Field Projects International has limited space for those wishing to join one of our primate research teams focused on disease ecology and sensory perception this July.
All positions are competitive, filled on a rolling basis, and include site fees that cover room and board, meals and snacks, transfers between Puerto Maldonado and the field site, and supplies/equipment. Deadline for all Research Assistantship Positions: May 16th Learn more: https://fieldprojects.org/research **ABOUT THE PRIMATE DISEASE ECOLOGY PROGRAM** This program involves 11 primate species found at our field site. Our task is to locate and follow groups each primate species while tracking their movements with a handheld GPS, recording behavioral data, and collecting fecal samples. We preserve all acquired samples in a variety of ways that enable us to access DNA, hormone, parasite, and dietary data. We are looking for enthusiastic, reasonably fit, and self-motivated field assistants. Previous experience is not required; we provide all training on site. This is a great opportunity for students interested in graduate programs or careers in biology, conservation, ecology, or anthropology. This kind of fieldwork is physically demanding and requires long days of hiking and data collection, but it is also incredibly rewarding. Read more about this program here: https://fieldprojects.org/research/community-disease-ecology/ At the end of the program, research assistants will be able to: • Track primates by movement and vocalizations, as well as radio telemetry • Work off trail systems, and conduct full-day follows • Conduct behavioral observations on known-individuals (scan and focal animal sampling) • Record data on feeding ecology • Correctly sex individual primates • Collect GPS data on species movements to create a large, overarching primate movement database. • Become proficient in collecting and storing primate fecal samples in field conditions, including participating in downstream applications like endocrinology and parasite analyses. • Input sample and movement information into databases for further analyses. START DATE: July 10th, 2016 MINIMUM STAY: 4 weeks APPLICATION DEADLINE: May 16, 2016 PROGRAM FEE: $450/week (includes room & board, all meals, and travel from Puerto Maldonado to the field site) WHERE: The Los Amigos Biological Field Station in Southeastern Peru **ABOUT OUR PRIMATE SENSORY PERCEPTION PROGRAM** Field Projects International is examining sensory perception in neotropical primates, partly because they have an interesting sex-linked color vision phenomenon. Excluding howler monkeys, male platyrrhines are dichromatic, meaning they can discern only two wavelengths. On the other hand, about half of all the females have trichromatic vision. This phenomenon allows us to design experiments in the field that test what senses primates use to select ripe fruit. We would expect the dichromatic females to adopt similar foraging strategies as the males, but the trichromatic females should behave differently if variation in vision does in fact influence foraging efficiency. Confirming that these relationships do or do not exist in wild populations is just the tip of the iceberg for topics in sensory perception. Research assistants will acquire much more knowledge on this interesting topic while learning how to carry out experiments on individually identifiable primate groups. Read more about this program here: https://fieldprojects.org/research/sensory-experiments At the end of this program, participants will be able to: • Record focal behavioral data • Work with video recording equipment • Complete basic video edits • Understand relational databases • Perform basic behavioral data analyses • Recognize all 11 species of primate at our field site • Distinguish species-specific vocalizations • Gain a general knowledge about rainforest ecology START DATES: July 5th or 12th, 2016 MINIMUM STAY REQUIRED: 4 weeks APPLICATION DEADLINE: May 16th, 2016 PROGRAM FEE: $450/week PROGRAM LOCATION: The Los Amigos Biological Field Station in Southeastern Peru
