17 International Symposium on
Primatology and Wildlife Scienceth

March 7–8, 2022

The 17th International Symposium on Primatology and Wildlife Science
Schedule at a Glance (updated Feb. 16, 2022; subject to change）
Monday, March 7
JST
10:00

Morning
Opening Remarks& Announcements

JST
13:00

Tuesday, March 8
Afternoon

11:00

14:00

10:15–11:15:

G-4
Md-ZainCore time for P1–P18

11:15–12:15:
11:30

Core time for P19–P36

14:30

G-5
Akbar

*Posters viewable until 3/14

Break
15:00

G-6
Guo

G-7
Schofield
12:30

15:30
Lunch Break

13:00

Video Letters

16:00

Kohshima

O-1
Minami
16:30

O-3
Gao
17:00

G-8
CICASP International
Primatology Lecture 10

Whiten
17:30

18:00

Primate cognition, societies, and cultures

O-2
Brooks

10:30

G-10
Horie

11:00

Coffee/Tea Break

11:30

O-4
ZemmotoO-5
Numabe

12:00

O-6
YoshimuraO-7
Langgeng

12:30

O-8
Lim
O-9
Naito-Liederbach

13:00

Coffee/Tea BreakG-9
YumotoClosing Remarks

Student Session

12:00

Morning

Climate & Biodiversity Crisis

G-3
SharmaResearch and training of experts on large animals as key components of ecosystem conservation

13:30

Poster Session
on LINC Biz*

10:00

G-1
Kohshima
G-2
de Souza

10:30

JST

Cover Photo: Japanese macaque in Yakushima (Credit: Kenneth Keuk)The 17th International Symposium on Primatology and Wildlife Science
PROGRAMAll times in Japan Standard Time (GMT+9)

Day 1 (Monday, March 7)
Time

Abstract

10:00–10:15

(min)

Title

(15)

Opening Remarks & Announcements

10:15–12:15(120)

Posters on LINC Biz [see pp. iii–iv for titles]

12:15–13:00(45)

Speaker

Affiliation

Gen'ichi IDANI

Wildlife ResearchCenter, Kyoto
University

Online Poster Session<Lunch Break>[JSPS Core-to-Core Program Special Session]
Research and training of experts on large animals as key components of ecosystem conservation:
The past 10 years and the next 10 years
Co-Chairs: Ikki MATSUDA, Yamato TSUJI, Shiro KOHSHIMA
Wildlife ResearchCenter, Kyoto
University
Friends of theManatee Association;Federal University of
Rio Grande do Norte

13:00–13:10

G-1

(10)

Brief Introduction of Our Program

Shiro
KOHSHIMA

13:10–13:35

G-2

(25)

Ecology and Conservation of the Amazonian
Manatee in Central Amazon, Brazil

Diogo DE
SOUZA

13:35–14:00

G-3

(25)

More Brain than Brawn: An Overview of
Elephant Cognition

Nachiketha
SHARMA

Kyoto University
Institute for Advanced
Study

14:00–14:25

G-4

(25)

Behavioral Ecology, Genetics and HumanMonkey Conflict of the Malaysian Primates

Badrul Munir MD
ZAIN

Faculty of Scienceand Technology,
Universiti
Kebangsaan Malaysia

14:25–14:50

G-5

(25)

Activity, Diet and Ranging of Silvery Lutung(Trachypithecus cristatus) for Ecotourism
Planning at Gunung Padang

MuhammadAzhari AKBAR

Biology Department,
IPB University

14:50–14:55(5)<Break>14:55–15:15

G-6

(20)

Long-Term Field Study Of Golden Snub-Nosed
Monkeys: Combining Traditional Fieldwork With
Innovation Techniques

Songtao GUO

School of Life
Sciences, Northwest
University

15:15–15:35

G-7

(20)

New Tools for Conservation: AutomatedBehaviour Analysis of Wild Chimpanzees using
Deep LearningDan
SCHOFIELD

School of
Anthropology
University of Oxford

15:35–15:55(20)

Video Letters & Comments

15:55–16:00(5)

Concluding Remarks

Shiro
KOHSHIMA

Wildlife ResearchCenter, Kyoto
University

16:00–16:15(15)<Coffee Break>iPrimate Cognition, Societies and Cultures

Co-Chairs: Yuko HATTORI, Michael HUFFMAN

16:15–16:30

O-1

(15)

Are Neonates the Most "Infant-Like"? Early
Development of Physical Features in FreeRanging Japanese Macaques

Toshiki MINAMI

Primate ResearchInstitute, Kyoto
University

16:30–16:45

O-2

(15)

The Founder Sociality Hypothesis

James BROOKS

Wildlife ResearchCenter, Kyoto
University

16:45–17:00

O-3

(15)

Body Representations in Chimpanzees

Jie GAO

Primate ResearchInstitute, Kyoto
University

17:00–18:00

G-8

(60)

[CICASP International Primatology Lecture]
The Discovery and Reach of Culture inPrimates' Lives

Andrew WHITEN

University of St
Andrews

Title

Speaker

Affiliation

Day 2 (Tuesday, March 8)
Time

Abstract(min)

Climate & Biodiversity Crisis

Chair: Gen’ichi IDANI

10:00–10:40

G-9

(40)

The Values of Biodiversity and SDGs

10:40–11:10

G-10

(30)

Climate and Biodiversity Crises

11:10–11:25(15)

Takakazu
YUMOTOPrimate ResearchInstitute, Kyoto
University, Japan

Masahiko HORIE

Meiji University<Coffee Break>Student Session

Chair: Susumu TOMIYAChika
ZEMMOTO

Wildlife ResearchCenter, Kyoto
University

Difference in the Sensitivity to Bitter
Compounds in Coffee based on TAS2R Gene
Polymorphism

Rena NUMABE

Primate ResearchInstitute, Kyoto
University(15)

Metabarcoding of Fecal DNA Indicates
Frequent Plant Consumption in Wild Snow
Leopard (Panthera uncia)

HirotoYOSHIMURA

Wildlife ResearchCenter, Kyoto
University

O-7

(15)

Seasonal Variation of Gastrointestinal Helminth
Infection in Japanese macaques of the
Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park

AbdullahLANGGENG

Primate ResearchInstitute, Kyoto
University

12:25–12:40

O-8

(15)

Demographic History of the Endangered
Malayan Tapir: A Whole-Genome
Resequencing Approach

Qi Luan LIM

Wildlife ResearchCenter, Kyoto
University

12:40–12:55

O-9

(15)

Age but Not MHC Similarity Predict
Reproductive Success of Captive JapaneseGolden Eagles

Annegret MotoNAITOLIEDERBACH

Wildlife ResearchCenter, Kyoto
University(5)

Closing Remarks

Hiroo IMAI

Primate ResearchInstitute, Kyoto
University

11:25–11:40

O-4

(15)

Study on Adorable Two Dog Breeds’
Personalities and Their Genetic Basis

11:40–11:55

O-5

(15)

11:55–12:10

O-6

12:10–12:25

12:55–13:00

ii

Online Poster Session

on LINC Biz
Monday, March 7, 10:15–12:15*During their core presentation times, presenters are requested to be available on LINC Biz for live
chats with the audience

Core presentation time* 10:15–11:15
P-1

Naoto TOYODA

Evolutionary Patterns of the Facial Part of the Cranium in Strepsirrhines:
Combining Geometric Morphometrics and Phylogenetic Comparative
Methods

P-2

Christen LIN

Emotional Contagion in Chimpanzees and Bonobos

P-3

Elio BORGHEZAN

Effect of Light Bias on Male Mating Signal and Female Mate Choice in a
Sexually Dimorphic Amazonian Fish, the Sailfin Tetra (Crenuchus
spilurus)

P-4

Sok Hwan LEE

Effect of a Novel Skill in Social Rank of Chimpanzees and Bonobos

P-5

Takuto SUGIMOTO

Do Horses Evaluate Humans Based on Skillfulness?

P-6

Kushaal SELVARAJAH

Comparative Study on the Social Behavior of Sambar Deer (Rusa
unicolor) in Three Selected Captive Facilities in Peninsular Malaysia

P-7

Chisato TANAKA

P-8

Kana ARAI

P-9

James BUKIE

Activity Budget of Semi-Captive Drill Monkeys at Drill Ranch, Cross River
State, Nigeria

P-10

Shenwen XU

Generalization of Video-Referent Correspondence in Chimpanzees

P-11

Yeongju LEE

Social Associations of Mothers and Offsprings in Free-Roaming HorseGroupsP-12

Yuko KURIYAMAHow Can We Get Information from Old Fecal Samples of Iriomote Cats?:
Methods for Species Identification, Sex Determination, and Hormone
Measurements

P-13

Heping LI

Influences of Oceanographic Features on the Northbound Migratory
Movement of Northern Fur Seals (Callorhinus ursinus)

P-14

Ena ONISHI

Contagious Urination among Captive Chimpanzees: Investigation of Social
Centrality of Initiator and Follower

P-15

Alexander HENDRY

Are Semi-Arboreal Felids at Greater Risk from Habitat Disturbances than
Terrestrial Felids? The Ecology of the Marbled Cat in Southeast Asia

P-16

Yige PIAODo Pit Vipers Assess Their Venom? Defensive Tactics of Deinagkistrodon
acutus Shift with Changed Venom Reserve

P-17

Seda KAVLAKThe Social Networks and Hierarchy of a Captive Group of Orphaned
Infant Chimpanzees

P-18

Kenneth KEUKStudying the Effects of a Raccoon Dog Invasion of Yakushima on the
Ecology of Disease, from the Ground Up (to the Sky): a Pilot Study

Evaluating Stressors in Captive Tsushima Leopard Cats (Prionailurus
bengalensis euptilurus) Based on Stress Hormone Concentration and
Behavioral Changes
Application of Methylation-Sensitive High-Resolution Melting (MS-HRM)
to Estimate Epigenetic Age in Captive Asian Elephants (Elephas
maximus)iii

Core presentation time* 11:15–12:15
P-19

Boyun LEE

Asymmetry of Early Social Interactions between Infants and Non-MotherIndividuals in Yakushima Japanese Macaque (Macaca fuscata yakui)

P-20

Akihiro ITAHARA

Tracking Visual Attention of Crows Using a Motion Capture System

P-21

Hayate TAKEUCHI

Comparative Transcriptome Analysis in Stranded Cetaceans Provides
Novel Insights into the Evolution of Lipid Utilization

P-22

Asuka NISHIJIMA

Transcriptome Changes of Maternal Immune System Related to Embryonic
Diapause in Brown Bears

P-23

Hinako KATSUSHIMA

Possibility of Gustation Being Used during Breastfeeding by Cetacean
Infants

P-24

Kohei KANETSUNA

Comprehensive Analysis of the Gut Microbiome in Gum-Eating Mammals

P-25

Ayumu SANTA

Training of Matching to Sample Task for Killer Whales (Orcinus orca)

P-26

Tamao MAEDA

Comparing the Social Relationships of Feral Horses during Breeding andNon-breeding Season Using Drones and GPS Tags

P-27

Hideki SUGIURA

Exploratory Vegetation Survey by UAV in Yakushima Island

P-28

Akiho MURAMATSU

Longitudinal Working Memory Study in Chimpanzees

P-29

Qi Luan LIM

Population Genetic Structure of the Malayan Tapirs in Peninsular Malaysia
Revealed by Nine Cross-species Microsatellite Markers: Genetic Diversity
Compared to the Japanese Ex-situ Population

P-30

Yoshiyuki TABUSE

Rest Site Selection Analysis in Japanese Macaques

P-31

Juno SHIMADA

Molecular Evolution of Sweet Taste Receptor Genes in Elephants

P-32

Shiina SAKAMOTO

Genetics, Behavior, and Evolution of the Visual Adaptation in Egg-Laying
Mammals

P-33

Gema PALACINOGONZALEZThe Role of Intentional Communication in a Cooperative Activity in Horses(Equus caballus)

P-34

China KOBAYASHIHow Do Cats Move Through Forests? : the Analysis of Capture Rate by
Camera Traps

P-35

Katherine MAJEWSKI

All-You-Can-Eat: A Preliminary Study of Invasive Raccoon Dog(Nyctereutes procyonoides) Predation of Endemic Species and Dietary
Competition on Yakushima Island, Japan

P-36

Satsuki SUZUKI

Estimating Epigenetic Age in Okinawa rail (Hypotaenidia okinawae) using
Methylation-Sensitive High-Resolution Melting (MS-HRM)

iv

PWS Symposia Special Session for JSPS Core-to-Core program of WRC

RESEARCH AND TRAINING OF EXPERTS ON LARGE ANIMALSAS KEY COMPONENTS OF ECOSYSTEM CONSERVATION- THE PAST 10 YEARS AND THE NEXT 10 YEARS -7th March 2022 13:00〜16:00
Online broadcast (Registration required)
Outcomes of the program to-date

Ecology and conservation of the Amazonian manatees incentral Amazon, Brazil
Diogo Alexandre de Souza
Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte

More brain than brawn: An overview of elephantcognition
Nachiketha Sharma
Kyoto University

Behavioral ecology, genetics and human monkey
conflicts of the Malaysian primates
Badrul Munir Md-Zain
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia

Activity, diet and ranging of silvery lutung forconservation management planning at Gunung Padang
Muhammad Azhari Akbar
IPB University

The future of conservation research: applying innovative technologies

Long-term field study of golden snub-nosed monkeys:
combining traditional fieldwork with innovative techniques
Songtao Guo
Northwest University

Automated behaviour analysis of wild chimpanzees using
deep learning
Daniel Schofield
University of Oxford
Coorganized by
JSPS core-to-core programs, CCT-Bio (2012-2017) & CET-Bio (2017-2022)
JSPS Primatology and Wildlife Science (PWS)
Supported by
Wildlife Research Center of Kyoto University (WRC)Chubu University Academy of Emerging Sciences (CUAES)

G-1

Brief Introduction of Our Program
Shiro Kohshima

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

Our program, the JSPS Core-to-Core Program “International Core of Excellence forTropical Biodiversity Conservation Focusing on Large Animal Studies” started from
April, 2017. It is a five-years program supported by the Japan Society for the Promotionof Science (JSPS) to promote academic exchange on tropical biodiversity conservation
among seven countries; Japan, Brazil, India, Malaysia, China, Indonesia and UK. We
started this program to extend and develop the international network established by ourprevious JSPS core-to-core program ”International Network for Tropical Biodiversity
Conservation Focusing on Large Animal Studies” that promoted academic exchange
among Japan, Brazil, India and Malaysia for 5 years from April, 2012.
In our program, we focus on large animal studies because many of them are umbrella
species and flagship species important for biodiversity conservation though we nevereliminate the studies on other organisms. We have promoted collaborative studies on
various wildlife as equal partners. Especially, we have promoted development andadaptation of new research technologies for wildlife studies, such as genome analysis,
environmental DNA, bio-logging, sound/image analysis and drone use. We have also held
training courses for wildlife studies every year inviting young researchers from theparticipant countries to Yakushima-island and Kyoto, Japan.
We have organized an international workshop every year in one of the member
countries. This workshop included a symposium and a study tour not only to share theresults of collaborative studies but also to develop and share the idea of “Field Museum”,
a new concept of next generation Zoo/Aquarium tightly connected with the natural
habitats of local wildlife. Field Museum can contribute to the study, conservation andeducation of the wildlife in that area. It can also contribute to the local economy througheco-tourism, for example. In each workshop, we have deepened and shared theunderstanding on the study and conservation of wildlife in the host country and discuss
how to realize Field Museum in each country. Based on this academic exchange by ourprogram, the first Field Museum in Amazon was realized in Manaus, Brazil in 2019. In
the end of this special session, we will discuss how to develop our international
collaboration for the study and conservation of wildlife in next 10 years.

