Psychology
Field Course in Borneo: Primate Behaviour and Ecology
Portsmouth’s Psychology Department offers a field course in a wildlife sanctuary in Borneo (Primate Behaviour & Ecology) and volunteer positions to assist research projects on rehabilitated orangutans in Borneo and sanctuary chimpanzees in Zambia. For further details, please see below.
A two-week field course in the tropical forest of Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary in Sabah, Borneo, is offered by the Psychology Department of the University of Portsmouth, in collaboration with Cardiff University. The course will take place from the 20th of July to the 3rd of August 2013 and include up to 12 students, who will then be stationed in the Danau Girang Field Centre. It is offered to Psychology students of the University of Portsmouth. For the application form, please contact Marina Davila-Ross: marina.davila-ross@port.ac.uk (interested students should attach their CVs to the email).
What would I learn?
In the first week, lectures will be given that introduce concepts in primate behaviour and ecology, current topics in primate research (with special focus on primate behaviour), and a range of research methods. At the end of the first week, the students will start to develop their own research projects and apply one of the taught methods to collect their own data on primates. Students might, for instance, video record a community of proboscis monkeys from a boat to examine the relationships between infants and their mothers and then code these behaviour in the Centre’s computer room. Or students might want to conduct playback experiments to test for responses to sounds produced by humans or other animals. There are many more research opportunities. Each student project will be closely supervised. At the end of the course, the students will give a mini-presentation about their findings and write a project report. In addition, the students will learn how to write a research proposal in a series of lectures and practice sessions.
What facilities does the Centre offer? Which primates could I study?
The Centre is in the midst of Kinabatangan’s tropical forest and it is well equipped for field courses. It has hostel buildings, a teaching area equipped with a white screen, a LCD projector and 30 chairs, a computer room equipped with 10 internet-linked PCs and one printer, a dining area with seating capacity for about 40 people and a fully-equipped kitchen, a library with more than 150 books (covering tropical ecology, behaviour, natural history, etc.) and more. Primates that can be observed: Proboscis monkey, Bornean orangutan, Muller’s gibbon, two macaque species, two langur species, and Western tarsier, and Bornean slow loris. The area along the Kinabatangan River is well known for its high biodiversity and also includes Bornean elephants, clouded leopards, sambar deers, sun bears, saltwater crocodiles, oriental pied hornbills, and more.
What would this cost me? Would I be insured? Would I get credits?
The cost is £1000. It includes transportation to and from the Centre by bus and boat from Sandakan Airport, accommodation and meals/drinks at the field centre during the two weeks, a conservation fee, fuel for boat trips, and the use of the facilities (including laboratory space, electricity, running water and internet!). The cost does NOT include a round-trip international flight. You might want to see if you are eligible for Royal Society or British Ecological society expedition grants. Use Google to search for youth expedition grants. Students will be insured by the University of Portsmouth. This course will not count towards credits but it would enhance your career development, if this is an area that you hope to work in, and it is possible to collect data here for Year 3 projects. The research proposal (written during the course) could be used to apply for MSc or PhD studentships. Following this course, there is the opportunity to assist in a research project on rehabilitated orangutans (see below).
Great ape research: Volunteer positions
Rehabilitated orangutans in Borneo: Linking behaviour to conservation.
This project examines orangutan emotions and cognition with the main aim to improve release methods for rehabilitated orangutans. With deforestation taking place in different parts of Borneo and Sumatra, it is possible that wild populations of orangutans become extinct within the next decades. This project takes place in Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre and the forests where rehabilitated orangutans are being released.
Sanctuary chimpanzees in Zambia: Evolution of communication.
This project started in 2007 and focuses on social communication of three semi-wild chimpanzee colonies at Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage. It aims to improve our understanding how positive communication evolved and to what extent communicative behaviours (especially positive behaviours such as laughter and playful gestures) may be flexibly used among the chimpanzees. Previous volunteer: "It was a wonderful experience...being so close to the apes, hearing their vocalizations, watching them play or groom one another. It is something you never stop enjoying."
Experience/skills required?
For the orangutan project, no research experience is necessary. The data collection would mainly involve video-recording behaviours. For the chimpanzee project, research experience with animals and travelling experience is required. Volunteers will be trained.
When would I start? Length of stay?
The orangutan project starts on the 1st of August and volunteering can start any time afterwards, until the 10th of September. The length of time is negotiable (depending on training, experience, and field course participation). The chimpanzee project is ongoing and volunteering can take place any time from April to September. Here, the minimum length of stay is one month.
Insurance/Costs?
Students will be insured by the University of Portsmouth. All volunteers need to pay for their accommodation and travelling.
Contact: Marina Davila-Ross, marina.davila-ross@port.ac.uk (interested students should attach their CVs to the email)