Data from: Titi monkey call sequences vary with predator location and type

Animal alarm calls can encode information about a predator’s category,
size, distance or threat level. In non-human primates, alarm calls
typically refer to broad classes of disturbances, in some instances to
specific predators. Here, we present the results of a field experiment
with a New World primate, the black-fronted titi monkey, designed to
explore the information conveyed by their alarm call system. Adults
produced sequences consisting of two main alarm call types that conveyed,
in different parts of the utterance, information about a predator’s type
and location. In particular, sequence compositions differed depending on
whether the predator was a mammalian carnivore or a raptor, and whether it
was detected in a tree or on the ground. This is the first demonstration
of a sequence-based alarm call system in a non-human animal that has the
capacity to encode both location and type of predatory threat.