INTERACTIONS BETWEEN LAR GIBBONS AND PIG-TAILED MACAQUES AT FRUIT SOURCES

Interactions are reported between white-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar) and pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina) in Khao Yai National Park, Thailand, in which gibbons selected ripe fruit from sources before macaques arrived on 4 occasions during June and July of 1989. The macaques foraged near gibbons or from shared fruit sources during 13% of gibbon observation time. Gibbons made their presence known in fruit trees when macaques approached on 3 occasions and macaques did not enter fruit trees occupied by gibbons. An aggressive interaction is reported in which a single white-handed gibbon vigorously excluded 22-28 macaques from a rare and valuable fruit tree (Sandoricum koetjape). The observations suggest that exploitative and interference competition may exist between these species.