ArticlePrimates; journal of primatology2018
Potential self-medication using millipede secretions in red-fronted lemurs: combining anointment and ingestion for a joint action against gastrointestinal parasites?
Article in Primates; journal of primatology, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers.
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Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 32 citations in OpenAlex.
- Ecological role of emergent properties in the chemodiversity landscape.Nature ecology & evolution · 2026Review
- Contexts of Anointing Behavior in a Group of Blond Capuchin Monkeys (Sapajus flavius) Inhabiting an Atlantic Forest Fragment.American journal of primatology · 2026Article
- Animal medical systems from Apis to apes: history, recent advances and future perspectives.Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society · 2025Review
- Insect applications to open wounds by chimpanzees in the wild: first insights from East African chimpanzees.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Temporal dynamics in gastrointestinal helminth infections of sympatric mouse lemur species (International journal for parasitology. Parasites and wildlife · 2024Article
- Assessing the drivers of gut microbiome composition in wild redfronted lemurs via longitudinal metacommunity analysis.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Dietary shifts and social interactions drive temporal fluctuations of the gut microbiome from wild redfronted lemurs.ISME communications · 2022Article
- The sticky tasty: the nutritional content of the exudativorous diet of the Javan slow loris in a lowland forest.Primates; journal of primatology · 2022Article
- Fur rubbing inPrimate biology · 2022Article
- Monkeying around with venom: an increased resistance to α-neurotoxins supports an evolutionary arms race between Afro-Asian primates and sympatric cobras.BMC biology · 2021Article
- The Primates 2020 Social Impact Award.Primates; journal of primatology · 2021Article
- Paleomedicine and the Evolutionary Context of Medicinal Plant Use.Revista brasileira de farmacognosia : orgao oficial da Sociedade Brasileira de Farmacognosia · 2021Review
- Wild Blonde Capuchins (Sapajus flavius) Perform Anointing Behaviour Using Toxic Secretions of a Millipede (Spirobolida: Rhinocricidae).Journal of chemical ecology · 2020Article
- Potential self-medication by brown titi monkeys,Primate biology · 2020Article
- Anointing with commercial insect repellent by free-ranging Cebus capucinus in Manuel Antonio National Park, Quepos, Costa Rica.Primates; journal of primatology · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Self-anointing, referring to the behaviour of rubbing a material object or foreign substance over different parts of the body, has been observed in several vertebrate species, including primates. Several functions, such as detoxifying a rich food source, social communication and protection against ectoparasites, have been proposed to explain this behaviour. Here, we report observations of six wild red-fronted lemurs (Eulemur rufifrons) of both sexes and different age classes anointing their perianal-genital areas and tails with chewed millipedes. Several individuals also ingested millipedes after prolonged chewing. In light of the features of the observed interactions with millipedes, and the nature and potential metabolic pathways of the released chemicals, we suggest a potential self-medicative function. Specifically, we propose that anointing combined with the ingestion of millipedes' benzoquinone secretions by red-fronted lemurs may act in a complementary fashion against gastrointestinal parasite infections, and more specifically Oxyuridae nematodes, providing both prophylactic and therapeutic effects.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.