Mother Shielding Young?
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by
xebecatt2002
Thought this clip was interesting. The baboon on the far left of the image appears to be carrying an infant. Another baboon approaches the pair and appears to make an attempt at socializing. Not sure if the baboon is trying to interact with the other adult or makes a move towards the young. The adult with the infant is startles and stares down the other before moving away.
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ksigler
moderator
It looks like the mother is #nursing the infant. Maybe that's a more sensitive situation, since usually they seem a little more communal about raising young.
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asgoffe
scientist
Infant baboons are extremely attractive forces which can be a bit stressful for new mothers. The mother looks like she is nursing her infant and what looks to me like a large juvenile male attempts to handle the infant. It is hard to tell with such a short clip and no sound the exact nature of the interaction but her infant looks rather small and females are often wary for a few days or weeks.
Unlike savannah baboons (e.g. chacma, olive & yellow) Guinea baboons are a species with female-biased dispersal (Kopp et al. 2015: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajp.22415/full). Therefore you won't see the same level of female-female relationships as you would see in savannah baboons.
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ksigler
moderator
Thank you, @asgoffe! I sympathize with the male -- I want pick up all the baby baboons, also! Maybe it's because they travel in such large groups, but their social interactions are much more obvious and interesting than many of the other monkeys.
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jwidness
moderator
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