Stronger stress response in monkeys helps them survive

Researchers used the environmental circumstances and fecal samples collected from the six years prior to the severe El Ni o drought in Costa Rica to study the relationship between the endocrinologic stress response and survival in white-faced capuchin monkeys. Monkeys who showed a steeper rise in these stress hormones during the mild droughts were more likely to survive the severe El Nino drought. As weather intensifies globally, longitudinal studies of how wild animals cope with changes in temperature, rainfall and food availability can help us understand which species can adapt rapidly.