Male monkey cares for dying partner

[ismnotwasm]

( in light of ridiculous "Evo-psych" arguments about male behavior, I thought I'd post this here; these are not apes, as pointed out, or particularly relevant here, but a touching story nonetheless)

The female accidentally fell from a tree in the forests of Brazil and the male comforted her as she lay dying.

Such behaviour is "astounding", say scientists, having only been previously recorded in primates among chimpanzees and humans.

The marmosets were the dominant pair in their group, having been committed partners for three-and-a-half years.

Within months of the female's death, the male left the group, never to return.

Details of the extraordinary interaction are published in the journal Primates, along with a video recording the behaviour.

His gentle care and attention towards her left me astounded”

Primatologist Ms Bruna Bezerra of the University of Bristol, who witnessed the encounter
Primatologists spotted the two monkeys while observing common marmosets living in a fragment of Atlantic forest in northeast Brazil.

The team, including Dr Bruna Bezerra of the University of Bristol, UK and colleagues at the Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, in Recife, Brazil, had been studying the same group of common marmosets for a number of years.


While observing the monkeys the scientists saw the group's dominant female, which they called F1B, fall from a tree, hitting her head on an object on the ground.
Fatally wounded, F1B lay in agony on the ground for two-and-a-half hours before passing away.

"The most remarkable behaviour during this time came from the dominant male M1B," the researchers report.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/26924936