Patterning and Quality of Male-Male Interactions in Hamadryas Baboons (Papio hamadryas)

The social structure of a primate group is defined as the content, quality, and patterning of interactions and relationships among the members of the social group. Ecological variables, stress physiology, and phylogenetic inertia play a role in regulating measures of interactions and relationships between non-human primates. To examine social dynamics among male hamadryas baboons, video recordings of focal follows of this species were coded for three behavioral categories: self-directed behaviors (SDB), socio-positive behaviors, and agonistic behaviors. The analysis of self-directed behaviors revealed no differences in SDB across males of differing sex classes (i.e., Leader Male, Follower Male, or Solitary Male), yet correlations reveal the composite measure of SDB used to be a valid measure of relational anxiety. Descriptive statistics used to interpret the patterns of socio-positive and agonistic data reveal trends that suggest social dynamics in this species are unique among other despotic primate societies