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Mr. Shimomura said that although a mature Yakei battled with his own mother to elevate his status, he was “generous and kind to his baby.”
It looks like Yakei has held the power this breeding season without much fuss. The only change in rank occurred when the 3rd rank monkey disappeared and all the monkeys below it rose one by one.
“As a female, Yakei should be much weaker physically than other adult males, and so it should be easy for them to outrun him by attacking and defeating him,” said Yu Kaigaishi, a research fellow at the Japan Association for the Promotion of Science. in an email. “I think after Yakei became alpha in the unit, he made a lot of social allies that could stabilize his position.”
By studying the behavior of Japanese macaques and observing Yakei and his troop, Mr. Kaigaishi believes Yakei’s ability to stay number 1 is proof of this. Strength is not everything in Japanese macaque society.
“For Japanese macaques, social intelligence is more important than physical strength,” said Katherine Cronin of the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, who studies the social behavior and cognition of animals, including the zoo’s own Japanese macaques. “Macaques that achieve high rank typically have a lot of social support in the form of united allies who assist them during tense times such as breeding season.”
Because of his ability to rally allies or instill fear in his enemies, the Yakei were able to retain power by challenging macaque social norms. Its behavior fascinated scientists and attracted the attention of people from all over the world.
But their triumphs and tribulations also shed light on how much more remains to be learned about the social lives of nonhuman primates.
Dr. “The more we observe primate behavior in different environments, including accredited zoos and sanctuaries, the more we learn how resilient, creative and socially savvy they are,” said Cronin. “I’m glad so many people have had the chance to learn about the fascinating and resilient social world of macaques. “Although they have been studied longer than almost any other primate species, they continue to fascinate and surprise us.”
Hisako Ueno reported from Tokyo.
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