G-2

Ecology and Conservation of the Amazonian Manatee in Central
Amazon, Brazil

1

Diogo A. de Souza1,2,3* and Vera M.F. da Silva1,3

Friends of the Manatee Association, Presidente Figueiredo, Amazonas, Brazil
Department of Ecology, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil
3
Aquatic Mammals Laboratory, National Institute for Amazonian Research, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil

2*

diogo.peixe.boi@gmail.com

Amazonian freshwater ecosystems are undergoing large-scale alteration throughwidespread land cover changes, construction of hydropower dams, overfishing, mining
and pollution, making the Amazonian manatee (Trichechus inunguis) among the mostvulnerable species. In addition, direct human activities (e.g., hunting and fisheries-related
accidental mortality) constitute an unprecedented set of threats to the persistence of thisendemic species. However, a major obstacle to reduce the effects of these threats andsupport conservation strategies has been the scarce information about ecology andpopulation data for the species. T. inunguis is extremely difficult to observe in the wild,
and the limitation of sampling methods has been a challenge for the conservationists. In
this talk, I will provide a short view about the initiatives to reduce the ecologicalinformation gap for the Amazonian manatee and to promote its conservation in a
Sustainable Development Reserve, located in the Purus River basin, Brazilian Central
Amazon. Three main topics are addressed: (i) mortality of manatees and cultural
perception of local people about the conservation prospects of species; (ii) advances andchallenges to study their ecology in the wild, and (iii) what is being done to conserve thespecies. A multi-methodological approach has been used to collect data: interviews withfishermen and former manatee hunters; direct/indirect observations of the species
analyzed with hierarchical models based on imperfect detection to estimate theiroccupancy, and release and monitoring of manatees. First, direct capture using harpoonscontinues to be the main cause of Amazonian manatee mortality. However, there has beena decrease in mortality events after the year 2000, which coincides with the creation ofsustainability initiatives taken by communities such as management of fishing resources.
Second, within 265h of effort, 91 manatee’s observations were recorded. The manatee’s
detection probability had never been estimated before: surprisingly, it was high (p=0.50,
SD=0.05) and positively related with macrophyte coverage of the sampling sites.
Contrary to our prior hypothesis, the results suggest that the studied communities resident
impact is not affecting the manatee occupancy, with greatest probabilities closer to humansettlements, possibly related to greater connection of this region with other water bodies
and Purus river main channel. Third, released manatees are successfully adapting to thewild, including the confirmation of pregnancy from one female manatee; movements,
seasonal habitat use and home range of the individuals monitored by radiotelemetry will
also be informed. This study is a timely opportunity to provide insights and scientificinformation to gain a better understanding of the manatee ecology, and provide subsidies
for managers and local communities to establish an effective protection plan for the
species in the Reserve. Our experience shows that a combination of releases andenvironmental education activities is an effective conservation tool for the T. inunguis.

G-3

More Brain than Brawn: An Overview of Elephant Cognition
Nachiketha Sharma1* and Shinya Yamamoto1, 2

Kyoto University Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto, Japan
Wildlife Research Center of Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan1

2* nachisrnachi@gmail.com

The extant proboscideans are the largest terrestrial animals weighing around 4-6 tons.
They are long lived social species with strong bonds between individuals, display
complex communication (from short distance tactile to long distance auditory, olfactory)
systems and show high fission-fusion dynamics. Along with the societal complexity, theabsolute brain size (5.5-6.5 kgs depending on the species) of elephants is largest among
land animals. These unique features make elephants one of the best model species to study
cognition. Understanding the elephant cognition has multiple advantages. Purely fromthe perspective of comparative psychology, we can gain deeper insights on the evolutionof cognition in phylogenetically distant taxa such as elephants, primates, birds and several
other species. From the practical point of view, elephant cognition can play a huge rolein the welfare, management and conservation of both captive and wild elephants. In thistalk, I will provide a broad overview of our understanding of elephant cognition byhighlighting a few classic studies conducted in both wild and captive settings. I will also
briefly discuss possible challenges faced while studying elephant cognition and its
conservation applications.

G-4

Behavioral Ecology, Genetics and Human-Monkey Conflict of the
Malaysian Primates
Badrul Munir Md Zain1*, Mohd Faudzir Najmuddin2, Muhammad Abu Bakar Abdul-Latif2, Siti
Norsyuhada Kamaluddin1, Norlinda Mohd-Daut1, Farhani Ruslin1 and Ikki Matsuda3,4,5,6
Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti
Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi, Selangor 43600, Malaysia
Faculty of Applied Sciences and Technology, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (Pagoh Campus),
Muar 84600, Johor, Malaysia, Johor, Malaysia
3
Chubu University Academy of Emerging Sciences, 1200, Matsumoto-cho, Kasugai-shi,
Aichi 487-8501, Japan4
Wildlife Research Center of Kyoto University, Japan
5
Japan Monkey Centre, Japan
6
Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Sabah, Malaysia

1*abgbadd1966@yahoo.com

Behavioral ecology, genetics and human-monkey conflict studies were conducted on
Malaysian langurs, long-tailed macaque and Bornean orangutan. We presented here some
findings on selected Malaysian primate involving research collaboration between
Malaysian and Japanese primatologists. Feeding ecology study of Presbytis femoralis
indicated that over 75% of fruit feeding involved consuming cultivar plants planted inhuman settlement. Feeding ecologies of two sympatric primates, the long-tailed macaqueand the dusky langur, in a mixed landscape consisting of urban and agro-forested areas
and forest fragments in Malaysia showed that 59 consumed plant species common to both
species, in which the dietary overlap was the highest for fruits. We also found thatprovisioning had negative effects on the ecology of silvery langur in the Bukit Malawati
Kuala Selangor. Our observation on daily behavior of the Bornean orangutans at Bukit
Merah Orang Utan Island indicated that they engaged in less feeding but more resting,and show less postural diversity. We also managed to genetically identify captive Bornean
orangutans at subspecies level for captive management purposes. Overall, a proper
management with conservation intervention are needed to manage primates that areliving near human settlements.

G-5

Activity, Diet and Ranging of Silvery Lutung (Trachypithecus cristatus)for Ecotourism Planning at Gunung Padang

1

Muhammad Azhari Akbar1*, Dyah Perwitasari-Farajallah1,2, Rizaldi3, Ani Mardiastuti4, Try
Surya Harapan5 and Yamato Tsuji6

Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, IPB University, Bogor, West Java,
Indonesia
2
Primate Research Center, IPB University, Bogor, West Java, Indonesia
3
Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Andalas University, Padang, West
Sumatra, Indonesia
4
Department of Conservation of Forest Resources and Ecotourism, Faculty of Forestry, IPB University,
Bogor, West Java, Indonesia
5Southeast Asia Biodiversity Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences & Center for Integrative
Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla,
Yunnan, China
6
Department of Science and Engineering, Ishinomaki Senshu University, Ishinomaki, Miyagi, Japan*akbar20.official@gmail.com

Ecotourism has a positive synergy which combine tourism activity and biodiversity
conservation. With appropriate management, it also sustains the well-being of the local
people, involves interpretation and education. We present the preliminary results of an
initiative of ecotourism at Gunung Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia, with special
attention to silvery lutung (Trachypithecus cristatus), as one of primate species inhabiting
natural forest there. We conducted behavioral observations of the lutungs between 2018and 2019 (total observation time: 482 hr), and recorded activity budgets, dietary profile,and ranging patterns, all of which would be used as a baseline for an ecotourism planning.
We found the subject group spent most of time resting (average 45% of the daytime).
Resting peaked in the morning, also in the afternoon while moving and feeding decreasedin this period. In several seasons they spent longer time feeding. We recorded 74 items
from 37 different plant species as the lutungs’ diet. The lutungs mainly fed on young
leaves (68%), but they seasonally fed much on ripe and unripe fruits. Home range size ofthe target group was 7.3 ha, which represented approximately 36.8% of the total of study
site. Monthly range size has increased between January -July 2019. Gunung Padang has
a high potential as ecotourism area through this scientific study which conserve thelutungs as a protected primate species by education and public awareness, also promotesocial and economic benefits for local communities by sharing the daily life of local
people in coastal area at Gunung Padang which can coexist well with primates andprimate-watching program. It may also aid reducing conflicts between human (in term of
local people and tourist) and primates, which has become a major problem at Gunung
Padang.
Keywords: activity, diet, ecotourism, range, instantaneous scan sampling

G-6Long-Term Field Study of Golden Snub-Nosed Monkeys:
Combining Traditional Fieldwork with Innovation Techniques
Songtao Guo

Shaanxi Key Laboratory for Animal Conservation, and College of Life Sciences, Northwest University,
Xi’an, China* songtaoguo@nwu.edu.cn

The reporter’ study is conducted on the Golden snub-nosed monkey (GSM) in the
Qinling Mountains, mainly engaged in wildlife behavior, ecology and conservation. We
follow the monkeys for more than 20 years in field observation and research and try tounderstand their behavior, society and adaptation. We discovered some knowledge of diet,home range and population structure with traditional field investigation method, as well
we recently also borrow new techniques to reveal more knowledge of them than before:
1) we developed an individual face identification system based on Tri-AI technology for
GSM and other mammal species; 2) we used unmanned aerial vehicle drones with thermal
camera to carry out field surveys for GSM in the Qinling Mountains, and achieve therequirements of quickly detecting and measuring the size of the wild primate populations
in mountainous areas; 3)through thermal physiology and nutritional ecology methods, wehave systematically revealed the feeding strategy, nutritional compensation and energybalance mechanism for GSM in the cold environment;4) we use genetic method study
genetic kin relationships and social structure of wild groups of GMS, and revealed themating system and population stability mechanism for them; 5) through meta-genomics
analysis, we find out how gut microbes help host digest high fiber food; except thesebasic biological and ecological study, we have also participated in the conservation
project titled "Forest Ecology Restoration Project in the Qinling Mountains" jointly
funded by Northwestern University and COSMO Petroleum Fund of Japan, planting trees
in abandoned areas of forest farms and contributing to the conservation planning,
habitat restoration and corridor construction of GSMs.
Our team has been cooperating with Japanese scientists for more than 20 years,
spanning two generations. We will continue to participate in and actively promoteinternational cooperation on global biodiversity conservation and persistently contributeto the construction of a better planet.

G-7

New Tools for Conservation: Automated Behaviour Analysis of Wild
Chimpanzees using Deep Learning
Daniel Schofield*
Primate Models for Behavioural Evolution Lab, School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography,
University of Oxford, 64 Banbury Road, Oxford, OX2 6PN, UK*

daniel.schofield@anthro.ox.ac.uk

Video datasets are increasingly important for conservation and ethology, howeverlarge-scale analysis of animal behaviour is limited by time and resources. I outline a novel
framework using artificial intelligence (AI) to perform individual identification andbehaviour recognition of wild chimpanzees for analysis of social behaviour. I review thestrengths and limitations of such an approach, and discuss the future directions andchallenges for widespread adoption of the technology in conservation and research.

