Coordination challenges shape signal complexity in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus), but not in mangabeys (Cercocebus atys atys)

Grampp, M, Girard-Buttoz, C, Samuni, L, Tkaczynski, PJ ORCID: 0000-0003-3207-2132, Wittig, RM and Crockford, C (2026) Coordination challenges shape signal complexity in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus), but not in mangabeys (Cercocebus atys atys). Royal Society Open Science, 13 (5). ISSN 2054-5703

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Abstract

Increased coordination challenges, such as in the negotiation of group movement and activity, has been suggested to promote communicative complexity. This hypothesis, however, has rarely been tested within and between species, specifically in relation to signal combinations. We compared two primates, chimpanzees and mangabeys, living in the same dense forest habitat, but with varying degrees of fission–fusion dynamics. In both species, we examined whether spatial coordination challenges across daily contexts and social relationship strength impacted signalling complexity, considering combined signals as being more complex than single signals. As high-level fission–fusion dynamics increase coordination challenges, we additionally evaluated whether combined signalling predicted increased coordination (association) duration in chimpanzees. We found that greater coordination demands, i.e. during travelling, compared with feeding and resting, increased combined signalling production in chimpanzees only. In chimpanzees, coordination challenges were more influential in predicting combined signalling than relationship strength, with the latter being influential only during resting in both species. Finally, combined and socio-positive signal production predicted chimpanzee coordination duration. Our findings offer support that coordination challenges drive signal combination production, adding strength to the broader hypothesis that social complexity is a principal driver of the evolution of complex signalling.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	collective behaviour; coordination contexts; fission-fusion dynamics; signal combinations; social approaches; social bonding; social approaches; fission-fusion dynamics; social bonding; coordination contexts; signal combinations; collective behaviour; 4301 Archaeology; 31 Biological Sciences; 43 History, Heritage and Archaeology
Subjects:	Q Science > QL Zoology
Divisions:	Biological and Environmental Sciences (from Sep 19)
Publisher:	The Royal Society
Date of acceptance:	19 March 2026
Date of first compliant Open Access:	9 June 2026
Date Deposited:	09 Jun 2026 14:54
Last Modified:	09 Jun 2026 14:54
DOI or ID number:	10.1098/rsos.260401
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/28788

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