Birth Order and Hand Preference in Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)- Implications for Pathological Models of Handedness in Humans
The effect of birth order on hand preference was assessed in a sample of 154 captive-born chimpanzees. Subjects were classified as first, middle, or latter born using 2 classification criteria based on their birth order. Hand preference was measured using a task that elicited coordinated bimanual actions. Significant birth-order effects were found for both classification […]
Comparative assessment of handedness for a coordinated bimanual task in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) and orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus)
Hand preferences for a coordinated bimanual task were assessed in a sample of 31 captive gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) and 19 captive orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) and were compared with chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) hand preferences in subjects that were matched on the basis of age, sex, and rearing history. The task required that the apes remove food […]
Can zoo records help answer behavioral research questions? The case of the left-handed lemurs (Lemur catta)
Most zoos keep comprehensive records, which potentially form a database for use in answering some research questions, such as in veterinary and population management research. They have not, however, been widely used to answer questions about animal behavior and welfare. Here we try to assess the usefulness to behavioral research of two sorts of zoo […]
Manual laterality for pointing gestures compared to grasping actions in guenons and mangabeys
In both humans and apes, the production of communicative gestures appears to be controlled by cerebral structures in the left hemisphere that would be distinct from those involved in noncommunicative actions. Whether communicative gestures also rely on specific lateralized systems in monkeys remains unclear. We assessed manual laterality for requesting gestures, i.e. pointing, and for […]
Cognitive bias, hand preference and welfare of common marmosets
Common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) have hand preferences for grasping pieces of food and holding them while eating and these are stable throughout adult life. We report here that left-handed marmosets have negative cognitive bias compared to right-handed marmosets. Twelve marmosets were trained to expect a food reward from a bowl with a black lid and […]