 15 were with seeds. Every time they defecated; we quantified the number of seeds in each sample. To analyze our data, Microsoft Excel was used. The results of this short-term study showed us that Varecia consumed 5 species of plant and Chrysophyllum boivinuanum (Rahiaka) species are found most often in Varecia fecal samples and this is their preferred species. Through these results, we can conclude the diversity and abundance of seeds being dispersed by these lemurs in Talatakely areas, and by understanding the species of seeds most commonly found in Varecia fecal samples, we can get knowledge about the resilience and adaptability of certain plant species to deforestation. This information can lead to reforestation efforts by prioritizing the protection of plants such as Chrysophyllum boivinuanum species that produce these preferred seeds and this can increase the chances of attracting and supporting lemur populations in restored habitats.

Analysis of parasite presence in lemurs of Ranomafana National Park - Sasha Winter, Sustainable Development and Biology @ University of St. Andrews

Propithecus edwardsi “stepfathers”: Social Interactions of New Males - Leah Schwarz, Anthropology and Marine Science @ Stony Brook University

Road Edge Effects on Mouse Lemurs (Microcebus rufus) at Ranomafana National Park - Jake Butkevich, Environmental Studies @ Stony Brook University

This study will investigate road edge effects on Microcebus rufus by studying their abundances of at varying distances from the road at Ranomafana National Park. This is important because there are few studies examining edge effects on M. rufus and increasing forest fragmentation in its habitat. It is believed that M. rufus will be more abundant closer to the road because the more open canopy will allow more understory growth, which M. rufus has been shown to prefer. To perform this study, a total of 60 Sherman traps will be set in 2 transects perpendicular to the road; 2 traps will be set every 10 meters, so each transect will have a length of 150 meters. Traps will then be checked and the number of lemurs counted to see where a mouse lemur is more likely to be trapped. Vegetation will be sampled within a 2 meter radius of where the trap is set to determine the correlation between the presence of mouse lemurs and vegetation present. Data will be analyzed by using the presence or absence of M. rufus in each location to determine where it is most abundant, and the correlation between vegetation density and mouse lemur presence will also be determined. It is expected that mouse lemurs are to be more abundant closer to the road and that there is a positive correlation between mouse lemur presence and understory density. We hope to conclude that M. rufus conservation should focus on things other than the effects of habitat edges.

Propithecus edwardsi vocalizations: call type and duration in relation to group size - Elizabeth Raczkowski, Environmental Studies @ Stony Brook University

Many lemur species rely on distinctive vocalizations as a primary means of communication within their social groups. Along with olfactory communication, Milne-Edwards’s Sifakas (Propithecus edwardsi) communicate vocally, using “contact” and “moving” calls to maintain group cohesion. This is in addition to distinct calls like the “bark alarm” and “sneeze” vocalizations that alert nearby individuals of predators. Despite the importance of vocalizations in understanding social dynamics, research on strepsirrhine vocalizations, particularly in less vocal species like Propithecus edwardsi, remains limited compared to haplorhine taxa. This study aims to address this gap by exploring whether the duration and type of Milne-Edwards's Sifaka vocalizations differ when individuals are isolated from the group compared to interactions in close proximity to others. To investigate this, recorded audio of Propithecus edwardsi vocalizations was collected and analyzed from both isolated and social contexts. Additionally, focal follows were conducted to observe the group size and call types associated with different call durations. Through this integrated approach, a permutation test was used to examine the potential correlation between call type and the number of individuals present during vocalizations, as well as the relationship between call duration and the number of individuals. Ultimately, the results of the permutation test did not reveal any statistically significant associations between these variables. These findings suggest that, within the sample, there is a lack of strong evidence to support a direct link between call type or call duration and the number of individuals engaged in the vocalization event. This study highlights the complexity of lemur vocal communication and emphasizes the need for further investigation to better comprehend the factors influencing call variation and social dynamics in Propithecus edwardsi.

