Field Methods in Primatology course: Paraguay

Para La Tierra, United States

Updated: 11 months ago
Deadline: 14 Aug 2023

Agency
Para La Tierra
Location
Pilar, Paraguay
Job Category
Training
Salary
N/a
Start Date
09/17/2023
Last Date to Apply
08/14/2023
Website
https://www.paralatierraprimatology.com
Description
The Field Methods in Primatology course is an intensive introduction to field primatology with particular focus on the hooded capuchin (Sapajus cay) in the Paraguayan Atlantic Forest and the black-&-gold howler monkey (Alouatta caraya) in the humid Chaco and city environment. The course offers budding primatologists the perfect opportunity to gain hands-on experience of a range of field techniques in very different environments. The course is led by Para La Tierra’s award-winning primatologist Dr. Rebecca Smith. Rebecca is a National Geographic Explorer and the only professional primatologist in Paraguay. She has worked with primates in captive and wild settings in four countries and has studied the hooded capuchin in the Paraguayan Atlantic Forest for the past 10 years. She has recently started a reforestation project in collaboration with indigenous communities to provide more habitat for the threatened capuchins. Fundación Para La Tierra (PLT) is a conservation NGO focused on the conservation of Paraguay’s endangered habitats through scientific research, education and community engagement. We are running the country’s only long-term primate research project. The course introduces students to primatology through lectures, field exercises, discussion groups, active participation in Paraguay’s only long-term primate field study and independent research. You will participate in a series of lectures including primate taxonomy, study design, primatology in Paraguay and Atlantic Forest conservation. With a small group of like-minded students, you’ll be spending the first half of the course at our field site in the Atlantic forest, one of the most diverse but sadly also most threatened forests of the world. Here, you’ll be introduced to the background of conservation in Paraguay and different methods of primate studies like VHF telemetry, vocalisation and ID training, and primate habituation techniques. You’ll also get the chance to practice your newly learned skills with the incredible hooded capuchin monkeys! For the second half of the course, we'll take you to a very different habitat: The Ñeembucú Wetlands around the small town of Pilar, home to the highly adaptable urban black-and-gold howler monkeys. These unique monkeys live both in the pristine forests around Pilar and in the gardens of the town's residents! You’ll be introduced to the human wildlife conflict, and further primatology methods such as faecal and urine sampling, distance sampling and census methods, and social network analysis. During the final days, you will plan your own project, collect at least 20 hours of data and present your results to your peers! Tution/Fees $2595 or $2295 on our early-bird offer if you book before June 30th! Fees cover course tuition, use of scientific equipment, 3 meals per day and afternoon snack, lodging at the Centro IDEAL and Procosara research stations and all in-country transportation to and from all field sites. Airfares to Paraguay, travel insurance and vaccinations are not included. Start and End dates: 17th September- 8th October 2023. You should plan to arrive in Asunción the day before the course starts.
Qualifications
This course is perfect for undergraduates who are thinking about a career in primatology, tropical conservation or studying animal behaviour. You must have or be working towards a degree in a biology-related subject and be at least 18 years old.
Contact Person
Dr. Rebecca Smith, Executive Director
Contact eMail
[email protected]

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