American Journal of Primatology 55:87–100 (2001) © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. RESEARCH ARTICLES Timing of Births in Sympatric Brown Howler Monkeys (Alouatta fusca clamitans) and Northern Muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides hypoxanthus) KAREN B. STRIER 1 * , SERGIO L. MENDES 2 , AND ROGERIO R. SANTOS 3 1 Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 2 Departamento de Biologia, CCHN/UFES, Vítoria ES, Brazil 3 Museu de Biologia Prof. Mello Leitão, Santa Teresa ES, Brazil We monitored the birth patterns of sympatric brown howler monkeys (Alouatta fusca clamitans) and northern muriquis (Brachyteles arachn- oides hypoxanthus) during a 4-yr period from October 1996 to August 2000 at the Estação Biológica de Caratinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Brown howler monkey births (n = 34) occurred throughout the year, and birth frequencies did not differ between rainy and dry season months. The aseasonal birth patterns of the howler monkeys differed significantly from the dry season concentration and dry month peak in muriqui births (n = 23). We found no effects of infant sex or the number of females on interbirth intervals (IBIs) in our 10 howler monkey study troops. IBIs of brown howler monkeys averaged 21.2 ± 2.5 mo (n = 8, median = 21.0 mo), and were sig- nificantly shorter following dry season births than rainy season births. Their IBIs and yearling survivorship (74%) were similar to those reported for other species of howler monkeys, but yearling survivorship was much lower than that of muriquis (94%), whose IBIs were more than 12 mo longer than those of the howler monkeys. Our study extends comparative knowledge of birth patterns in Alouatta to a poorly known species, and provides insights into the different ways in which diet and life history may affect the timing of births in large-bodied platyrrhines under the same seasonal ecological conditions. Am. J. Primatol. 55:87–100, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Key words: birth seasonality; Alouatta fusca clamitans; brown howler monkeys; Brachyteles arachnoides hypoxanthus; muriquis; life history strategies INTRODUCTION The timing of births in howler monkeys (Alouatta spps.) is more variable than it is in the other large-bodied atelines (Ateles, Brachyteles, and Lagothrix). Contract grant sponsor: NSF BNS; Contract grant number: 8958298; Contract grant sponsor: Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation; Contract grant sponsor: Lincoln Park Zoo Scott Neotropic Fund; Contract grant sponsor: Margot Marsh Biodiversity Foundation; Contract grant sponsor: National Geographic So- ciety; Contract grant sponsor: Graduate School of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. *Correspondence to: Karen B. Strier, Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706. E-mail: kbstrier@facstaff.wisc.edu Received 15 February 2001; revision accepted 12 July 2001