Diet of Propithecus edwardsi in Ranomafana National Park - Gerrit Bittmann, Health Science and Anthropology @ Stony Brook University

For this research the patterns of diet and nutrition in the Milne-Edwards Sifaka will be examined. Nutrition and diet factor into all aspects of these Sifakas life, without the proper food availability many behavioral characteristics can be lost as well as physiological functions. What is the current diet and feeding habits of Propithecus edwardsi in Ranomafana National Park? Propithecus edwardsi will have mainly a frugivorous diet with supplementation in leaves and seeds when available as well as soil for nutrients, fruit consumption is dependent on the fruiting season. Methods of this field observation will be in the form of focal sampling, following general behaviors of individuals on an interval of five minutes. Diet and eating habits will be observed in further detail. This entails observing each feeding bout, what the sifakas are eating, how long they are eating, and time of eating, to collect information on frequency of feeding. Data analysis will look for frequency of feeding, item being eaten, and time spent feeding. This data will be analyzed to build an overview of their feeding behaviors and patterns in an excel spreadsheet. The results of this study are predicted to find that Propithecus edwardsi is primarily frugivorous, during the month of June in Ranomafana National Park, with additions of leaves, seeds, and soil for nutrients. The research conducted during the course of this study will further expand the base of knowledge on Propithecus edwardsi and the complexity of their dietary habits.

Foraging behaviors of Eulemer rufifrons during the fruiting season of an invasive fruit species Psidium cattleianumin Ranomafana National Park - Kai Wong,  Health Sciences @ Stony Brook University

The ecosystems of Madagascar are unique and isolated to the rest of the world. Invasive species such as the strawberry guava (Psidium cattleianum) affect native fauna and flora in ways we have yet to describe. This study explores the effects of the strawberry guava fruiting season on the food choice of red-fronted lemurs (Eulemur rufifrons) by observing their foraging behaviors and behaviors related to food choice. Over a three-day period, we conducted focal follows and recorded each instance of feeding, the type of food eaten, and the location of each feeding. Then, we returned to each feeding site to determine the types of available food nearby and the relative abundance of each available food. Data was analyzed using a Chi square independence test to compare the actual proportion to the expected proportion of times each type of food was chosen. We predicted that during guava fruiting season, the strawberry guava will be chosen more frequently than expected because of its availability and fruit quality during this time of year. The results of this study have implications for the continued proliferation of the strawberry guava, since lemurs are excellent seed dispersers in Madagascar, and for the decreasing plant biodiversity as the invasive strawberry guava continues to phase out native food sources for lemurs. 

The relationship between behavior & vocalization and tourist presence in Propithecus edwardsi - Ellora Klein, English and Anthropology @ UC Berkeley

The relationship between behavior/vocalization and human presence in Propithecus edwardsi will be examined. Connections between specific patterns of behavior and vocals in the sifakas in relation to the number of humans present and their distance from the animals will be identified. This topic is significant, as determining the relations between specific behaviors displayed by the sifakas and human presence can help in gaining a better understanding of how the sifakas interact with humans and react to their presence. Correlations between shifts in the behavior of the sifakas and shifts in the number of humans present and their behavior and distance from the animals can reveal how human presence affects the behavior of the sifakas and thus how best to interact with them in a way that doesn’t significantly alter their natural behavior. The research question that will be investigated is: How are the vocalizations and behaviors of the Milne-Edwards sifakas affected by the presence of humans? It is predicted that the sifakas will exhibit more relaxed behavior and vocalizations without the presence of humans, such as more time spent resting or grooming and lower volume vocalizations. It is also predicted that an increasing number of humans present or a decrease in the distance between human and sifaka will result in more energized behavior such as travel between trees, and higher volume and frequency vocalizations amongst groups of sifakas. To examine these behaviors, the sifakas will be followed and focals will be taken every five minutes, recording the vocalizations, behaviors, and identities of the sifakas. The number of humans present, their behavior, and their distance from the sifakas will also be recorded. The data will be analyzed by organizing and graphing it based on behavior, vocals, frequency of vocals, number of humans present, and distance between humans and sifakas, thus allowing patterns in the sifakas behaviors in the presence of humans to be identified. The data analysis will reveal how vocals/behaviors correlate with human presence. From this project, it is hoped that a clearer understanding of the sifakas behavior and how humans affect that behavior will be gained.