G-8

The Discovery and Reach of Culture in Primates' Lives
Andrew Whiten*

School of Psychology & Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK*

aw2@st-andrews.ac.uk

In the present century the study of animal cultures has veritably exploded, revealingthat culture – in the sense of an array of socially transmitted traditions shared by acommunity – is widespread across the animal kingdom: it is pervasive through somespecies’ lives, and spans most domains of behaviour one can think of, from foraging skills
to tool use, vocal repertoires and migratory pathways (Whiten 2021).
But these discoveries are based on foundations dating back seven decades, andprimatology played a major role in these, beginning of course with the work of Imanishi,
Itani, Kawamura, Kawai, and colleagues on the ‘precultures’ of Japanese macaques.
Some quite different research on birdsong dialects and avian foraging innovations
provided important foundations too, but initially failed to connect by any crossreferencing between this work and the primatological discoveries. The bigger picture ofanimal culture has become appreciated only much later.
Primatology continued to contribute breakthroughs that led and shaped this bigger
picture of animal culture through the latter parts of the twentieth century and beyond,notably through field research with chimpanzees, again pushed forward by major
Japanese figures but also by a more international array of inspiring primatologists.
In this talk I will first offer a personal overview of the progressive discoveries thatshaped our understanding of the scope and significance of primate culture through thelast 70 years or so. I then survey what we have come to recognize as the substantial ‘reach’of culture in the lives of primates and other animals (Whiten 2017a, 2017b). This includes
culture’s reach across a diversity of species of primate, across a diversity of types of
behaviour, across a diversity of cognitive processes, and extending through primates’
lifetimes (Whiten and van de Waal 2018).
Whiten, A. (2017a). Social learning and culture in child and chimpanzee. Ann. Rev.
Psychol. 68, 129-154.
Whiten, A. (2017b). How culture extends the scope of evolutionary biology in the great
apes. Proc. Natl. Acad. USA 114, 7790-7797.
Whiten, A. (2021). The burgeoning reach of animal culture. Science, 372, eabe6514.
Whiten, A. & van de Waal, E. (2018). The pervasive role of social learning in primate
lifetime development. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 72, 80.

G-9

The Values of Biodiversity and SDGs
Takakazu Yumoto*Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Japan*

yumoto.takakazu.6w@kyoto-u.ac.jp

There are several obstacles to spreading the importance of the biodiversity concept tothe business world. One of them is the "apparent" biodiversity problem. Biodiversity
issues are often reduced to the conservation of rare species or the extermination of alien
species. What is the point of investing large amounts of taxpayers' money to bring backextinct animals like the crested ibis or the oriental stork? Or why do we have to spend a
lot of manpower to exterminate black bass and lanceleaf tickseed, which have alreadybecome familiar to us? Another "apparent" biodiversity problem is the question ofwhether we should protect useless and even harmful species. Modern agriculture is basedon the extreme reduction of biodiversity by eliminating weeds and pests in order toefficiently produce only certain "exotic" crops. In addition, modern medicine often talks
about eliminating pathogens and the organisms that transmit them as well.
The value of biodiversity can be divided into three categories: 1) heritage value, 2)functional value, and 3) indicator value. What I would like to focus on here is theindicative value. The existence of ecosystems rich in biodiversity is the source of a safe
and secure world for human society and a human society with high resilience against
various disturbances such as climate change and large-scale disasters. The crested ibis
and the oriental stork are not only "flag species" which attracts popularity, but also
"umbrella species" which covers the functions of a whole ecosystem. Rural landscapeswith crested ibis and oriental storks are the places that nurture rich biota and ensure that
we can obtain safe and healthy agricultural products.
Recently, the concept of SDGs has been gaining attentions widely. Of course, each of
the 17 goals is important for building a sustainable planet and human society, but the mostimportant message of the SDGs is an attempt to the simultaneous achievement of all 17
goals. Otherwise, we will not be able to reach the ultimate goal of "a world where no one
is left behind". The 17 goals can be categorized into 4 goals for the biosphere, 8 goals forhuman society, and 4 goals for the economy. So far, economic development has been the
top priority among the policy makers and most of our society, and human society and thebiosphere have been "left behind". The right way to use the SDGs is not to claim that yourbusiness is making a significant contribution to any one goal, but to check whether it ismaking a negative impact on other goals. Rather, the list of goals in SDGs is to check
whether your business has a negative impact on any 17 goals. Otherwise, we will end up
with a pretended environmentalism i.e. "SDG wash" that emphasizes the contribution to
one goal and ignores or hides the negative impact on other goals.
Our society is on the verge of a major game change, a "new capitalism". We must
realize that corporate entities that continue to "exploit" workers and also ecosystems
without paying proper returns and fail to fulfill their responsibilities as a member of ourplanet will no longer be chosen for investment in the rapid economic recovery after
COVID-19.

G-10

Climate and Biodiversity Crises
Prof. Masahiko Horie

Former Ambassador for Global Environmental Affairs
Special Advisor to the President of Meiji University

The Planet and Humans are at a crossroads. We are confronting with two globally
imminent crises of climate and biodiversity.
The damages caused by climate change are quite serious and the State parties of
UNFCCC are committed to achieve carbon neutral under Paris Agreement.
This climate crisis is accelerating the speed of biodiversity loss and worsening anothercrisis of biodiversity.
Based on the presentation by Prof. Yumoto who will focus on the value of biodiversity
and SGDs, I will focus more on the international efforts facing global warming under theParis Agreement.
We need to double our efforts to save this planet and all the peoples of the world must
uphold and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

O-1

Are Neonates the Most “Infant-Like”? Early Development of PhysicalFeatures in Free-Ranging Japanese Macaques
Toshiki Minami* and Takeshi Furuichi
Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Japan*

minami.toshiki.73m@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Human infants have distinctive physical features compared to adults. Infants with more
prominent infant-like features are more attractive to adults, enhancing their caretaking
motivation. Interestingly, human infants are most attractive at around the age when theirmobility begins to develop. This might be because infants with immature mobility may
need strong attention from their caretakers and protection from danger. In nonhumanprimates, infant-like physical features are believed to attract the caretakers. It might also
be adaptive for nonhuman primate infants that physical features become the most infantlike at around the age when they begin to explore their environment, but their mobility isimmature. However, no studies have quantitatively assessed how infant-like the infants
are and examined their developmental changes in nonhuman primates during the early
postnatal period. This study aimed to quantify the infant-like physical features in Japanesemacaques (Macaca fuscata) and examine their developmental process until 12 weeks ofage. We studied the provisioned Japanese macaques at Arashiyama Monkey Park
Iwatayama in Kyoto. By photographing the target individuals, we quantitatively
measured their physical features of the frontal face, profile, whole body, and body color
without any contact with the animals. First, we identified physical features typical of
infants in Japanese macaques by measuring all individuals in the group and quantitatively
evaluated how infant-like features the targets had in the frontal face, profile, whole body,and body color. Next, we examined the developmental changes of infant-like physicalfeatures by measuring infants within 12 weeks of age once a week. The results showedthat the degree of the infant-like features of the profile, whole body, and back hair color
decreased with growth. In contrast, the degree of the infant-like features of the frontal
face and face color increased with growth. This result raises three possibilities: (1) infants
who have immature mobility most attract caretakers using their infant-like faces, (2)various physical features indicate developmental stages of infants, (3) this result is merely
a byproduct of anatomical development. Future research is needed to examine therelationship between infant-like physical features and caretaking behaviors that infantsreceive.

O-2

The Founder Sociality Hypothesis
James Brooks*1 and Shinya Yamamoto1,2
1

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan2*

jamesgerardbrooks@gmail.com

In this review, we propose that the social dynamics of founder populations in noveland newly available environments can have critical effects in shaping species' sociality
and can produce long-lasting changes in social structure and behavior. For founderpopulations which expand into an underexploited niche separated from the parent
population, the necessity of bond formation with strangers, lack of clear territories, andinitial abundance of resources can lead to altered initial social dynamics to which
subsequent generations adapt. We call this the founder sociality hypothesis. After
specifying the theoretical reasoning and mechanism of effect, we focus on three particularcases where the social dynamics of founder populations may have a central role inexplaining their modern behavioral ecology. In particular, we develop and review
evidence for three predictions of the founder sociality hypothesis in territorial, mixed-sex
group forming species: relatively stronger social bonds in the dispersing sex withrelatively weaker bonds in the nondispersing sex, reduced territoriality, and increasedsocial tolerance. We briefly touch on the implications for human evolution given our
species' evolutionary history marked by frequent expansion and adaptation to novel
environments. We conclude by proposing several experiments and models with testablepredictions following from the founder sociality hypothesis.

O-3

Body Representations in Chimpanzees
Jie Gao1,2*, Masaki Tomonaga3, and Ikuma Adachi1
12Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi, Japan
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan
3
Inuyama, Aichi, Japan*

gao.jie.87c@kyoto-u.jp

A representation of typical bodies could help with species recognition, as well as
gesture and action understanding in animals. However, little is known about non-humananimals’ body representation. We studied chimpanzees, humans’ closest living relatives,
hoping to provide insights on their body representation and its evolution. In Study 1, weused eye-tracking tasks to examine chimpanzees’ attention towards typical and atypicalbodies. Compared to the looking times toward the normal arms and legs, chimpanzees
had significantly longer looking times toward the human arms and legs on chimpanzee
bodies. The looking times toward the wrongly-placed arms and legs on chimpanzee
bodies were also longer than the normal parts, but the difference just failed to meetsignificance. These results suggest that chimpanzees might have a body representationthat is sufficiently sensitive to detect these aspects of strangeness. In Study 2, we further
tested chimpanzees’ body part categorization using touchscreen tasks. The results of the
training phase of this ongoing study will be reported. Chimpanzees are trained to choose
the same body part on a chimpanzee body in a matching-to-sample task, until they reachthe preset criteria. Among the wrong choices, they had the most choices in the arm-leg
pair, suggesting that their discrimination of arms and legs may not be that clear, comparedto other body part pairs. These results could help understand chimpanzees’ knowledge
about body structures and its evolutionary path.

O-4

Study on Adorable Two Dog Breeds’ Personalities and Their Genetic
Basis
Chika Zemmoto1*, Yuki Matsumoto2, Minori Arahori1,2 and Miho Inoue-Murayama1
1

2

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto City, Kyoto prefecture, Japan
Anicom Specialty Medical Institute Inc., Yokohama City, Kanagawa prefecture, Japan*

zemmoto.chika.48n@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

The personality of an individual is a factor to be considered in maintaining health.
Understanding the personality of animals may be useful for the welfare of mute animals.
With this in mind, this study analyzed the relationship between personality and genetics
in a familiar animal species, the dog (Canis lupus familiaris).
In this study, we focused on two of the most familiar dog breeds, the Toy Poodle andthe Dachshund. A questionnaire survey was first conducted among owners to assess the
personality of individual dogs, and then the association between these characteristics andgenes was examined. A total of 233 toy poodles and 161 dachshunds were used for
personality assessment. Different personality factors were found between the Toy
Poodles and Dachshunds. These may be due to selection during the breeding process.
We suggest that breeds be considered in future studies of canine personality.
Genome-wide association study (GWAS) was conducted for each personality factor in
the genome-wide approach, and GWAS revealed genetic variants that may be associatedwith personality in Dachshunds. It suggests 2 genes (PAK5, KIRREL3) possibly areassociated to the personality. To understand dogs’ personality from genetic data, more
knowledge of those genes and other breeds are needed.

O-5

Difference in the Sensitivity to Bitter Compounds in Coffee based on
TAS2R Gene Polymorphism
Rena Numabe*, Akihiro Itoigawa, and Hiroo Imai
Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Japan*numabe.rena.44c@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Introduction. Coffee is one of the most consumed beverages worldwide despite its
bitterness. Its consumption has prospective effects on various aspects. I want to know
about the influence of polymorphism in human to their perception of bitter taste of coffee.
There are some genes whose SNPs can be related to drinking behavior of coffee such likeTAS2R43, CYP1A1, and CYP1A2. I mainly focus on TAS2R43, one of the bitter
receptors called TAS2Rs. Besides, it is reported that other substances in coffee havestronger influence on bitterness of coffee than caffeine does, and their receptors are
TAS2R43 and -46. Both TAS2Rs have SNPs in their coding sequences, with major 2
haplotypes called “ancestral type” and “derived type.” It has been unclear the effect ofthese SNPs to human bitter sense of coffee, and the data of human bitter sense has beengathered by questionnaires based on participants’ image in previous study. In this study,
I examined the relationship between TAS2R43 and -46 functional difference based onpolymorphism and their phenotype as human taste sense.
Methods. The haplotype effect to each TAS2R function was investigated by calcium
assay using HEK cells. TAS2Rs genotypes of the participants were identified by PCR
and DNA sequence using DNA samples extracted from their oral swab samples. In orderto gather the data of the threshold of people’s feeling bitterness, taste test with tasting
caffeine and coffee solution was conducted.
Results. In both of TAS2R43 and -46, ancestral types responded higher to the bitter
substances than derived type. There was a tendency that TAS2R43-ancestral carriers canpercept lower caffeine concentration than TAS2R43-derived carriers. The combinationof the SNPs in TAS2R43 and -46 showed a tendency that the carriers percept caffeine
bitterness at lower concentration than others.
Discussion. W35 in the ancestral haplotype of TAS2R43 is responsible to keep higher
response to various bitter substances. Because amino acid residue is in the intracellularregion, the change of its reaction can be caused by the change of the localization or theinteraction with G protein. L228 in the ancestral type of TAS2R46 is responsible to keep
higher response of the receptor to various bitter substances. Because the amino acidresidue is in the transmembrane region, the change of its reaction can be caused by thechange of the binding site, the localization, or the interaction with G protein. There wasno tendency about bitter perception of coffee. This suggests that bitter perception ofcoffee can be affected by other bitter substances response to other TAS2Rs. Interestingly,
the frequency of the SNPs in the bitter taste receptors are different among ethnic groups
and it is similar to the SNP in CYP1A2, a caffeine catabolic enzyme. This suggests thatthese genes can be coevolved associated to caffeine intake in human expansion.
Conclusion. SNPs in TAS2R43 and -46 can affect the response to caffeine. The bitter
receptors and CYP1A2 may be coevolved in human expansion associated to caffeine
intake by changing the bitter taste sensitivity and metabolic responses, respectively.

