Susan Alberts (Chicago, 1959), biologist and primatologist, has focused her research on mammals and especially on those great monkeys that are baboons. She and for them she has obtained the Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Ecology and Conservation Biology from the BBVA Foundation.
What stands out about your work?
One of the most rewarding aspects of my research is that I always learn something new; Every time we do a study and I go out into the field I learn something new. The most important thing I have learned is that different aspects of our behavior that we tend to think of as unique and inherent to being human are actually observed in our evolutionary roots, because we find these aspects in non-human animals as well.
Does the similarity between humans and baboon monkeys surprise you?
Not that I was surprised by the similarities in the behavior of humans and baboons, but I was pleased to see and confirm that many aspects of behavior have very deep evolutionary roots.
It means that we have the same roots…
Human beings are primates. We are not directly descended from a baboon, but we share the same evolutionary origins, and those evolutionary origins have given us many of the tools and characteristics that we use in our lives.
Give me an example.
Humans have known for decades that individuals with stronger social ties lead longer and healthier lives. And it turns out that this is also true for baboons and other social animals. The human tendency to be social holds true for the entire lineage of primates. Ecclesiastes has a saying: "A friend with faith is the medicine of life."
Do male baboons care for their young more than males do for their offspring?
In most mammals, we see that males do not play much of a caregiving role. In the case of baboons, and this is interesting, by the time she conceives a young, the female has usually mated with several males; and yet, the males can make a distinction and know who their young are and give them preferential care.
How do they know?
It's something we're trying to study. Evidently there are variations among baboon males, as there are in human societies; but in general baboon males do not care for their young as much as human males. They care less. Human parents are awesome! My father was a great father. I prefer my father to the father of a baboon, that's second, ha ha...
Are there changes in the behavior of baboons due to changes in their environmental environment?
Yes, and they are changes of anthropogenic origin, caused by man. The human population has grown, there are more cattle in their habitats; Climate change is also taking place and this is making the areas we study more arid, with less rainfall. And all those alterations to their environment have changed the behavior of the animals. For many species the changes are a threat to survival because they can no longer tolerate the new environment and must abandon it. Now they run into big predators and some can't survive; but baboons are beings with a great capacity for adaptation, flexible and resistant, like human beings; but they have to change their behavior.
How has it changed?
To protect the elephants, threatened by hunters, the Kenyan government has created a natural park where the elephants are safe. But that means large concentrations of elephants in the park, they destroy the trees and have changed the habitats of the baboons. It seems that this was caused by the elephants, but the ultimate cause is humans.
What else must they adapt to?
Droughts, increasingly frequent due to climate change, something that happens all over the world. They are learning to tolerate a previously unknown drought.
What is the role of females in the group?
Females live in the same group they are born into their entire lives and in order to survive and reproduce in that group they have to be able to navigate a social landscape that is constantly changing, but has some very important traits that remain stable over time, for example, your closest friends and social relationships, and also your most threatening competitors, your closest sexual partners. Constantly, throughout their lives, they must navigate the waters of this social complexity of the group.
A complex life...
Females have young once every two years. The hatchlings are highly vulnerable; once the calf is born, the female is its only support; 100% dependent on her for a year or a year and a half, until she learns to eat independently, then she becomes pregnant again, but this first calf still needs the female as a source of information, for her thermoregulation, and for their social recognition and to recognize the family. She is constantly supporting her.
A complete delivery...
As life progresses and the pups grow, each one has different needs and each one represents a different challenge. A typical female will lose 10 to 15% of the pups in miscarriages. Then she will lose another 10 to 15% of the young to predators, accidents or disease. They constantly face this great challenge.
Which?
That of their young reaching adulthood. If the female calf survives, to adulthood she is a friend for life. Instead, if the male calf survives, it will go to another group. The social structure of baboons is matrilineal. The females are organized in groups of females, and the males have their friends and come from other groups. That defines the differences between them and the males around whom they will be potential mates.
And there is also exclusion or marginalization.
Yes. There are two levels that I can contribute in my answer. On the one hand, there is the border of a social group. That border is permeable to the males, who can come and go. On average, a male living in a group can live for a couple of years and then leave; other males stay for decades and others only a few months. Social borders are permeable for males and are not, on the other hand, for females. Females cannot easily enter a social group and start life like males. There is definitely exclusion in groups, there is a border. And then the social ties vary. There are some socially isolated females; they continue to live in groups, but are socially isolated; they spend less time mating, have fewer partners, and social relationships are weaker, compared to others with many relationships. And the same with the men.
Are baboon monkeys endangered as a species?
No. They are in the “less vulnerable” category. But as the human population increases, the frequency of conflicts increases. There are areas of Africa where all baboons are in conflict with humans. And that makes them vulnerable. The resource base they use for their livelihood is altered, and that changes their social structure.
What dangers would you highlight?
The humans. The baboons go through the houses looting human resources, their crops, their garbage. And the response of humans is to want to chase them, kill them.
What strategy should be taken into account to protect them?
Damage is being caused to its population and its natural behavior. That is why we have to have protected areas that have the support of local communities. The population around these protected areas must agree on the protection measures, so that it is stable. Efforts, a lot of vigilance and resources are required. The problem is that sometimes we don't want to dedicate this effort and these resources.
Do baboons suffer slavery from man?
No, although in some places baboons are sometimes captured for use as pets. Another danger is the meat trade. In most countries it's illegal, but when it comes to a cultural tradition it's hard to tell someone not to eat it.
