Primates of Western Uganda (Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects)

From galagos to gorillas, the primates of western Uganda comprise a very di­ verse collection of species. Western Uganda has a long history of primatological research extending back to the publications of the Uganda Virus Institute in 1947 and even to the notable first encounters of Count Beringe with moun­ tain gorillas in 1913. Many forested areas of Uganda (Figure i) have been the focus of research continuously since 1970, and thus western Uganda has a cen­ tral place in primatology that it maintains to the present day. In this book, we present a series of new, unpublished scientific accounts of a selection of the species in the region, each chapter focusing on one or more particular charac­ teristics of the species concerned. The book falls naturally into four sections. First, we introduce the primates of western Uganda, with a chapter on their tax­ onomy. We have left authors to follow the taxonomic terminology with which they are most comfortable, but present this first chapter to reflect recent devel­ opments in the understanding of taxonomic relationships among the Ugandan primates. Second, we present a section with an ecological focus, followed by a collection of chapters on behavior and physiology. Finally the focus shifts to conservation. Chimpanzees and gorillas have always attracted a lot of interest both among the general public and among researchers; consequently, this interest is reflected in the present volume.

The editors of this volume are all experienced primatologists. Vernon Reynolds studied chimpanzees in the Budongo Forest, Uganda, in 1962, and wrote his first book about that experience. He subsequently returned to found the Budongo Forest Project in 1990. This highly successful project continues today. Recently Prof Reynolds published a definitive volume about the Budongo Forest chimpanzees: The Chimpanzees of the Budongo Forest, published by Oxford University Press in 2005.

James Paterson had a long career as a primatologist at the University of Calgary, and specialized in the study of baboons and other monkeys. Hugh Notman studied the Sonso chimpanzees in 1996, and then again in 1999 and 2000 when he collected data on pant-hoot vocalizations for his doctoral research.

Nicholas Newton-Fisher began studying chimpanzees in the Budongo Forest in 1994, his doctoral research on the relationships of adult male chimpanzees - a rather neglected area at that time. He was the first to study the chimpanzees of the Sonso region of the Budongo forest, having first to habituate them to behavioural observation at close quarters, and to being trailed through the forest. His studies of this chimpanzee society has continued to the present day and forms the foundation and framework for research conducted by others on these chimpanzees. He has published numerous articles on the behaviour and ecology of these chimpanzees, and, in collaboration with others including Vernon Reynolds, his research has provided a deep understanding of this unique community. His current interest is in the use of aggression by male chimpanzees to coerce females’ mating behaviour, and the strategies used by females to counter such aggression. He has discovered vigorous retaliation by females against male aggression, including females forming coalitions to respond to males, a behaviour otherwise unreported in wild chimpanzees.