BANDIT on Facebook!

If you haven't already, please come join us on Facebook! I have teamed with an amazing cohort of biological anthropologists (Kate Clancy, Robin Nelson, Katie Hinde, Katie MacKinnon, and Elizabeth Quinn) to grow BANDIT in new and exciting ways outside the constraint of a regular blog. I will continue to post original content here, including guest posts on a variety of subjects, but the FB page is a more nimble tool for up-to-date postings and discussions. Check it out, and "like" us!

Summer primate field course in Ometepe, Nicaragua

Wonderful field course offered by the Maderas Rainforest Conservancy at Ometepe, Nicaragua:

Primate Behavior & Ecology with Dr. Katherine C. MacKinnon:
This field course is designed to give students an in-depth learning experience about primate behavior and ecology in a natural tropical setting. You will learn data collection techniques and socio-ecological theory, and will design and conduct your own independent research project. The course is equivalent to an upper-level university class in primatology, but with a greater emphasis on research design, field techniques, and data collection. There will be classroom lectures, presentations based on readings and projects, informal discussions out in the field, a series of group exercises in the forest, and an individual research project based on methodology and theory learned during the group projects, various readings and classroom lectures. Expect to be intellectually and physically challenged, but above all to have fun and an amazing summer in the rain forest!

Personal plug: I took this course as a graduate student and then came back years later as a TA. It is a wonderful site. Gorgeous setting, and unparalleled visual access to the howler monkeys. You or your students will enjoy this experience at this established and well-respected field site. Also, interested in being a TA or prof? Let the good people at MRC know!

Photos from MPIG 2010!!

I am thrilled to announce that photos of the awesomeness that was MPIG 2010 have been posted at www.mpig.org (look to the left and click on MPIG Photos). Huge thanks to Katie MacKinnon of Saint Louis University and Matthew Wyczalkowski of Washington University for documenting the meeting in such style.

While at the MPIG website, search around to learn more about the organization - its officers, history, and the upcoming meeting at Kent State University, October 14-15, 2011!

Ethics of Field Primatology: reflections, concerns, new directions

I recently wrote about a stand-out symposium at the 2009 American Society of Primatologists meeting; Katie MacKinnon of St. Louis University and Erin Phelps Riley of San Diego State University organized a session to explore current issues in the ethics of conducting field primatology. Fortunately for those who were not there, they also just produced an edited issue of the American Journal of Primatology that rounds up some wonderful insights on this complex subject. I especially like Karen Strier's sometimes sober reflection on the unintended consequences of long-term field sites. Kudos to Erin and Katie for giving voice to this issue! (p.s. Congrats to newly-tenured Dr. Erin Riley!)