Mentors: Kelsey Ellis, Ph.D. and Katie Feilen, Ph.D.

Restrictions on space and number of individuals in managed care can make it difficult to effectively raise and care for animals with complex social requirements, such as gibbons. Zoos and other captive settings must strive to create the necessary social structures for gibbon development with the individuals and space provided to them, so understanding the way relationships form between individuals is key. This study focuses on a juvenile white-cheeked gibbon (Nomascus leucogenys) introduced at 8 months of age to an adult buff-cheeked gibbon (Nomascus gabriellae) and the social dynamics that have emerged between them at the Cinncinati Zoo and Botanical Gardens. I hypothesized that the relationship between the two would most closely resemble one between two differently aged siblings in a typical gibbon social group. Social behavior between the two subjects was recorded over the course of four full sessions with the behavior type, proximity of the subjects, and the initiator being noted. The juvenile male gibbon was found to have initiated nearly every instance of social play, while the adult female initiated all embraces and most food sharing. Ultimately, the relationship between the two gibbons most closely resembled that of a mother-child pair, despite the fact that the adult never nursed the juvenile, was introduced to it later in its infancy, and was of a different species. These results indicate that the requirements for social development in Nomascus gibbons can be met with individuals of other species within the genus, allowing for greater opportunities for animal excellence in managed care.

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