O-6

Metabarcoding of Fecal DNA Indicates Frequent Plant Consumption
in Wild Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia)
Hiroto Yoshimura1*, Takashi Hayakawa2,3, Huiyuan Qi1, Taro Sugimoto4, Dale M
Kikuchi5, Kubanychbek Jumabay-Uulu6, Koustubh Sharma6,7, Satoshi Hirata1 and Kodzue
Kinoshita1
1Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
3
Japan Monkey Centre, Inuyama, Aichi, Japan
4
Institute of Natural and Environmental Sciences, University of Hyogo, Hyogo, Japan
5
Department of Mechanical Engineering Science, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan
6
Snow Leopard Foundation in Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
7
Snow Leopard Trust, Washington, USA2*

hrt.yoshimura@gmail.com

Felids (colloquially called cats) are the obligate carnivores, but they sometimes eat
plants both in the wild and in captivity. However, little is known about their interaction
with plants. A big cat, snow leopard (Panthera uncia) inhabits high mountains in central
Asia. Interestingly, their scats contain plant materials in the wild more frequently thanother Panthera species. Although no previous study focused on dietary plant species,
grasses and Myricaria bush were mentioned in the prey animal survey (Fox andChundawat., 2016). Identification of plant species leads to figure out the interaction
between carnivores and plants in alpine ecosystems and understand the mechanism andadaptation of plant eating in carnivores.
In this study, we aimed to identify prey and plant species in wild snow leopard scatsusing a DNA metabarcoding method. DNA-identified scats of wild snow leopards inKyrgyz Republic were investigated (37 samples for detection of vertebrates, 34 samples
for plants). After whole scat DNA was extracted, five DNA barcode regions (12SV5 forprey vertebrates and ITS2, rbcL, trnL, ITS1 for dietary plants) were amplified by PCR
and then massively sequenced by a Illumina MiSeq. Probabilistic co-occurrence analysis
of vertebrates and plants was conducted to check the effect of gut contents of preyvertebrates.
We found prey species was dominated by Siberian ibex (Capra sibirica) and Argali(Ovis ammon) as previously reported (Jumabay-Uulu et al., 2013). The family Poaceae,
Tamaricaceae (genus Myricaria), Asteraceae were dominant plant taxa in snow leopard
scats. Significant co-occurrence was detected between Argali and some Poaceae species.
However, plants including Myricaria species were often detected from samples which
did not contain vertebrate DNA. This indicates that detected plants were not always
derived from gut contents of prey vertebrates and snow leopard voluntary eat plants.
Focusing on dietary plant species of carnivores will be a new perspective to understandanimal-plant interaction and may provide new information to evaluate the importance ofplant species in the ecosystem.

O-7

Seasonal Variation of Gastrointestinal Helminth Infection in Japanesemacaques of the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park
Abdullah Langgeng* and Andrew J. J. MacIntosh
Social Systems Evolution Section, Kyoto University Primate Research Institute, Inuyama, Japan*abdullahlanggeng@gmail.com

The Japanese macaque is the most northerly-living non-human primate, distributed
from warm-temperate to cool-temperate forests across Japan. Like all primates, Japanesemacaques host several kinds of gastrointestinal parasites. Parasite infection is generally
driven by temporal changes related to seasonal variations in environmental conditions
and host characteristics. The impact of seasonality on gastrointestinal (GI) helminth
infection in Japanese macaques has been investigated in multiple habitats. Here, wequantified seasonal variation in GI helminth load in Japanese macaques residing at oneof the higher altitude and latitude of their distributions: The Jigokudani Snow Monkey
Park in Nagano. We collected 253 fecal samples opportunistically from sixteen adultfemale macaques during three study periods: winter 2019 – 2020, summer 2020, andwinter 2020 – 2021. Our results showed similar patterns of infection with past studies
conducted in different habitats where Trichuris trichiura infection was noticeably higher
in winter than in summer, while Oesophagostomum aculeatum and Strongyloides
fuelleborni infections were higher during summer. To our surprise, Streptopharagus
pigmentatus was more prevalent and abundant in winter. The nematode requires
coprophagous beetles, which are unlikely to be abundant during cold seasons, asintermediate hosts to complete their life cycle. Further studies on the life history of S.
pigmentatus and the seasonality of the intermediate hosts are necessary to understand theunexpected increase. Moreover, complete seasonal investigations in the study site andother populations could provide additional information on the parasite infection patterns
in Japanese macaques.
Keywords: Macaca fuscata, parasite transmission, seasonality, monkey parks, wildlife
tourismO-8

Demographic History of the Endangered Malayan Tapir: A WholeGenome Resequencing Approach
Qi Luan Lim and Miho Murayama*
Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan* murayama.miho.5n@kyoto-u.ac.jp

The Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus Desmarest) is an endangered species in Southeast
Asia. Captive breeding programs are important conservation maneuvers. To better
understand the demographic history of the Malayan tapir in order to inform better
conservation efforts for the species’ conservation, this study use a whole-genome
approach to investigate its effective population size before present. We used 38
microsatellite markers and the mitochondrial DNA control region to select six samples
among 31 Malayan tapirs from the Japanese zoos. We re-sequenced the whole genomesof the six tapirs, putatively from Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand, and Sumatra to infer its
demographic history based on pairwise sequentially Markovian coalescent (PSMC). We
also created pseudo-diploid X chromosomes for each population pair for PSMC analysis
to investigate divergence time between populations. We found two peaks in the
projections of effective population size, which might signify population expansion or
migration events during Early and Late Pleistocene periods. We observed an overall
decrease in its effective population sizes over time, that went down to < 10,000 since
Middle Pleistocene and < 5000-6000 before entering Holocene. PSMC on pseudo-diploid
X chromosomes showed that the tapir populations might have started diverging around5-9 kya, corresponding to the rise of sea water level post last glacial maxima that leads tothe submergence of the landmass of Sundaland, including the land-bridges between the
Malay Peninsula and the Sumatran Island. The projections of the effective population size
were similar to that of the Sumatran rhinoceros, showing that both species might have asimilar evolutionary history in Southeast Asia. We recommend future investigation into
mutational load and functional genes associating with environmental adaptations in thesediverging populations to inform future captive breeding programs to minimize the effectsof either or both inbreeding and outbreeding depressions.

O-9

Age but Not MHC Similarity Predict Reproductive Success of Captive
Japanese Golden Eagles
Annegret Moto Naito-Liederbach1*, Yu Sato2, Rob Ogden2 and Miho Inoue-Murayama1
1

2

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Japan
Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, The University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom* naito.moto.42m@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Captive breeding programs are increasingly being implemented as conservation
strategies of endangered populations. The success of such programs depends on
individuals' reproductive success and maintenance of genetic diversity in ex-situ
populations. The Japanese golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos japonica) is a large apex
predator listed as endangered by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment, and has been
subject to captive breeding efforts since the 1990s. Though the captive population has
grown over the decades (~50 individuals in zoos around Japan), a modelling study has
shown that it will become inbred and go extinct within the next 200 years without theregular addition of wild individuals to the gene pool. This is largely because breeding
success remains mainly limited to three pairs, but the reason for this is unknown. One
possibility is the genetic compatibility of pairs – captive golden eagles are artificiallypaired based on studbook relatedness, i.e., they do not freely choose their matesthemselves. Generally, it is thought that individuals will choose a genetically dissimilarmate to avoid deleterious effects of inbreeding. In particular, genes of the major
histocompatibility complex (MHC), which influence immunocompetence in manyvertebrate species, are said to play an important role in mate choice. In this study, wetested whether MHC similarity, MHC diversity, studbook relatedness, and age of captive
pairs of Japanese golden eagles influence reproductive success. Using ampliconsequencing, 20 individuals (10 pairs) were analyzed at the highly polymorphic MHC class
II DRB exon 2, which encodes for the peptide binding region (PBR) of the antigen
presenting MHC class II protein. For each breeding pair, the number of DRB alleles ofmales and females, proportion of shared alleles, the predicted mean amino acid distancesat the PBR and non-PBR were calculated. The number of eggs laid, proportion offertilized, non-fertilized, and hatched eggs, and number of successful adoptions wereextracted from the past 25 years’ reproduction data provided by zoos across Japan. A
generalized linear mixed model approach was used to analyze the relationship between
the MHC gene variables and reproductive data. Individual, pair, and zoo IDs were usedas random effects, and each model was tested for overdispersion. False-discovery tests
were used control for multiple testing. Although the results did not show any associations
between MHC variables and reproductive success, there was a weak negative association
between age and proportion of eggs hatching (p < 0.057). Declining fertility with age may
have contributed to this decreased hatching success – golden eagles live long in captivity(up to 47 years), and they therefore may be paired for longer than they would usually
reproduce in the wild. In the future, we plan to compare the captive data with baseline
age information and genetic similarities of wild golden eagle pairs to further discuss theseresults. In doing so, we hope to apply this information towards both in-situ and ex-situ
conservation of the Japanese golden eagle.

P-1

Evolutionary Patterns of the Facial Part of the Cranium in
Strepsirrhines: Combining Geometric Morphometrics andPhylogenetic Comparative Methods
Naoto Toyoda1* and Takeshi Nishimura1

Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi, Japan1*

toyoda.naoto.33t@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Strepsirrhines are one of the two major groups of living primates, including the lemursof Madagascar (Lemuriformes) and the lorises and galagos of the African and Asian
continents (Lorisiformes). Compared to other primates, i.e., monkeys, apes and humans,
they show primitive craniofacial features similar to common mammals, but they also
show derived (specialized) features that are adapted to the environment they live in,making them diverse. In particular, since Madagascar had been separated from theAfrican mainland for more than 100 million years and has tremendous regional diversity
flora and fauna, it is thought that the ancestors of lemurs that arrived in Madagascar
achieved enormous adaptive radiation. By contrast, traditionally, another radiation
represented by lorisiformes (galagos and lorises) in African and Asian mainland isconsidered to be limited (e.g., less variation in body size, fewer species, and more
ecological similarities). In this study, we focused on the facial cranium, which is thought
to reflect any ecological habits, to quantitatively compare the differences in adaptive
radiation between Madagascar lemuriformes and Asian and African lorisiformes in orderto test the traditional view that Madagascar lemurs are more morphologically diverse asa result of their more enormous adaptive radiation.
We used geometric morphometrics to quantify the morphology of the cranium. By
obtaining the coordinates of specific parts of the cranium, we quantified the morphologyof the cranium as a set of coordinate data. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was thenused to capture key aspects of cranial diversity and to show main interspecific differences
in a two-dimensional plot. By comparing the morphological variance of the lemuriformes(Madagascar lemurs) with that of the lorisiformes (galagos and lorises), we statisticallydetermined which group had more morphological diversity. Finally, by performing aphylogenetic ridge regression combining phylogenetic information and morphological
data (in this case, coordinate data), we estimated the evolutionary rate and morphologyof the ancestral species to discuss when and how adaptive radiation occurred and whether
there were differences between lemuriformes and lorisiformes in evolutionary patterns.
Contrary to expectations, morphological diversity of the facial cranium was higher inlorisiformes. Moreover, no rapid increase in evolutionary rate occurred in the lastcommon ancestor of lemuriformes, and the hypothesis that their last common ancestor
rapidly filled various niches by diversifying morphologically after reaching Madagascar
is not supported, at least for the facial cranium. The last common ancestor of the Asianand African lorisiformes also did not show a rapid increase in evolutionary rate of facial
morphology. These findings cause a stir in the traditional view of the evolutionary
diversification of the strepsirrhines and indicate that a reassessment of theirmacroevolutionary pattern is needed.

P-3

Effect of Light Bias on Male Mating Signal and Female Mate Choice ina Sexually Dimorphic Amazonian Fish, the Sailfin Tetra (Crenuchus
spilurus)
Elio de Almeida Borghezan1,2*, Tiago Henrique da Silva Pires2, Jansen Zuanon2, and Shiro
Kohshima1

Wildlife Research Center of Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Laboratório de Ecologia Comportamental e Evolução, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia,Manaus, AM, Brazil
12*borghezan.ea@gmail.com

The sensory drive hypothesis predicts that male’s visual mating signals that matchprevalent ambient lighting characteristics are more conspicuous and effective in
triggering female’s sensitivity. However, strong bias in lighting transmission can also
decrease the variation in the transmission signals, affecting signal reliability of signals
used in female mate choice. Amazon water types have striking differences in prevalent
lighting: black waters are strongly red-biased while clear waters show no apparent colourbias. The sailfin tetra Crenuchus spilurus is a sexually dimorphic Amazonian fish species
whose males have hyperallometric dorsal and anal fins conspicuously ornamented with
red and yellow markings. The species is composed by two main lineages, which inhabit
black waters and clear waters, respectively. Here, we evaluated the evolution of maleornaments coloration and female mate choice under clear and black water colours.
Additionally, some populations of the Clear water lineage, CJ1 population, undergone
secondary contact with black water environments, providing an opportunity to investigate
convergent evolution in male ornaments coloration and female mate choice to black water
environments. Comparison of the red coloration index of the male ornaments among
lineages under not-biased and red-biased lighting conditions indicates that red bias
increases the perceived intensity of red coloration but decreased the among-individual
variation in colour spectra. In the mate choice experiments, females of all these lineages
preferred males with larger-sized ornaments. Females of the Clear water lineage weremore likely to accept males under red-biased (black water) lighting (which increases theapparent red coloration), suggesting the importance of the red coloration in their matechoice. On the other hand, male acceptance by females of the Black water lineage andCJ1 population did not change by light condition, suggesting that the signals other than
the red coloration (e.g. size of ornaments) were more important in their mate choice. Our
results suggest that females of Black water lineage and CJ1 population shifted the mating
signal as a result of convergent evolution in black water lighting condition, though maleornament coloration of CJ1 populations was still similar to those of Clear water lineage.
The lower among-individual variation in male’s colourful mating signal posed by theblack-water lighting condition might reduce its reliability as signals for mate assessment
and caused the sift of mate-choice signals.

