Wendy M. Erb PhD Candidate, Interdepartmental Doctoral Program in Anthropological Sciences Department of Anthropology 5th Floor SBS Building Stony Brook University Stony Brook, New York 11794-4364 Email: werb@ic.sunysb.edu IDPAS Page

I currently study the endangered and virtually unknown simakobu monkeys (Simias concolor) in the Mentawai Islands of Indonesia, part of the Sundaland Biodiversity Hotspot. I am interested in the strategies and signals of competition between males living in one-male groups. For my dissertation research, I am exploring patterns and functions of male aggression during intergroup encounters. I am also interested in explaining patterns of variation within and among males in the loud calls used in between-group communication. Additionally, I intend to explore the ability of conspecifics to detect and respond to this acoustic variation as it pertains to measures of male quality and condition.

Thesis Title:
Male-male competition in simakobu monkeys (Simias concolor): Strategies and signals

Thesis Committee:
Dr. Carola Borries (Advisor: Dept. of Anthropology, Stony Brook University)
Dr. Andreas Koenig (Internal member: Dept. of Anthropology, Stony Brook University)
Dr. Charles Janson (Internal member: Dept. of Ecology & Evolution, Stony Brook University)
Dr. Julia Fischer (External member: Cognitive Ethology Research Group, German Primate Center)
Dr. Ryne Palombit (External member: Dept. of Anthropology / Center for Human Evolutionary Studies, Rutgers University)