The Hamadryas Baboon - Essay Example

The Hamadryas Baboon The Hamadryas Baboon is a native of the African continent, within the area of the Red Sea, in Ethiopia, Somalia, and Eritrea. It is also found in some parts of the Middle each such as Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Animal historians believe that the baboon was introduced accidentally in the Middle East and Egypt sometime during the ancient Egyptian Empire which explains why the baboon can be found on opposite ends of the geographical spectrum. These types of baboons thrive the most in sub desert settings, steppe, alpine grass meadows, plains, and short grass savannahs. There are some situations, such as in Ethiopia, where the baboons are considered crop pests because they manage to find their way into agricultural areas where they can do a tremendous amount of damage to the crops. Considered highly sexually dimorphic, the adult males weigh around 21.5 kg with the females coming in a much lighter 9.4 kg. The main difference between the male and female species is that the male has a grayish-brown pelage and a ventrum colored like the back or darker. The hair on the cheeks form “whiskers” that are quite pronounced. While the females are plain olive-brown in color with a black natal pelage that is lost around the age of 6 months. The ischial callosities of both sexes are either pink or bright red. The animal itself has a head and body length of around 610 - 762 mm, and a tail that adds and additional 382 -610 mm to the body of the animal (“Papio Hamadryas”). The Hamadryas baboons tend to group themselves when confronted with harsh environments. Often forming into “harems” composed of one adult male, one or more “follower” males, and up to 9 adult females with offspring. In an action similar to that of human courtship and marriage, a male baboon will back off and respect the right of a another baboon to the female once a pairing is made (“Hamadryas Baboon”) within the clan. However, these baboons are not beyond stealing the woman of another group. In fact, the male baboons have been known to: “... forcefully steal females from other bands, but will not steal from their own family. Instead, they very gradually win over a juvenile female without confrontation.” (“Hamadryas Baboon”) Just like in human families and groups, the men are in charge of the group, controlling the movement of the women so that no other baboons can reach them. These “harems” eventually turn into clans which eventually turn into a band. These bands are in charge of searching for food, linking up to around 100 individuals at night, they are able to better fend off predators (“Hamadryas Baboon”) as they are often the target of leopards, jackals, hyenas, cheetahs, and lions with their young sometimes being taken away by eagles. When protecting the “harem” or “clan” the male baboon can be seen “yawning” in an act of displaying his 4 cm. long canines as threat to the predators (Hamadryas Baboon”). The baboon caretakers at the Oakland Zoo have explained that the threats can be intensified by the baboon when it : “... raise(s) their hair, slap hands and feet on the ground, grind their teeth and scream. Fear is shown by a grin with no eyelid threat. They have a number of calls; alarm is given by a dog-like bark” (“Hamadryas Baboon”). Unlike other animals and baboons that have mating seasons, this particular species can breed year round, with its peak being around May-June and November - December. In what can be considered an incestual move within the baboon family, the female baboons mate with the leader of the pack known as the OMU. This is usually the strongest male in the pack who can control and prevent the straying of the females from the pack. The OMU is like a king in his herd as the females care for him by grooming his pelage ( Shefferly, Nancy “Hamadryas Baboon”). It has been observed that there is a type of female inheritance that happens between father and son in the OMU situation. It is believed that: Young males inherit females from their father. Thus the fathers social status is passed on to his sons. Females are much smaller than males, so they are not as forceful. However, if a female does not favor her male, she will have a much higher chance of being "stolen" from her male ( Shefferly, Nancy, “Hamadryas Baboon”). The female of the species reach sexual maturity at the age of 5 years for the females and 7 years for the males. A pregnant baboon has an estrous cycle of 31-35 days. After impregnation, the female then carries the offspring for 170 - 173 days.. There is normally only one birth but in some instances, there are two. The newborn will weigh anywhere from 600-900 grams and have a long black