P-4

Effect of a Novel Skill in Social Rank of Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)
and Bonobos (Pan paniscus)

1

Sok Hwan Lee1* and Shinya Yamamoto1,2Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan2*

seokwhan94@gmail.com

In human society, although dominance and prestige are both considered viablestrategies for attaining social rank, prestige is yet considered unique to humans. By
sharing novel knowledge that are desirable by the group members in exchange of theirdeference, humans earn social rank through prestige. In contrast, nonhuman animals areoften considered to rely on dominance-oriented strategies as a means of gaining social
rank that individuals exert their power to and coerce their subordinates to become highranked. However, recent studies have documented behaviors that resemble humanprestige, discovering an increase in social centrality of performers after sharing theirnovel skills with group members. These results raise the possibility of the efficacy ofprestige in nonhuman animals, but whether prestige can also aid in acquirement of social
rank remains in mystery. Here we propose a plan to investigate chimpanzees and bonobos
if changes in both their dominance rank and social centrality occur after sharing a novel
skill. Specifically, we will first choose a few individuals to seed a skill of operating anovel apparatus that produces a food reward once solved. These individuals will share
this skill with other naïve conspecifics allowing them to observe and learn the skill. Then,we will compare the change in the demonstrators’ dominance rank and social centrality
subsequently. Chimpanzees and bonobos are known to exhibit strikingly different socialorganizations. Chimpanzees mainly utilize aggressions to ascend through the steep
hierarchies and conquer the top rank to monopolize limited resources. On the other hand,bonobos regulate through female alliances while showing high tolerance and prosociality,
such as food sharing, towards lower-ranking or outgroup conspecifics. Therefore, we
predict an increase in centrality in both species, but more prominent change in bonobos
as their society is characterized by features of prestige and thus would be well recognized.
However, no change is expected in dominance rank in both species. From thiscomparative approach, we hope to reveal how prestige has emerged and decoupled fromdominance in humans.
Keywords: Social rank, prestige, dominance, centrality in social network, Pan troglodytes,
Pan paniscus

P-5

Do Horses Evaluate Humans Based on Skillfulness?
Takuto Sugimoto* and Satoshi Hirata

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan* takuto1087@gmail.com

The ability to recognize and evaluate others is considered to be an important ability inselecting cooperative partners. There have been some studies on this ability in bothhumans and nonhuman animals, however, little empirical research has been conducted to
examine what human characteristics or skills are recognized by horses. Here, weinvestigated whether horses are able to evaluate the skill of humans in a situation where
food is likely to be available. We showed horses a pair of two experimenters, one skilled
and the other unskilled, trying to open the lid of a container either with or without foodin it. Looking behaviors toward each experimenter were recorded and used as a proxymeasurement of the attention of the horses. Horses watched the skilled experimenter
longer than the unskilled experimenter in the food condition. They also looked at theskilled experimenter for longer in the food condition compared to the no food condition.
These results suggest that horses can recognize skillfulness of humans.

P-6

Comparative Study on the Social Behavior of Sambar Deer (Rusa
unicolor) in Three Selected Captive Facilities in Peninsular Malaysia
Kushaal Selvarajah, Mohd Noor Hisham Mohd Nadzir, and Geetha Annavi*

Department of Biology, Faculty of Science Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan,
Malaysia* geetha@upm.edu.my

Sambar deer was up-listed from Least Concern to Vulnerable by the IUCN Red list in
2015. The local government has initiated Ex-situ conservation efforts to boost sambar
deer numbers in captivity and reintroduce them into the wild. The reproductive successof sambar deer and their welfare management practices in captivity are importantcomponents for effective captive breeding programs. However, there has been a lack of
study on sambar deer in recent years, especially about their behavior in captivity. This
study aimed to identify environmental factors that may influence the behavior of thecaptive sambar. Three captive sites were selected and observed for an average of 40 days
at each site (minimum 37 days to maximum 43 days, 6 hours/day). A Generalized Linear
Model was used to determine the correlation between social behavior and extrinsic
parameters. ‘Captive sites’ showed the strongest correlation in behavioral variability
environmental settings, such as the size of the enclosure, could force the deer to spend
more time in a herd, which increases the frequency in grooming, which was recorded tobe highest in Zoo Negara compared to other captive sites. Time of day also significantly
influenced certain behavior skewed towards morning slots. It could be due to an adaptive
behavior to the feeding time in the captive sites being often in the morning, which caused
the deer to rest towards the afternoon. A suggestion would be to create a more erratic
feeding schedule to ensure that the deer adapt to behavior variations. An extensive study
needs to be done on sambar deer to pinpoint the specifics and better understand these
possible influential factors in their behavior.
Keywords: Captivity, ex-situ conservation, generalized linear model, sambar deer, social
behavior

P-7

Evaluating Stressors in Captive Tsushima Leopard Cats (Prionailurus
bengalensis euptilurus) Based on Stress Hormone Concentration and
Behavioral Changes
Chisato Tanaka1*, Kodzue Kinoshita1, Akio Iwashita2 and Gen’ichi Idani1
1

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, 2-24 Tanaka-Sekiden-cho,
Sakyo, Kyoto, 606-8203, Japan
2
Tsushima Leopard Cat Acclimatization Training Station, 1249 Idzuharamachi Tsutsu, Tsushima,
Nagasaki, 817-0154, Japan*tanaka.chisato.55a@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

The Tsushima leopard cat is an endangered wild cat species that lives only in Tsushima,
Japan. Because of its rarity, it is the only mammal in Japan for which a technique of
reinforcement has being developed. However, the success rate of reinforcement reported
in mammals as a whole is very low, and one of the possible causes is stress. However,
not all stress has a negative impact on animals and maintaining a certain degree of stressis also thought to be important for reinforcement. Therefore, I will evaluate stress inindividuals from both physiological and behavioral aspects in order to clarify what events
are stressors in the reinforcement process.
Specifically, I have been monitoring the dynamics of stress hormone levels andobserving the behavior of individuals. Stress hormones have been monitoredcontinuously by collecting feces from individuals in the reinforcement process andmeasuring the cortisol concentration in the feces using the enzyme-immunoassay method.
I have also been collecting feces from individuals transfer between zoos and measuring
stress hormones before and after transfer facilities to investigate the degree of stresscaused by transfer and environmental changes for individuals. The results of the survey
showed that some individuals had high cortisol levels for a few weeks after the transferof the facility, and then their baselines decreased. Behavioral observations have been
conducted using video data. Since some types of facilities don’t allow us to observe thebehavior of individuals in some places, I evaluate the activity level of individuals basedon the accelerometers attached to them. Behavioral observations showed that the captive
environment was more similar to the wild, that is a large case, the more time differencesin the daily activity of individuals were observed, indicating nocturnal behavioral
characteristics. In future studies, I would like to analyze the combination of the changes
in behavioral observation and hormone concentrations to clarify stressors.
Keywords: reinforcement, leopard cat, cortisol level, accelerometer

P-8

Application of Methylation-Sensitive High-Resolution Melting (MSHRM) to Estimate Epigenetic Age in Captive Asian Elephants(Elephas maximus)
Kana Arai*, Huiyuan Qi, and Miho Inoue-Murayama
Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan*arai.kana.84p@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) are classified as endangered by the International
Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) due to anthropogenic effects. This has led to a
decline in population with only approximately 50,000 individuals left. Knowing an
animal’s age is an important ecological tool in wildlife conservation. This is such asproviding information on demographic trends and population viability in the wild andallowing appropriate care in captivity. However, current methods to estimate age are notalways accurate and difficult to observe in the wild for many species. This is also
applicable for Asian elephants where age is estimated through observing their physicalfeatures, mostly from culled individuals and not living. Visual estimation in long-lived
species like the elephants is also prone to gross overestimation and/or underestimation.
As they mature slowly, the visual determination of ‘maturity is subjective and difficult.
Thus, a reliable method to estimate age is required.
This study used a candidate gene approach, to find age-related markers related toepigenetic changes in Asian elephants that will allow us to estimate age accurately,
ultimately to apply for wild individuals. We have extracted DNA from blood samples (n= 38) of known-aged captive individuals (n = 24, 21 females and 3 males), with age
ranging from 0.25 – 65 years old. We referred to candidate marker genes using
information on age-associated DNA methylation from previously successfully studied
species, to design primers for Asian elephants. To do this, different programs such as
NCBI via BLASTN was used to compare the CpG sites of Asian elephant genome andcandidate marker genes. As a results, we have re-designed RALYL (RALY RNA binding
protein-like) gene as a primer. Through finding the optimum RT-PCR conditions,amplification success was seen, suggesting that it could be a potential age-related marker
for Asian elephants. Using methylation-sensitive high-resolution melting (MS-HRM),
methylation rates were measured. RALYL in Asian elephants were significantly correlatedwith age (cor = 0.71, p < 0.001). When creating the age-estimation model for Asianelephants between predicted age and chronological age the mean absolute deviation(MAD) was 13.23 years. To increase accuracy for the age-estimation model, we aredesigning more potential age-related markers and increase the number of samples (bloodand faecal samples). Successfully identified epigenetic clocks could be used for futureuses in conservation efforts where accurate estimates of age are needed to predict
demographic trends.

P-9

Activity Budget of Semi-Captive Drill Monkeys at Drill Ranch, Cross
River State, Nigeria
J.O Bukie1,2,* and D.N Angwar1

Department of Wildlife and Range Management, Federal University of Agriculture Makurdi
Benue State, Nigeria
2
Department of Forestry and Wildlife Resources Management, University of Calabar, Calabar,
Cross River State, Nigeria
1* oshitabuk@gmail.com

Drill monkeys (Mandrillus leucophaeus) are known to be of utmost conservation
priority. Hunting and habitat loss are believed to be the major causes of the species decline
in the wild.
It is for this reason that we report a two hundred and forty hours observation of the
behavior of semi captive drills at Drill Ranch, Cross River State, Nigeria in line with its
reintroduction plan. Data was collected from December, 1st 2020 to January, 2nd 2021.
Scan and focal sampling was carried out in seven mixed drill groups. Continuous
sampling started from 8:30 am and ended at 4:30 pm, where the following behavioral
categories were recorded: Foraging, movement, resting, socialization, grooming, play,aggression and vocalization. Data analysis comprised of descriptive and inferential
statistics. The time budget was recorded as follows; 10.0% resting, 46.0% foraging,
24.0% movement, 4.0% grooming, 10.0% play, 4.0% aggression and 2.0% vocalization.
There exist a significant difference between behaviors and age/sex classes, (P<0.05).
Adult males spent more time resting than any age-sex class (X2=478.4, df=6, P<0.05).
Female adults spent most of their time foraging than any age-sex class (X2=234.5, df=6,
P<0.05). Female adults also dominated in grooming than any age/sex class (X2=234.5,
df=6, P<0.05). Adults males exhibited more aggressive behavior than any other age-sex
class (X2=428.4, df=6, P<0.05), There was a significant difference for resting between
adult males and juveniles (X2=173.4 df=6 P<0.05), there was also significant difference
for resting between female adults and juveniles (X2=96.3 df=6 P<0.05). Also, there wassignificant difference for resting between female and male adults (X2=162.5 df=6
P<0.05). The study revealed a more aggressive interaction between the adult males, lessaggressive interaction between adult females, sub-adult males and sub-adult females, andthe juveniles. Results also revealed that the fights and scream vocalizations were thedominant calls heard during the study period; these were often heard during feeding andplay times. The adult male 2PG call was the least vocalization heard during the study
period. All of these inferred that, the semi-captive drill population at drill ranch has not
loss its natural behaviors.
Key words: Drill monkey, semi captive, behavior, foraging, vocalization andsocialization.

P-10

Generalization of Video-Referent Correspondence in Chimpanzees
Shenwen Xu* and Ikuma Adachi

Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Japan*

vassxu@gmail.com

Humans extract information about a massive list of currently absent entities fromlanguage. The ability to generalize relational rules of correspondence between reference
and its referent, is featured as a driving force of the expanding referentiality. Althoughreferential correspondences exist in nonhuman animals, the extent to which they can bereadily generalized to new exemplars is still not clear. We will use a transfer test toaddress this issue in chimpanzees, who have previously demonstrated successful
utilization of video stimuli as a reference. They will see novel choice pairs in video for
the first time, in a familiar test context. If chimpanzees can pass the test from the very
beginning, we can safely conclude that they can grasp and apply relational rules of theabstract structure between video and its referent. Otherwise, their generalization of suchreferential correspondence may be inflexibly tied to concrete object properties ofparticular exemplars. In this presentation, we will report the preliminary results.

P-11

Social Associations of Mothers and Offsprings in Free-Roaming HorseGroupsYeongju Lee* and Satoshi Hirata

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan*yjroah@gmail.com

Mothers of group-living animals have influences on their offspring’s various social
traits ranging from dominance rank to social associate choice, as the first social partnerand social role model for their offspring. Female horses in a polygynous harem group are
known to form and maintain long-term social bonds with other female members; thebonded horses show affiliative interactions and stay close to each other. Previous studies
have reported that foals tend to show affiliative behaviors toward the human who
contacted the mother horses friendly, and that foals preferentially associate with anotherfoal whose mother is the most preferred partner of their mothers. The maternal effect on
the way foals build social relationships, however, has been little studied in feral horsegroups living in a natural social environment with less human interference. In freeroaming Misaki horse harems with foals and yearlings, the affiliative/agonistic social
behaviors and proximity between horses were recorded to examine whether and how themother's social life affects the offspring's sociability and the dynamics of social
relationships. The data was collected during the summer-early autumn and late autumn
of 2021, using a video camera and a drone. In this presentation, the association patternsof mother-offspring pairs and their social tendencies will be presented.