Grooming Patterns in Hapalemur aureus and Relationship to Sex - Olivia Olynciw, Human Evolutionary Biology @ Stony Brook University

Grooming is an important social behavior for many primates and can serve many functions. In many primate and lemur species, allogrooming occurs “up” the hierarchy, which may potentially be witnessed in Hapalemur aureus. In Verreaux’s sifaka, males increased grooming behavior in and around the mating season to garner favor from females, and immigrant males also appear to perform this behavior to negotiate their way into a new social group. Allogrooming in lemurs is an under-researched topic, and learning more about the frequency of allo vs autogrooming behaviors may help to elucidate the significance of such as social interactions in H. aureus. While autogrooming is anticipated to be observed more frequently due to its functional nature, perhaps the length of allogrooming bouts will be different from the former. This research aims to determine whether H. aureus engages in more allo or autogrooming, as well as if there is any relationship between sex and allogrooming frequency and duration. Ad libitum data on autogrooming and allogrooming bout time start and finish, as well as the sex of both individuals involved in the interaction. Results suggested that while autogrooming bouts were initiated almost three times more than allogrooming bouts were, the allogrooming bouts were significantly longer. Unfortunately with the scope of this project, there were no statistical analyses that were able to be performed on the relationship between sex and groomer initiator/recipient. Given the uncertainty surrounding the relationship between sex and allogrooming, future research will need to be performed to best determine what this relationship may be.

 

Plants, Fungi, and Insects

Mushroom Presence by Calophyllum inophyllum Trees and Their Potential Use as a Predictor for Animal Presence in Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar - Victoria Bayevskiy, Psychology and Ecosystems and Human Impact @ Stony Brook University

This topic expands on the function of fungal diversity and mycorrhizae as possible predictors of animal presence, through mycorrhizal support of nutrient uptake in Calophyllum trees. It is important to study this topic because if mushroom presence can predict animal presence around Calophyllum trees, it could affect where lemurs, birds, and insects can be found and, subsequently, where they can be studied. The goal of this study was to predict the correlation between fungal presence and animal presence around Calophyllum trees in Ranomafana National Park (RNP) in Madagascar. It was predicted that there will be a strong correlation between mushroom presence and animal presence near Calophyllum trees in RNP. Each tree was selectively chosen, evaluated for a fungal presence within 5 meters, and monitored for 1 hour to note all animal visits. There were a total of 16 trees evaluated over 3 days. The data was analyzed with a Spearman’s correlation to assess the strength of the correlation between fungal presence and animal presence. The results of the data analysis show that although there is not a strong correlation between fungal presence and animal presence by Calophyllum trees, there was a higher total number of animal visits to trees that had a fungal presence. This research may indicate that mushrooms are important to the RNP ecosystem and can beneficially impact Calophyllum trees and animal populations and should be studied further as existing research is extremely limited.

Inventory of Medicinal Plants around Ranomafana National Park and Reviewing Theoretical Bases for Claimed Benefits - Ved Gautam, Biology @ Stony Brook University

Effectiveness of coloration defense mechanisms exhibited by Acherontia atropos at Ranomafana National Park - Sarina Graziano, Biology @ SUNY Oneonta

Aposematic coloration as well as camouflage are two physical traits expressed by a variety of biota globally and acts as a visual defense against predation. Does A. atropos’s expression of both aposematism and camouflage prevent more predatory attacks than if it were to express only aposematic coloration traits or camouflage traits on its wings? I hypothesized that if A. atropos expresses both aposematism and camouflage on its wings it would experience less predation than if it were to express only one coloration trait on its wings. To test this, 30 models of A. atropos were created, with 10 representing both coloration traits, 10 representing only aposematism, and 10 representing only camouflage. One of each model type was placed in a transect and monitored daily for marks of predation over the course of 5 days. Once 5 days of data collection was completed a bar graph was created. The results suggested that a combination of aposematism and camouflage coloration as oppose to one coloration type throughout A. atropos’s wings promotes greater predatory defense. These results may further suggest that the evolution of A. atropos evolved in a way which increases species success.