coat which makes it more identifiable from the older infants . Typically, the neonate is totally dependent upon its mother for food and other essentials. The mothers carry the babies until they learn to walk and are fed by them until they are finally able to eat solid food. this usually lasts around 239 days (“Hamadryas Baboon”). The average lifespan of the baboon is anywhere from 30-40 years of age. It is important to understand that these baboons act in a similar way to human beings in the sense that they too have a social hierarchy with their position in the clan determined by their aggressive or submissive behavior within the group (Melbourne Zoo “Hamadryas Baboon”). Being quadrupeds, the baboons are mostly terrestrial primates with high social skills and the ability to communicate with one another. They have the ability to use visual signals, gestures, vocalizations, auditory cues such as lip smacking and teeth chattering, and tactile communication. An example of their communication process can be seen in two examples below: ... a females or juveniles display their hind quarters to the male. This submissive signal differs from sexual presenting (which females do to elicit copulation) in that the hindquarters are much lower to the ground. Staring is a threat behavior, the effect of which is enhanced by the differently colored fur in the region of the eye which is revealed when the baboon stares. The mouth may be opened during this type of staring, although the canine teeth typically remain covered. Bobbing the head up and down is also considered a threatening behavior among Hamadryas Baboons ( Shefferly, Nancy “Hamadryas Baboon”). Just like all the other animals in our world, the Hamadryas Baboon plays an important role in our world ecosystem. As prey animals, they are part of an intricate local food web. In their role as harvesters, the plants they harvest create soil nutrition by aerate the soil and disperse the seeds they eat, while the small animals they kill become available to larger animals when they are done with it. In relation to human beings, the existence of these baboons have both a positive and negative effect on the human beings. As animals for viewing in the zoo, they provide countless hours of entertainment for the visitors. Outside of the zoo, the animals do their part in the service of mankind in the name of medical research. There was actually a time in the history of the animal when humans heavily hunted the baboons for their skin as well. On the downside however, the proliferation of the animal outside of the zoo allows them to spill into agricultural areas where their presence places undue pressure on the agricultural crops. That is why the Hamadryas Baboon is often considered a crop pest. They also pose a danger to humans due to their large size and ability to attack when confronted by a (perceived) threat ( Wildlife Conservation Society “ Hamadryas Baboon”). Although mostly housed in zoos these days, the Hamadryas Baboon is considered under threat. Its habitat is dwindling with the effects of urbanization. Man continues to hunt for the baboon. In Egypt, where the animal was once considered sacred, the baboon species is already extinct. In closing, it is important to note that although the Hamadryas Baboon seems to be under threat of extinction, animal scientists have observed that; Hybridization between P. hamadryas and P. anubis occurs along the Awash river valley in Ethiopia. The area of hybridization appears to be stable, without noticeable introgression of P. hamadryas phenotypes into anubis baboon populations or of P. anubis phenotypes into hamadryas baboon populations ( Shefferly, Nancy “Hamadryas Baboon”). Therefore, while the Hamadryas Baboon species might face extinction in some parts of the world, it may still continue to live on in a new species due to the cross-breeding that is happening. It is only a matter of time before the new species is also accidentally introduced in the areas where the baboon originally settled. Works Cited “Hamadryas Baboon”. oaklandzoo.org. oaklandzoo.org. n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2014. “Hamadryas Baboon”. perthzoo.wa.gov.au. perthzoo.wa.gov.au. 12 Jun. 2012. Web. 26. Feb. 2014. “Hamadryas Baboon”. thebigzoo.com. thebigzoo.com. 2014. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. Melbourne Zoo. “Hamadryas Baboon”. zoo.org.au. zoo.org.au. n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. Shefferly, Nancy. “Hamadryas Baboon”. Animal Diversity Web. umich.edu. 2004. Web. 22 Feb. 2014. Wildlife Conservation Society. “Hamadryas Baboon”. prospectparkzoo.com. prospectparkzoo.com. 2014. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. Read More