P-12

How Can We Get Information from Old Fecal Samples of Iriomote
Cats?: Methods for Species Identification, Sex Determination, andHormone Measurements
Yuko KURIYAMA1*, Kodzue KINOSHITA1, Masako IZAWA2,
Miho INOUE-MURAYAMA¹ and Gen’ichi IDANI1
1

2

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Kitakyushu Museum of Natural History & Human History, Fukuoka, Japan*catman.d7613@gmail.com

Although studies on the behavior of the Iriomote cat (Prionailurus bengalensis
iriomotensis) have been conducted, such as studies using radio-trackings, camera traps,
and diet analysis, there have not yet been reproductive physiological studies. Therefore,
the purpose of this study is to clarify their reproductive trait physiologically and tocontribute to their conservation. For this purpose, fecal steroid hormones concentrations
have been measured to understand their estrus, pregnancy, and stress state, which is still
unknown.
Firstly, we focused on the feces of the Iriomote cats collected in the conservational
program by Okinawa National Forest District Office for the past three years. To confirm
whether hormones were preserved in old feces, we compared fecal cortisol
concentrations, which is one kind of stress hormone, between feces kept in ethanol anddried out. The results showed that more cortisol was preserved in the ethanol-preserved
feces than in the dried feces. By measuring cortisol from feces, chronic stress can berevealed. By comparing the differences in stress status seasonally and by environment,
we can reveal the suitable environment for their habitat in terms of physiology. Regarding
the comparison between environments, we plan to classify the environments around thecollection route into some categories and produce differences in cortisol levels between
environments. As the next step, we’ll measure fecal other steroid hormone
concentrations, and compare their physiological state between seasonal differences. The
hormones to be analyzed are estrogen and progesterone, the sex steroid hormone, in
addition to cortisol. Sex steroid hormones are measured only in females, so we need to
conduct species identification and sex determination on the fecal sample. Fecal DNA wasextracted using a lysis buffer. The results for sex differences were unclear althoughspecies differences were clear. Further improvement of the measurement conditions isrequired.
Keywords: Prionailurus bengalensis iriomotensis, feces, sex determination, species
identification, hormone analysis

P-14

Contagious Urination among Captive Chimpanzees: Investigation ofSocial Centrality of Initiator and Follower
Ena Onishi1*, Sota Inoue2, James Brooks1 and Shinya Yamamoto1,3
1

2

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Graduate School of Environmental Science, Nagoya University, Aichi, Japan
3
Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan*

enaonishi@gmail.com

Contagious behavior has gained increased scientific attention as it is a fundamental
component of maintaining group cohesion. Our study focused on the possibility ofurination synchronization as a contagious behavior of chimpanzees and aimed to clarify
initiator and follower dynamics when urinations were synchronized within 60 sec. Direct
observation of four groups of five captive chimpanzees each (N=20) at Kyoto University
Kumamoto Sanctuary was conducted for 421 cumulative hours. We recorded urinations,grooming interactions and inter-individual proximity, as well as frequencies ofaggression, pant-hoots, and dominance displays. Generalized linear models were thenapplied to investigate the effects of social factors on the probability of initiating/following
synchronized urinations. Network eigenvector centrality and weighted-degree centrality
were calculated using simple ratio indices of grooming, play, and proximity. Individuals
with higher eigenvector centrality of grooming and proximity as well as weighted-degree
centrality of proximity were more likely to be followers, although no significant effects
of social factors were found for initiation. Our results provided novel insights into thecontagious behavior of chimpanzees which may also be developed among different
species of primates including humans.

P-15

Are Semi-Arboreal Felids at Greater Risk from Habitat Destruction
than Terrestrial Felids? The Ecology of the Marbled Cat in Southeast
Asia
Alexander Hendry1*, Zachary Amir1, Henri Decoeur1, Ilyas Nursamsi1, Calebe Mendes1,
Jonathan H. Moore2,3, Adia Sovie1, and Matthew Scott Luskin1

School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
2
School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom
3
School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology,
Shenzhen, China
1*a.hendry@uq.net.au

Southeast Asia supports the greatest diversity of felids globally, but this felid diversity
is likely to be threatened by the severe forest loss and degradation occurring in the region.
The response of different felid species to disturbances is expected to differ depending on
their ecology. For example, the largely terrestrial leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis)
has been shown to thrive in disturbed habitats such as oil palm plantations where it hunts
rodents on the ground. However, our understanding of how the sympatric and similarly
sized marbled cat (Pardofelis marmorata) responds to disturbed habitats remains poor.
We hypothesized that because marbled cats are more arboreal than leopard cats, and rely
on tree connectivity for hunting, they are unable to adapt to relatively open oil palm
plantations and other degraded landscapes. To investigate the marbled cat’s habitat
associations in Southeast Asia, we collated a large dataset of marbled cat occurrence
records from both new and previously published camera-trapping studies. We found thatmarbled cats were positively associated with large, intact forests, and high forest coverand, in contrast to leopard cats, negatively associated with oil palm plantations. Thesefindings suggest that in the face of ongoing conversion of tropical forests to oil palm
plantations the marbled cat's IUCN Red List conservation status should be upgraded from
Near Threatened to Vulnerable. We posit that semi-arboreal felids could be more greatly
threatened by habitat degradation than their terrestrial relatives and that our findings may
be generalizable to other felid species.

P-16

Do Pit Vipers Assess Their Venom? Defensive Tactics ofDeinagkistrodon acutus Shift with Changed Venom Reserve

1

2

Yige Piao1,2*, Yang Liu2 and Qin Chen2

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Laboratory of Herpetology, Chengdu Institute of Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu,
Sichuan Province, China*

spoonasf@gmail.com

To maximize survival probability, animals must assess predation risks and adopt
flexible defensive strategies based on specific conditions. Pit vipers utilize venom for
predation and self-defense, and venom status significantly influences its effectiveness.
Thus, pit vipers may evaluate their venom reserve and adopt corresponding defensive
tactics. Twenty-three sharp-snouted pit vipers (Deinagkistrodon acutus) were grouped bydifferent venom status and were subjected to eight behavior trials. Subjects’ defensive
behaviors were recorded and analyzed. Results showed that the normal venom groupdisplayed stable responses across the trials. The low venom group showed fewer strikes
and more fleeing behaviors at the end of experiments. After given prolonged intervals for
replenishing the venom, significant increases of strike behaviors were observed in thereplenishing venom group. These results demonstrated the capability of adopting flexible
defensive tactics based on varied venom reserve and provided new evidence for venomstatus-recognition in venomous snakes.
Keywords: Crotalinae, Defensive strategy, Deinagkistrodon acutus, Venom metering

P-17

The Social Networks and Hierarchy of a Captive Group of Orphaned
Infant Chimpanzees
Seda Kavlak

School of Nature and Engineering, City University of Applied Sciences, Bremen, Germany*sedakavlak@web.de

Wild chimpanzees live in complex fission-fusion networks with strict dominancehierarchies that can be disrupted under captive conditions. Social network analysis (SNA)
and dominance hierarchy analysis can help provide important information about a captive
chimpanzee group’s social structure for decision making about future group compositions
and to ensure the group’s welfare. Additionally, information about infant chimpanzee
social behavior under captive conditions has received little attention to date. This study
analysed the social networks for affiliative and agonistic behavior as well as for proximityof a group of orphaned infant western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) at Tacugama
Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Sierra Leone. It investigated the question if age or sex of an
infant influences its position in the social networks or dominance hierarchy of the group.
Data collection was conducted for 9-weeks at Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary using
focal-animal sampling and instantaneous scan sampling. Social networks wereconstructed, community detection was carried out and using centrality network metrics(degree centrality, betweenness centrality, closeness centrality and clustering coefficient)
an individual’s position in the network was determined. Additionally, randomized Elorating was used to analyse the group’s dominance hierarchy. It was determined thatcertain individuals were crucial for connecting subgroups in the affiliative network of theorphaned infant chimpanzee group. Furthermore, age seemed to play a role in theaffiliative network but not in the other networks, likely because of the dependence ofindividuals to each other. The affiliative and proximity network did not give the same
results, probably because the individuals could not exercise their spatial preferences. Sex
did not seem to influence an infant’s position in the networks which contradicts previous
studies. Lastly, the dominance hierarchy was not influenced by age or sex, but older
individuals seemed to be higher in the hierarchy, probably because of increased body size.
Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary should ensure that the individuals connecting thesubgroups of the group should remain in the group and should provide more resting places
for the infants. Additionally, further studies about infant chimpanzee social networks anddominance hierarchy are needed.

P-18

Studying the Effect of a Raccoon Dog Invasion of Yakushima on the
Ecology of Disease, from the Ground Up (to the Sky): a Pilot Study
Kenneth Keuk*, Katherine Majewski and Andrew MacIntosh

Social Systems Evolution, Kyoto University Primate Research Institute, Inuyama, Japan*kenneth.keuk.57m@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Infectious disease is a global threat to human, animal, and ecosystem health.
Conflicting ideas about whether biodiversity is positively or negatively associated withdisease risk (and vice versa) have urged several authors to postulate that specific changes
in ecological communities might matter more in shaping the biodiversity-disease
relationship. This is crucial in view of current trends in biodiversity loss, but also incontexts like biological invasions, where the introduction of a species to an ecosystem
adds another layer of complexity over simple increases in biodiversity. Raccoon dogs
(Nyctereutes procyonoides) – also known as tanuki (タヌキ or 狸) – are iconic in Japanbut are also among the most successful invasive carnivores in Europe. Raccoon dogs also
invaded some islands in Japan, including Yakushima – a UNESCO World Heritage site.
However, their effects as potential predators, competitors, and disease carriers in Japanare unknown. In this poster, I present several methods our team implemented during a
recent pilot study to ultimately: (1) map the distribution of raccoon dogs and othermammal communities in Yakushima; (2) establish the social structure of raccoon dogs inthe Western coastal forest (Seiburindo) and consequent opportunities for intraspecificdisease transmission; and, (3) identify what pathogens or parasites raccoon dogs can carryin the system. During this pilot study, we successfully performed latrine surveys andlocated 24 latrines in the Kawahara and Hanyama areas of the Seiburindo, and were able
to collect ~50 fresh fecal samples. We were able to collect adult nematodes passed during
one defecation event. We also performed multiple test flights with a drone capable ofthermal-imaging to evaluate its ability to rapidly locate and possibly identify endotherms
in the area. Ongoing laboratory analyses are being conducted to identify different
pathogens or parasites that are capable of infecting other species on Yakushima, including
humans, such as the tapeworm Echinococcus spp., the skin mite Sarcoptes scabiei, andthe bacteria Campylobacter spp. and Leptospira spp., among others.

P-19

Asymmetry of Early Social Interactions between Infants and NonMother Individuals in Yakushima Japanese Macaque (Macaca fuscata
yakui)

1

Boyun Lee 1* and Takeshi Furuichi 1

Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Aichi, Japan*

lee.boyun.74x@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Infants in the early developmental phase show interest in the social environment
surrounding them; Adults and juveniles watch for an opportunity to handle the infants
while staying near their mothers. These statements look natural and are revealed byprevious studies, but they are not enough to explain the early social interactions ofYakushima Japanese macaque (Macaca fuscata yakui). This study shows that infants tend
to be not handled by macaques who they approach or (try to) contact and, rather, to be
avoided or left by them within two months after their birth. This asymmetry is clearlyfound in interactions with relatives in juveniles. Adult relatives (e.g. sibling, aunt,
grandmother) tend to handle their related infants less than non-related females do, eventhough they are gazing at the infants approaching them. (Related/unrelated) Juveniles
tend to avoid or flee from the infants. 4-year-old sisters only rapidly become handlers of
their youngest siblings. The asymmetry of early social interactions of macaques will bemeaningful when we consider how different they take a role in infant growth and how
fast they overcome unfamiliarity towards newborn infants.

P-20

Tracking Visual Attention of Crows Using a Motion Capture System
Akihiro Itahara1* and Fumihiro Kano2,3

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Center for the Advanced Study of Collective Behavior, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
3
Max-Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Radolfzell, Germany
12*

itahara.akihiro.34n@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Recent technological advances made it possible to record postural changes of moving
animals in behavior/cognition research. Although several technologies are available forthis purpose, one underexplored possibility is the use of an infrared motion-capturesystem, which excels at tracking subtle and rapid 3D movements like saccadic head
movements of birds. For most of the bird species, head movement is a good proxy for the
direction of attention. In this study, we aimed to establish a method to track the directionof visual attention in freely-moving large-billed crows (Corvus macrorhynchos) using a
motion-capture system. To estimate the direction of visual attention, we examined how
crows looked at the object which were presented in various locations using a motion
capture system. We also examined the visual configuration of crows using an
ophthalmoscopic reflex technique. The results showed that crows oriented specific headangles to the objects, but not same as the angle of optic axis (i.e., line passing through thecenter of the cornea and lens). The maximum eye-movement amplitude was over 30
degrees, which suggested that eye-movement were an important factor on the directionof attention. These results suggested that by considering the position of the object inrelation to the crow and their eye movement, we will be able to estimate the direction ofvisual attention in crows. We thus show that a motion capture system has a good potential
to examine the direction of visual attention in freely-moving birds.

P-21

Comparative Transcriptome Analysis in Stranded Cetaceans Provide
Novel Insights into the Evolution of Lipid Utilization

1

Hayate Takeuchi1*, Takashi Fritz Matsuishi2 and Takashi Hayakawa3

School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan
Graduate School of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan
3
Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan2*

t498hayate10@eis.hokudai.ac.jp

Extant cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) acquired specialized high-frequency
hearing used in the fully aquatic environment, and conversely, quite degenerated theirolfactory and gustatory capabilities. ‘Melon’ in the forehead, ‘intramandibular fat body’in the lower jaw bone, and ‘extramandibular fat body’ on the external surface of the lower
jaw bone are developed as novel morphological traits in toothed whales, called acoustic
fat bodies. These acoustic fat bodies are used for echolocation that contributes to hunting,navigation, and communication in the aquatic environments. Even though how novel
traits arise in organisms has long been a major question in biology, few studies on the
acoustic fat bodies at the molecular level has been reported.
To investigate the molecular basis of the evolution of acoustic fat bodies, we
comprehensively examined mRNA expression of the multiple tissues of cetaceans. Freshacoustic fat bodies as well as skin, muscles, and connective tissues were opportunisticallycollected from stranded cetaceans in Hokkaido. Finally, total RNA (transcriptome) was
extracted from three toothed whales (pacific white-sided dolphin, harbour porpoise, andStejneger’s beaked whale) and a baleen whale (minke whale). Massively parallel
sequencing of mRNA (RNA-seq) was performed using Illumina NovaSeq6000 and theexpression level of each gene was investigated. Our results suggest that the acoustic fat
bodies are originated from mixed tissue of muscle and subcutaneous fat (blubber).
Interestingly, we found significant expression of olfactory receptor genes in melon. Thesefindings provide novel insights into the evolution of lipid utilization and acoustic ecology
in cetaceans.

