In order to gain a better understanding of primates, you will be engaging in an observational study of captive primates through webcams of animals in zoos across the world. You can find primate webcams at various zoo websites or you can find sites that compile webcams. This link offers an example of a compiled collection of webcams. (Links to an external site.)
During your observations, be sure to take copious notes, and attempt to answer the following questions for THREE (3) SEPARATE NON-HUMAN PRIMATE SPECIES.
What is the scientific name (Genus and species) and common name of the organism youre observing?
How many animals are part of the exhibit? Note the ages of the individuals, if that information is available.
Note the number of males and females, and detail the degree and type of sexual dimorphism (if any).
Give a detailed physical description of the organisms. Offer details on anatomical features, coloration, fur length, among other distinguishing characteristics that are unique to this primate group. Describe each individual primate in the exhibit and offer the code name given to them in your sampling notes (see reverse).
Describe the primary locomotor method used by the primates.
Offer a detailed description of the enclosure that the animals are housed in. On top of the description, assess whether the enclosure has adequate space, whether it has some sort of entertainment for the animals, and whether it appears to facilitate their locomotor behavior.
Watch each primate species for at least 50 minutes and perform both scan sampling and ad lib sampling (see reverse). Keep close records of the time and details of the behaviors. Pay close attention to interactions between males and females, between adults and young, foraging behaviors, and play. Look for dominance and/or submissive displays amongst the primates or from the primates to the onlookers (do not harass the primates yourselves!). I am looking for lots of details in this section in particular, so be sure to take many notes on the primate behaviors you are observing.
Information about where you watched the primate. I want at least the name of the zoo, and a link to the webcam you watched.
After your zoo trip, type up your observations. The final report should be double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman or Calibri font with 1 margins. I expect at least one to two pages per primate species observed. If unsure how much to write, opt for more details rather than fewer.
Sampling Methods
In this assignment, you are expected to perform both scan sampling and ad lib sampling. With each method, you need to keep ample notes that you will type up and be turning in with the rest of your paper.
Scan Sampling
In scan sampling, an observation of primate behavior is taken at predetermined time intervals. For this assignment, the time interval will be every 5 minutes. With this sampling system, you will want to set a timer and very quickly record the behavior of every primate in the exhibit at the moment your timer goes off. If there are more than 5 primates, focus on 5 individuals so as not to overwhelm yourself during scan sampling. In your notebook, make a chart that allows you to easily understand the time the recording was made and the behavior that was exhibited at that time, as well as a space for comments that might clarify the behavior. Be sure that every scan-sample entry contains each primate in the exhibit.
Your behaviors and should have codes to make them easy to record in the moment. Examples are provided below, but you may use any coding system you like, provided you offer a key to understand the system. Because you will need to take very quick notes during scan sampling, you should also encode the primates identities in some way for ease of recording.
Ex:
Time
Behavior
Comments
12:00
A GR B; C FR
Primate A grooms Primate B; Primate C forages for food
12:05
A FR; B NV; C RE
Primate A forages for food; Primate B not visible; Primate C rests
12:10
B PL C; A RE
Primate B plays with Primate C; Primate A rests
12:15
B CN A; C FR
Primate B has a conflict with Primate A; Primate C forages for food
12:20
B GR B; C GR A
Primate B grooms self; Primate C grooms Primate A
Ad Lib Sampling
In ad lib sampling, the observer continually watches the primates and records any particularly interesting or remarkable behaviors that occur during the sampling that fall in between the time intervals of your scan sampling. For your ad lib sampling, you should record the time and the interesting behavior noted, following the same codes for the primate identities. These behaviors should be recorded separately from the scan sampling.
Ex:
Time
Comments
12:03
Primate C became agitated for a reason not apparent to the observer and began rapid movement around the exhibit while vocalizing loudly
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