Measuring fig foraging frequency of the Yakushima macaque by using automatic cameras

Abstract

An automatic camera system was employed to reveal the fig foraging frequency of primary seed dispersers on Yakushima Island, southern Japan. Seven automatic cameras were settled on sample branches of Ficus superba (Miq.) Miq. var. japonica Miq. to record animals foraging for figs. Figs on sample branches were counted at approximately 3 day intervals. The cameras took 168 photographs including 155 pictures of Yakushima macaques and two of birds, indicating that most of the figs at the inner parts of the crowns were eaten by the macaques. There was a linear relationship between the number of macaques foraging for figs on sample branches and the number of figs that dis‐appeared within each period, suggesting that the automatic camera system was useful for estimating fig loss as a result of the foraging activity of the macaques on a branch basis.