Design and Establishment of a Primate Troop Enclosure

The advantages and disadvantages of caged and field studies are well documented. Both types of study are necessary for a complete elucidation of the behaviour of a species. The evidence presented here suggests that a cage which has been built at the University of Natal overcomes many of the difficulties involved in cage studies in that it provides for many of the activities seen in a free-ranging troop, including territorial behaviour. The success of this enterprise may stem largely from the use of a hemispherical rather than cubical cage, and the preservation of genealogical links among the inmates. A ‘natural’ troop has been successfully maintained in the cage since May 1975.