Human behavior and opportunities for parasite transmission in communities surrounding long-tailed macaque populations in Bali, Indonesia

Kelly E. Lane-deGraaf, I. G.A.Arta Putra, I. Nengah Wandia, Aida Rompis, Hope Hollocher, Agustin Fuentes

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

17 Scopus citations

Abstract

Spatial overlap and shared resources between humans and wildlife can exacerbate parasite transmission dynamics. In Bali, Indonesia, an agricultural-religious temple system provides sanctuaries for long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis), concentrating them in areas in close proximity to humans. In this study, we interviewed individuals in communities surrounding 13 macaque populations about their willingness to participate in behaviors that would put them at risk of exposure to gastrointestinal parasites to understand if age, education level, or occupation are significant determinants of exposure behaviors. These exposure risk behaviors and attitudes include fear of macaques, direct contact with macaques, owning pet macaques, hunting and eating macaques, and overlapping water uses. We find that willingness to participate in exposure risk behaviors are correlated with an individual's occupation, age, and/or education level. We also found that because the actual risk of infection varies across populations, activities such as direct macaque contact and pet ownership, could be putting individuals at real risk in certain contexts. Thus, we show that human demographics and social structure can influence willingness to participate in behaviors putting them at increased risk for exposure to parasites.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)159-167
Number of pages9
JournalAmerican Journal of Primatology
Volume76
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2014
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
  • Animal Science and Zoology

Keywords

  • Gut parasite
  • Human behavior
  • Long-tailed macaques
  • Risk

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