P-22

Transcriptome Changes of Maternal Immune System Related to
Embryonic Diapause in Brown Bears
NISHIJIMA, Asuka1*, YANAGAWA, Yojiro2, MATSUMOTO, Naoya3, HAGINO, Kyogo3,
SAKAMOTO, Hideyuki3, and HAYAKAWA, Takashi4
Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
2
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
3
Noboribetsu Bear Park, Noboribetsu, Hokkaido, Japan
4
Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan1*

asukaram.academic@gmail.com

Embryonic diapause defines the dormancy of the embryo before implantation. It occurs
in over 130 mammals. It allows them to control the timing of their mating and parturition.
Ursidae is one of the few families that all species occur embryonic diapause. Among them,brown bears (Ursus arctos) basically mate in late spring to early summer. Their embryo
implants in early winter and gestation occur approximately 60 days after implantation.
Embryonic diapause allows them to give birth in a safe den during hibernation. It also let
only mothers who can get weight enough in autumn give birth.
In captivity and wildlife monitoring, it is difficult to judge their pregnancy. Brown
bears spent over half of the gestation period as embryonic diapause. Furthermore, nonpregnant bears are often shown pseudopregnancy and their hormonal dynamics are
similar to pregnant bears. Hence, hormone levels do not always reflect their pregnancy.
In mammals, the maternal immune system changes dramatically to accept the embryo.
Therefore, the gene expression related to the maternal immune system may change withthe phase of gestation. The purpose of this study was 1) to identify embryonic diapause
regulation mechanisms of the immune system at the molecular level, and 2) to establish
gene-markers for a pregnancy test that can collect easily and assess early stage. In thisstudy, a total of 28 blood samples were collected from mated or not mated captive female
brown bears at the Noboribetsu Bear Park, Hokkaido, Japan in 2021. Among them, RNAsequencing were performed in 12 samples.
To identify the correlation of each sample, principal component analysis was
performed. As a result, there was no correlation between estrus and embryonic diapause
period in mated-parturition bears samples, while not mated bears sample correlated
between estrus and embryonic diapause period. Therefore, pregnant bears’ bloodtranscriptome seems to change in embryonic diapause.
To identify differentially expressed immune-related genes, the expression of eachtranscriptome was compared between estrus and embryonic diapause. As a result, a totalof 408 transcriptomes were identified as differentially expressed. Among them, 47 wereupregulated and 361 were downregulated in embryonic diapause. That analysis also
revealed that some immune-related genes were downregulated in embryonic diapause.
Therefore, the maternal body is likely to recognize the existence of the embryo, and theimmune system was suppressed to avoid rejecting the embryo.
To estimate the regulation of embryonic diapause related to the immune system, it isnecessary to perform enrichment analysis of identified DEGs. In addition, to establish
gene-markers for an early pregnancy test, determination of the identified downregulated
immune-related genes expression quantities is required.

P-23

Possibility of Gustation Being Used during Breastfeeding by Cetacean
Infants
Hinako Katsushima1, Kazunobu Kogi2 and Takashi Hayakawa1

Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
2
Mikura Island Tourist information Center, Mikura-Jima, Japan

1

Breast milk is the only available foraging resource in the early stages of mammaliandevelopment. The ability of infants to recognize breast milk is considered essential forsurvival. In this study, we hypothesized that cetaceans, which have lost their sense of taste
and smell during evolution, use their few remaining chemosensory senses for breast milkrecognition, which is essential for mammals. We focused on taste of fat, which is the mostabundant nutrient in cetacean breast milk.
Three studies were conducted to test this hypothesis in two species of the genus
Tursiops (T. aduncus, Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin and T. truncates, Atlantic
bottlenose dolphin). We performed comprehensive gene expression analysis (RNA-seq)
in a tongue of T. aduncus infant that accidentally died on August 1, 2020, on Mikura
Island. Seventeen regions were collected from three parts (marginal papillae, V-shaped
groove, and control) of the tongue of infants. Based on the RNA-seq, expression levelsof fatty acid receptor genes were examined. Expression of fatty acid receptor genes wasfound in all three compartments, with the highest expression in the limbic papillae, astructure that is particularly prominent in infancy.
This study is the first report to examine the availability of fat taste in cetaceans. The
expression of fatty acid receptor genes in the tongue of T. aduncus infants supports thepossibility that infants of the genus Tursiops can discriminate fatty acids. Fatty acid taste
is expected to be useful for breast milk recognition and foraging learning in infancy. In
future, we aim to verify this hypothesis by conducting preference tests for breast milk
components such as fatty acids in reared individuals and by analyzing the function ofreceptors at the cellular level.

P-24

Comprehensive Analysis of the Gut Microbiome in Gum-Eating
Mammals
Kohei Kanetsuna1*, Natsumi Iijima2 and Takashi Hayakawa3

Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan2
Sapporo Maruyama Zoo, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
3
Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan1*

verdeanemia@icloud.com

The symbiont intestinal microorganisms are closely linked to the host health.
Conventional methods is difficult to isolate and culture the intestinal bacteria. Recent
improvements in genetic analysis techniques have made it possible to comprehensively
investigate the composition and function of the intestinal microorganisms. In this study,
we focus on the degradation of dietary fiber, a major role of intestinal bacteria in nonhuman primates. Nycticebus coucang (Sunda slow loris) is a non-human primate in tropic
Asia and an obligate eater on fiber-rich gum. We compared the gut microbiome of wildand captive-born Sunda slow lorises of the Sapporo Maruyama Zoo (N = 7). These lorises
feed on gum Arabic every day. For 2 weeks, we estimated the amount of diet eaten andcollected their fresh feces. The variable regions (V1-V2) of bacterial 16S rRNA genes infecal DNA were sequenced by Illumina MiSeq and analyzed by QIIME 2.
The lorises were classified into three group: wild-born (W), F1 captive-born (F1), andF2 captive born (F2). Lorises of the W group completely eat provided Arabic gum every
day and the F1 group eat most, but F2 group often leave it unfinished. Gut microbiome
analysis shows that species composition of the family Prevotellaceae was significantly
different among the groups. This indicates that the bacteria that respond to gum Arabic
may decrease during the generation changes in captivity. In terms of animal welfare, wehave to consider the gut microbiome and diet preference when we feed captive-born
animals on fiber rich-diet.

P-25

Training of Matching to Sample Task for Killer Whales (Orcinus orca)

1

Ayumu Santa 1*, Ikuma Adachi 1and Koji Kanda 2
Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi, Japan
2
Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan* santa.ayumu.63u@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Cognitive abilities are products of evolution and are shaped by both phylogenetic andenvironmental factors. In order to examine how environmental factors have affected on
the evolution of cognitive abilities, it is essential to conduct comparative studies on
mammals living in underwater environment, which is far different from terrestrial
environment. Cetaceans (dolphins and whales) have been highly adapted to theunderwater environment and have developed their cognitive abilities according to thecharacteristics of the environment. While many researches have been conducted on
auditory abilities of cetaceans, it is not well understood how they use their visual abilities.
In my previous research, we succeeded to develop a new experimental method using acomputer and monitors to examine visual abilities of killer whales (Orcinus orca). By
using this method, it was suggested that contrast of luminance played an important rolein their visual object recognition of cetaceans with low visual acuity and no color vision.
In order to conduct further examination of their visual abilities, we decided to train themto participate in match-to-sample tasks. At first, we expected them to understand the rulesof matching-to-sample task by using geometric figures displayed on three computercontrolled monitors. However, we couldn't make them to understand the rules of this task
which is far different from the previous two-choice task.
Recently, we have started to use the real objects as the stimuli through the underwater
window. We have selected three objects, boot, fin and net from the objects familiar in
their daily life. As a flow of one trial, the subjects approached the underwater window are
shown a sample stimulus and touched it with their rostrum. After that, the experimenter
hides the sample stimulus once behind a box, and puts out the correct and incorrect stimuli
from behind the box at the same time, and if they can choose the same correct stimulus
as the sample stimulus, it is rewarded with the sound of the whistle and several pieces offish. Currently, their correct rate in this training is over 90% for all pairs of these 3 objects,
so we are planning to introduce a new object as a fourth stimulus to reinforce theirunderstanding of the rules.

P-26

Comparing the Social Relationships of Feral Horses during Breeding
and Non-breeding Season Using Drones and GPS Tags
Tamao Maeda1, Renata Mendoca1, Satoshi Hirata1 and Shinya Yamamoto2
1

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Institute of Advanced Study, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan2*

tamao@powarch.com

In many group-living animals, the social relationships and group cohesiveness show
seasonal changes due to different resource availability, predation pressure, andreproductive status. Feral domestic horses (Equus caballus) form multilevel society,where harems and bachelor group (all-male units) gather to make a higher-level socialgroup, which is called as “herd”. The membership of harems is known to be stable over3 - 4 years, while a herd shows unstable, fission-fusion structure and harems become lesscollective during non-breeding seasons (around August - March). The details of suchseasonal changes in inter-group level relationships are largely unknown in feral horses
and other species showing multilevel society as well. In this study, we collected theirpositional data combining drones and GPS tags during June – October, 2021, andcompared the social network between breeding and non-breeding seasons.

P-27

Exploratory Vegetation Survey by UAV in Yakushima Island
Hideki Sugiura1*, Kana Arai1, Akihiro Itahara1, Yuko Kurihara1, Lim Qi Luan1, Takuto
Sugimoto1, Akiyuki Suzuki1, Satsuki Suzuki1, Chisato Tanaka1, Takafumi Suzumura1, Yosuke
Kurihara2, Sota Inoue3 and Tamao Maeda1
Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
Faculty of Agriculture, Shizuoka University, Hamamatsu, Japan3
School of Informatics and Sciences, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan1

2* sugiura.hideki.7s@kyoto-u.ac.jp

We used a UAV to photograph vegetation in the World Heritage area of western coastal inYakushima Island to explore what information could be read from the areal photos. This area
has not been significantly disturbed by humans since about the 1960s. However, until about
1950, there was some logging and afforestation, with some patches of single species plantations.
Since the logging and plantations were mainly done in private forest and their records are notavailable.
In August and December 2021, we used a quadcopter to take photographs and attempted tovisually identify afforestation. Cedar (Cryptomeria japonica) and camphor (Cinnamomum
camphora) trees are known to have been planted. The cedar plantations were found in small
scattered patches. The camphor plantation was found to have large patches in the central andsouthern parts.
As for natural vegetation, we were able to distinguish dead pine (Pinus thunbergii) to someextent. Pine wilt disease by pinewood nematodes is occurring on Yakushima Island, and it is
becoming a problem as pine dieback spreads from human settlements to World Heritage areas.
From the photos taken this time, pine dieback was observed along the road in the entire heritage
area, suggesting that it is spreading to the central part of the World Heritage area.

P-28

Longitudinal Working Memory Study in Chimpanzees
Akiho Muramatsu*

Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan*akiho.muramatsu@gmail.com

Previous studies on working memory in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) have revealed
that child chimpanzees have a greater ability than adult chimpanzees and adult humans(Homo sapiens). They found similarities and differences between chimpanzees’ andhumans’ memorizing capacities and strategies. Furthermore, their results and otherhuman studies suggested that the ability of working memory develops during infanthoodand childhood, and it declines in the period of aging. There are, however, no longitudinalstudies of working memory in a single chimpanzee. Even in human studies, most studies
were based on the comparison of the young and the aged. This study aimed to chart thechange in chimpanzees’ working memory across their lifespan. Chimpanzees in Kyoto
University Primate Research Institute (KUPRI) have participated in memory studies formore than a decade. For this study, I used computer-task data from three mother-offspring
pairs which was stored at KUPRI to analyze them. These computer tasks required
chimpanzees to memorize the order and position of Arabic numerals scattered on atouchscreen monitor. The data was collected from 2007 to 2021 and covered the life phaseof chimpanzees from child/sub-adult to adult and from adult to elderly. As a result, theirperformance dropped especially in ‘difficult’ tasks and conditions. Moreover, the results
suggests that chimpanzees’ working memory ability might decline in age from their
twenties to thirties, but there was no data of this period. Therefore, further data collection
is needed to cover a longer period and to examine an effect of difficulties in tasks.

