RESEARCH ARTICLE The Ontogeny of Prehensile-Tail Use in Cebus capucinus and Alouatta palliata

A study of the platyrrhine prehensile tail provides an opportunity to better understand how ecologicaland biomechanical factors affect the ability of primates to distribute mass across many differentkinds of arboreal supports. Young individuals experience ontogenetic changes in body mass, limbproportions, and motor skills that are likely to exert a strong influence on foraging strategies, socialbehaviors, support use, and associated prehensile-tail use. In this research, I examine ontogeneticpatterns of prehensile-tail use in