American Journal of Primatology 37:73-75 (1994)

BOOK REVIEWS

A Short Textbook About Primate Behavior

Review of Introduction to Primate Behavior, Nancy E. Collinge. Dubuque, Iowa, Kendall/
Hunt Publishing Company, 1993, vii + 248 pp, 21 tables, 74 figures, $25.95, paperback.

This textbook provides a succinct introduction to some of the basic ideas of

interest to those who study primate behavior. Collinge has geared the book toward
students who are encountering primates in an academic “habitat” for the first
time, and thus, she presents a fair amount of information in a n easily understand-
able format. The author’s clear and direct writing style is a notable attribute. This
book plus a set of readings of primary journal articles might make a nice combi-
nation for use in a n introductory course in primate behavior (one that emphasizes
field research) offered by anthropology, biology, psychology, or zoology depart-
ments.
Introduction to Primate Behavior is organized in five parts. Part I introduces
some of the fundamentals about primates, with chapters discussing taxonomy, the
history of primate studies, primate ecology, and primate social organization. This
section establishes the foundation for the subsequent sections. The four chapters in
Part 11deal with the “life-way’’patterns of primates; there is one chapter each for
representative species of the prosimians, New World monkeys, Old World mon-
keys, and apes. Part 111 addresses “primatological concepts” with chapters on ev-
olutionary principles, socio-sexual behavior, socialization, and social behavior.
Part IV focuses on primate intelligence, emphasizing learning, communication,
and cognition. Part V is entitled “Applied Primatology” and comprises two chap-
ters: one focuses on primate ethology and the other on conservation of primates.
The book closes with a glossary, a bibliography, and separate subject and author
indices. The volume is logically organized, and the discussion of social organization
in terms of mating systems and the emphasis on primate intelligence are two of its
most evident strengths. The author has clearly met her goal of impressing the
reader with the social and intellectual abilities of primates. The applied primatol-
ogy section is less satisfying, although the last half of the conservation chapter is
effective.
The purpose of this short book (about 220 pages of text) is to introduce readers
to a complex and continually expanding area of academic inquiry (over 100 pages
were devoted to behavioral research in volume 32 of the American Journal of
Primatology alone). As such, it is unrealistic to expect the book to contain all
information relevant to the study of primate behavior and unfair to criticize the
author’s efforts in terms of topics omitted. A few of the issues, however, are pre-
sented in a problematic fashion.
The treatment of the contributions of laboratory primatologists to the study of
primate behavior is, at best, uneven. Although the discussions of primate cognition
and ape language abilities are effective and concise and the author dedicates the
volume to both field and laboratory primatologists, little, if any, attention is paid
to the basic behavioral research that has been conducted at facilities like the
Regional Primate Research Centers. Some mention is made of the improvements to

0 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

74 I Schapiro
zoo enclosures for primates and even of some laboratory breeding colonies that
have made similar improvements. Yet, the overall message concerning laboratory
contributions to the study of primate behavior is not as positive as it should be. The
tone of the book might be improved with an expanded, yet brief, discussion of the
numerous attempts that have been made to 1) simulate aspects of the natural
environment in captivity and 2) quantify the effects of such environmental
manipulations (enrichment) on the behavior and psychological well-being of
captive primates. If Collinge’s goals truly are to instill in new students a fascina-
tion with the splendor of primate behavior and to provide some practical informa-
tion that might influence their thinking and actions concerning conservation, then
she may need to reconsider her explicit and implied treatments of laboratory re-
search.
Although the author states that many of the ideological differences that ex-
isted between laboratory and field researchers have been resolved, the book does
not give a well-balanced discussion of laboratory and field contributions t o behav-
ioral research. Derisive comments about captive research and researchers, and
about biomedical laboratories do not fit well with the author’s efforts to commu-
nicate enthusiasm for her subject to students making their initial forays into
primate studies. Current difficulties in obtaining funding, political unrest in coun-
tries with indigenous primates, and diminishing habitatfactors which increase
the need for field studies-all hinder fieldwork and decrease the likelihood that
successful long-term studies of primates in the wild will continue. Captive colonies
(in zoos and laboratories) are likely to increase in importance not only as propa-
gation resources but also as behavioral research resources to complement field
sites. In fact, “young” primatologists (those using this book in their primate be-
havior course) may find captive colonies more accessible to them than field sites
when they are ready to continue their primate studies. As the author correctly
states, habitat destruction is the biggest threat to wild primate populations. There
is no doubt that data gathered in the field will aid in the conservation and captive
propagation of endangered primate species, but adequate recognition must be
given to the behavioral data from captive populations that have already furthered
these goals.
While a textbook should not be a series of sentences followed by citations
(authors and years in parentheses), it should adequately acknowledge those whose
work is being described. The author seems to have chosen the citation of secondary
and tertiary sources as a solution to the problem of continual referencing, but in
fairness to students and researchers, this book could have been more generous in
its citing of primary sources. Along these same lines, too many of the references
cited in the text do not appear in the bibliography. An accurate set of references
should be provided as a resource for interested students t o consult to satisfy the
curiosity stimulated by the ideas in the book and as an effective starting point for
their obligatory term papers.
The quantity of typographical errors was another very distracting problem in
this book. As the primary objective of the book is to enhance student interest in the
field of primate behavior, it is important that the product be polished and thor-
ough. Substandard copy-editing mars this book; on two facing pages, Aotus tri-
virgatus was spelled three different ways.
Aside from these criticisms, this is an easily read and affordable textbook. The
author did not set out to discuss every issue in primate behavior in detail, yet she
has managed to treat many areas quite well. From the student’s perspective, this
is a clear and manageable read, although somewhat lacking in appreciation for the
contributions of laboratory primatologists to the study of primate behavior. Be-
 Primate Behavior / 75
cause of the typographical errors, the interested instructor might wait for a revised
version (if there is one) before considering the book for use in an introductory
course in primate behavior.

Steven J. Schapiro
Department of Veterinary Sciences
The University of Texas
M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
Bastrop, Texas