P-29

Population Genetic Structure of the Malayan Tapirs in Peninsular
Malaysia Revealed by Nine Cross-Species Microsatellite Markers:
Genetic Diversity Compared to the Japanese Ex-situ Population
Qi Luan Lim1,2, Christina Seok Yien Yong1, Wei Lun Ng3, Ahmad Ismail1, Jeffrine J. RovieRyan4,5, Norsyamimi Rosli4, Miho Inoue-Murayama2, and Geetha Annavi1*

Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
2
Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
3
China-ASEAN College of Marine Sciences, Xiamen University Malaysia, Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia
4
National Wildlife Forensic Laboratory, Ex-Situ Conservation Division, Department of Wildlife andNational Parks, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
5
Faculty of Resource Science and Technology, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Kota Samarahan, Sarawak,
Malaysia* geetha@upm.edu.my1

The Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus) is an endangered species endemic to Southeast
Asia. Deforestation and habitat fragmentation, leading to increasing cases of roadkill, areamong the top threats the animal faces. Studies that use maternally-inherited,
mitochondrial DNA genetic markers to describe the population genetics of the Malayan
tapir across their habitat exist, but thus far none have used the biparentally inherited,
nuclear genetic markers. In this study, the genetic diversity, population genetic structure,and sex-biased dispersal patterns of the tapir population in Peninsular Malaysia were
investigated using nine cross-species microsatellite markers. For this, 67 tapir samples(39 wild, 11 captive-born, and 17 of unknown origin) were collected from the Wildlife
Genetic Resources Bank, National Zoo of Malaysia, and Sungai Dusun Wildlife
Conservation Centre. We also genotyped 31 Malayan tapirs from the Japanese zoos tocontrast their genetic diversity with what present in Peninsular Malaysia. Low genetic
diversity of the wild tapir population in Peninsular Malaysia was found, and two to four
genetic clusters were inferred. Overall, the population genetic structure of wild tapirs was
unclear due to disparate distribution of the genetic clusters and uneven sampling. As thenumber of genetic clusters increased to four, however, population genetic structuringarose in the southern forest complexes of the Central Forest Spine as genetic
clines/clusters, which might be attributed to admixture between neighbouring populations,habitat fragmentation, and a complex landscape around the boundaries of a few forest
complexes. Sex-biased dispersal was not detected in the current dataset. Results fromthis study will have conservation implications related to the implementation of the Central
Forest Spine Master Plan in Peninsular Malaysia to connect major forest complexes.
Genetic diversity of the Japanese ex-situ population was higher than both captive andwild populations in Malaysia despite the presence of many parent-offspring pair. Thiswas due to the presence of tapirs from Malaysia, Thailand, and Sumatra origins. Principal
coordinate analysis indicated genetic differentiation between these populations. Future
genetic assessment of the wild populations in Thailand and Sumatra will provide moreinsights to the levels of genetic diversity of tapirs in Southeast Asia.

P-30

Rest Site Selection Analysis in Japanese Macaques
Yoshiyuki Tabuse*

Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan*

tabuse@jinrui.zool.kyoto-u.ac.jp

It is generally known that animals prefer rest sites for thermoregulation. Rest site
selection has also been widely confirmed in primates, for example, warming up by sunbathing on cold days and cooling off in the shade on hot days. Thus, rest site selection at
the individual level may affect the cohesiveness of group-living animals. In primatesocioecology, cohesiveness determines types of feeding competition and affects sociality.
As far as I know, however, it is unclear whether cohesiveness at rest determines rest site
competition. Therefore, I examined whether the rest site selection influences sociality inthis presentation.

P-31

Molecular Evolution of Sweet Taste Receptor Genes in Elephants

1

Juno Shimada1* and Takashi Hayakawa2
Department of Biological Sciences, School of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
2
Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan*juno-0426@eis.hokudai.ac.jp

Taste perception is an important role for diet choice. Mammals having different dietarycharacteristics, even if they are closely related each other, would change molecularfunction of their taste receptors, resulting in the evolutionary adaptation to taste
compound of their different diet. This has implications for efficient foraging andpreference. Elephants are the largest terrestrial herbivores among the world that live in(sub)tropic Asia and Africa. They are currently classified into three species, Africansavanna elephant (Loxodonta africana), African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), andAsian elephant (Elephas maximus). African forest elephant and Asian elephant are farapart in distribution, but they have similar ecology. They live in tropical forests and liketo eat fruit. On the other hand, the savannah elephant, lives in the savannah and eats lessfruit than the two forest-dwelling species, possibly due to its availability. We focused on
their sense of sweet taste because of this fruit-eating aspect. In this study, we examined
whether differences in diet among elephant species actually affect sweet taste receptor
genes through sequence analysis of TAS1R2 and TAS1R3.
Genomic DNA of the three elephant species was extracted from blood samples
provided by zoos, and performed PCR and Sanger sequencing for all exons of TAS1R2
and TAS1R3 with the designed primers. We constructed TAS1R2 and TAS1R3 gene
phylogenies using the maximum-likelihood method and calculated dN/dS for three
species of elephants in addition to mammoth, hyrax, manatee, dugong annotated fromtheir whole genome assemblies.
The phylogenetic trees of both TAS1R2 and TAS1R3 were similar to those of the species
trees. There was no significant difference in the likelihood of the elephant lineage,suggesting that the sweet taste receptor gene is conserved in the three species, suggestingthat pure selection occurred overall. The dN/dS values were lower than 1 for both TAS1R2
and TAS1R3 in all branches of elephant phylogeny, suggesting that there was overall pureselection.
The conclusion is that diet does not affect sweet taste receptor genes in elephants, orthat sweet taste receptor genes are highly conserved among three species of elephants.
Since the functional changes of sweet taste receptors in elephants could not be obtainedon a gene sequence basis, it is necessary to conduct experiments at the higher biologicallevels to analyze the phenotype of sweet taste receptors, such as behavioral analysis ofpreference to different types of sugar and cellular analysis of the sweet taste receptors.

P-32

Genetics, Behavior, and Evolution of the Visual Adaptation in EggLaying Mammals
Shiina Sakamoto1, Yuka Matsushita2, Akihiro Itoigawa3, Takeshi Fujitani4, Kenichiro
Takakura4, Yang Zhou5, Guojie Zhang5, Frank Grutzner6, Shoji Kawamura2, and Takashi
Hayakawa7,81

Graduate School of Environmental Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
2
Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba, Japan
3
Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi, Japan
4
Nagoya Higashiyama Zoo, Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
5
Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
6
The Environment Institute, University of Adelaide, SA, Australia
7
Faculty of Environmental Earth Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
8
Japan Monkey Centre, Inuyama, Aichi, Japan*kiiroisakanatic@gmail.com

Animals have evolved their vision by adapting to their habitat. Mammals use two typesof cone visual pigments, which differed in the wavelength range of the light they received
for light reception in bright light color vision. Placental and marsupial mammals retained
two types, SWS1 and LWS. On the other hand, monotremes (egg-laying mammals)
retained SWS2 and LWS.
The common ancestor of extant monotremes (platypus and echidna) is thought to besemiaquatic. It may be the result of adaptation of vision to the light environment in water.
There is only one species of semi-aquatic monotremes in the family Ornithorhynchidae(platypus), and only four terrestrial monotremes in the family Tachyglossidae (echidnas).
The purpose of this study was to compare the function of the visual system between theplatypus and echidna, and to examine how the visual system of monotremes has evolved
adaptively.
In this study, we synthesized all nucleotides of SWS2 and LWS of both platypus andechidna, incorporated them into expression vectors, artificially expressed them incultured cells, and measured the maximum absorption wavelength (λmax). The λmax of thecone visual pigments of the platypus and echidna was 444 nm and 448 nm, respectively,
in SWS2, and 565 nm and 569 nm in LWS. This suggests that both SWS2 and LWS have
evolved conservatively despite the large differences in the habitats of extant monotremes.
One of the major factors in visual adaptation is the activity pattern, but that ofmonotremes has not been quantitatively known very much. In order to quantitatively
investigate their activity patterns, we analyzed the day/night behavior of two echidnas at
Nagoya Higashiyama Zoo for one month. The results showed that echidnas’ activity
occurred 46% of the time during the light condition and 54% of the time during the dark
condition. In conclusion, exposure to a variety of light through diurnal and nocturnal
activity may be important in the evolution of vision in monotremes.

P-33

The Role of Intentional Communication in a Cooperative Activity inHorses (Equus caballus)
Palacino-Gonzalez G.* 1, Maeda T.1, Ringhofer M.2 and Yamamoto S.1,3
1

2

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan
Department of Animal Science, Teikyo University of Science, Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
3
Institute of Advanced Studies, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan*

gema.gonzalez.38m@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Cooperative behavior requires sometimes certain degree of coordination between
participants to achieve a common goal. In humans, this coordination is ensured throughthe establishment, maintenance and dissolution of joint commitments. The responsibility
to engage and finish a previously-arranged commitment entails the display of signals by
the participants to mutually agree and engage in the cooperative task. Although jointcommitment has been more investigated in primates, a broader comparative approach isneeded to understand the evolution of cooperative behavior. Horses are an interestingmodel for this, given their domestication process and their sociable skills. Allogrooming
is defined by the cooperative action of two horses grooming each other on the neck andwithers simultaneously. Besides playing a hygienic role and reducing heart rate,
allogrooming serves to building social bonds between group members. The symmetricalpattern of allogrooming leads that if one individual wants to perform allogrooming, it isposed with the problem of how to signal the selected individual to engage in the behavior.
If joint commitment is needed to engage in allogrooming, we will expect to find somesignals before (and, presumably after) allogrooming behavior. Head bobs, head shakes
and self-scratches have been preliminary observed in feral horses before allogrooming,
although they have not been described in previous literature yet. The resemblance in form
and function of the observed behaviors to allogrooming could suggest that these signals
may have developed in horses to request grooming. The focus of the study is to prove theexistence of referential signals during allogrooming in horses and to test whether thesesignals are affected by the partners’ social dimensions, similarly to the human “facemanagement”.

P-35

All-You-Can-Eat: A Preliminary Study of Invasive Raccoon Dog(Nyctereutes procyonoides) Predation of Endemic Species and Dietary
Competition on Yakushima Island, Japan
Katherine Majewski, Kenneth Keuk and Andrew MacIntosh

Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi, Japan

Tanuki, or raccoon dogs, are ecological generalists and opportunistic hunters native toEastern Europe and Asia, including mainland Japan. They have also been identified as
one of the most successful alien carnivores in Central and Western Europe, and areas
affected by a raccoon dog invasion reflect changes in the structure of food webs. In
invaded habitats, racoon dogs have been found to compete with native small carnivores
for resources, and alter populations of native small vertebrates, invertebrates, and edible
plant species through predation. This preliminary study aims to address invasive raccoon
dog dietary effects on Yakushima Island, a UNESCO world heritage site, throughassessing: 1) the alteration of the structure of the unique biodiversity found on Yakushima
through the consumption of rare and endemic species found on the island, and 2) areas of
direct competition for resources through ingestion of the same prey items by tanuki andother native Yakushima carnivore species. During a pilot study in January-February 2022,
tanuki latrine surveys were undertaken the Hanyama and Kawahara areas of the
Seiburindo forest on western Yakushima. From the 24 latrines identified during the pilot
survey, ~50 samples of fresh feces were collected for analysis. Ongoing analysis of thesamples aims to detect presence of small mammal and invertebrate DNA to investigate
potential dietary overlap between racoon dogs and Yakushima’s endemic subspecies ofJapanese weasel. Samples are also in the process of being analyzed for presence ofendemic species DNA, including endemic species of crabs, insects, plants, amphibians,
reptiles, birds and fish. As tanuki diets vary seasonally across their range, this study aims
for a long term multi-seasonal investigation of tanuki impact on Yakushima flora andfauna through predation.

P-36

Estimating Epigenetic Age in Okinawa rail (Hypotaenidia okinawae)
using Methylation-Sensitive High-Resolution Melting (MS-HRM)
Satsuki Suzuki1*, Huiyuan Qi1, Annegret Moto Naito-Liederbach1, Yumiko Nakaya2, Takashi
Nagamine2, Manabu Onuma3, Miho Inoue-Murayama1
1

Wildlife Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan, 2Okinawa Wildlife Federation, Uruma,
Japan, 3National institute for Environmental Studies, Tsukuba, Japan*suzuki.satsuki.77k@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp

The Okinawa rail (Hypotaenidia okinawae) is a flightless bird endemic to the northernpart of Okinawajima island. It is an elusive bird with a declining population due to habitat
loss, non-native species and traffic accidents. Acquiring information on the age ofindividuals is very important because it will help us understand the dynamics and viabilityof populations, as well as which age groups are vulnerable towards certain threats suchas traffic accidents. However, the Okinawa rail is long-lived up to 15 years in the captive
and is difficult to judge its age by its appearance. In Japan, age estimation of wild birds
is commonly done by attaching foot rings. However, this method requires recapture ofindividuals, and it does not necessarily provide accurate age data if the initial age at
marking is not known. Therefore, we attempted to apply molecular methods to estimate
age, focusing on DNA methylation. DNA methylation is an example of epigenetic changethat occurs over an individual's lifetime, and thus has been reported to be an accurate
method to estimate age in wild animals. Most previous studies have focused on mammals,so this study is one of the few, novel attempts to apply towards birds. Here, I usedcandidate genes to find age-estimation markers that are potentially associated with
epigenetic changes in the Okinawa rail. I designed primers by referring to 7 genomic
regions, whose methylation levels were reported to be correlated with age of shearwaters(Calonectoris leucomelas) in a previous study. Using NCBI BLAST, the sequences of
the 7 regions were confirmed in the Okinawa rail genome and three primer sets weresuccessfully designed for amplifying the DHH (desert hedgehog Drosophila homolog)
gene, one of the aforementioned 7 regions. The reverse-transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR)
conditions were optimized and Methylation-Sensitive High Resolution Melting (MSHRM) was used to estimate the methylation rates in 99 DNA samples extracted fromblood (n = 93) and muscle (n = 6) of captive Okinawa rails of known age (0-15). The
results showed no significant correlations between age and DNA methylation rates in anyof the tested regions of DHH. We suspect the targeted gene may function differently
and/or may not experience the same epigenetic changes over time as in the shearwater
because the two species are phylogenetically distant. Therefore, we are now preparing tosurvey the methylation rates across the entire Okinawa rail genome using Next
Generation Sequencing (NGS) to search for combinations of age-related gene regions
unique to the Okinawa rail. We also hope to expand this study to include non-invasively
obtained samples such as molted feathers and feces, which will be useful for estimating
age in wild individuals in the field.