>
>
>Don't other primates avoid mating until the
>hormonal picture favors estrus? So perhaps tandem nursing isn't an issue for
>them because their wiring precludes getting pregnant while nursing?
>

Thanks for the reminder Nikki...I wasn't thinking of that side of
things.  Yes, I think you're right in that most mammals only mate when
in heat...so if their fertile time is delayed by nursing for a long
time, mating won't occur.  OK...but although i know it might be normal
for there to be "approximately 4 years" (or whatever) between the birth
and when fertility returns...I know that all people, and most likely all
primates and other mammals are not the same hormonally...  Although we
don't tend to nurse like our ancestors, several times an hour...there is
much talk of the LAM of birth control, and yet we know that while most
women won't get their periods in the first 6 months after birth...*some*
do, and some get them back after 7.5 mos (me), some get them back at 14
mos...and some won't get them back as long as the child isn't weaned, no
matter if s/he is nursing just once a week or several times a day, even
if it's 5 years since the birth.  Right?  So I have a hard time
believeing that fertility NEVER returns until the offspring has been
weaned...it might not be common if nursing is frequent, i.e. several
times an hour...but I can see that it might happen sometimes,
infrequently.  Do other primates have enough "culture" that mating would
still be discouraged until the offspring were weaned?  Or would they
wean once the menses returned, as a sign that it was "time to move on"?

Anyhow...thanks again for the reminder Nikki...

Fio.

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