Northern White-cheeked Gibbon - Behaviour and Diet

Behaviour and Diet

The northern white-cheeked gibbon is arboreal in habits, and primarily herbivorous, feeding mainly on fruits, with some leaves, buds, and flowers. However, up to 10% of their diet may be composed of insects and other small animals. They are generally sociable, living in groups of up to six individuals. Individual groups do not travel far, and are believed to be territorial. They are diurnal, and spend the night sleeping in high branches, often embracing one another tightly. Behavioural studies have demonstrated that they are capable of self-recognition in mirrors.

The calls of northern white-cheeked gibbons are among the most complex of those produced by gibbons, and are significantly different between males and females. The most distinctive calls are those made as part of male-female duets. These begin with the female making a series of fifteen to thirty notes with an increasing pitch, followed by the male complex call with rapid changes of frequency modulation. The cycle, which lasts less than twenty seconds, then repeats with increasing intensity for anything from five to seventeen minutes. In the closely related southern species, such duets are most common at dawn, and are apparently only made on sunny days. In captive studies, males and females that sing duets together the most frequently are the most likely to mate, indicating that this may play a key role in pair-bonding.

Similar calls are sometimes made solo by both sexes, and juveniles sometimes join in, to create a full 'chorus'. In addition to the duet and solo great calls, males can also make booming sounds with their gular sacs, and short single notes.