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Abstract

Species commonly associate for feeding purposes and for security. In East Africa, impala and olive baboons are commonly found together; however, little research exists on this relationship. This study aimed to determine if impala associate with baboons by comparing the number of groups of impala and equally abundant warthogs with and without baboons. I found that impala associate more often with baboons than warthogs relative to their respective abundances. I sought to discover the function of this association and found that impala glean the fruits and flower buds of sausage trees after baboons eat, and sometimes I observed impala actively displacing baboons to eat sausage fruits and the sausage fruit leavings. Additionally, when sausage trees were present, impala often followed the baboon troop considerable distances. I often observed impala with baboons even when there were no sausage trees, therefore I suspect that impala associate with baboons for increased predator detection in addition to feeding. After comparing vigilance behaviors of impala with and without baboons, I found that impala with baboons spend less time actively vigilant. Overall, the results of this study indicate an association between impala and olive baboons and suggest that they associate with baboons both for feeding and for security.

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