Golden Cheeked Gibbon

Primates are one of the most interesting mammals on earth, not only because of their complex social structures, but because they hold so many similar characteristics to humans. Primates are often cited as our closest living relatives and on two separate occasions I observed four separate species of primates at the San Diego Zoo that can justify their use of their physical characteristics and behaviors that may be similar as well as different to the other primates and ours.

This is a summary of the video we saw on the fifth of july’s lecture about John Cleese’s documentary about lemurs. He went on a three week expedition to the forest of Madagascar, to follow five black and white lemurs known as”Carolina five” that were born into captivity and then released into the rainforest. The video discusses the characteristics of several primate species. Lemur behaviors shown include bipedalism, leaping, climbing, playing, sunning, eating, feeding, vocalization, clinging, grooming, and defecation.

Within this essay, we will study more in depth the behavioral as well as physical traits of two primates at a zoo from their interaction with their peers to their place in the group. This observation would enable us to further understand the possible existing correlation between humans and primates. First, I studied a female chimpanzee with her baby, and then, a dominant male gorilla, in San Francisco Zoo at about noon, on May 23, 2015, for an hour each. Even though they share some similarities such as having a large brain, living for a long time, and being bored in their enclosure, they are still different; when gorillas are the largest, chimpanzees are the smartest. In fact, chimps use tools to catch food, they would not be able to reach

I primarily observed three orangutans, one male, one female, and one juvenile, of Sumatran and Bornean descent, scientifically known as Pongo abelli and Pongo pygmaeus, respectively, and to a lesser extent, two gibbons known as siamangs, or Symphalangus syndactylus. These primates share the same enclosure in the San Diego Zoo in California. I observed the orangutans from 12:58 P.M. to 2:00 P.M. CST on September 19th. During this time frame, the three orangutans mainly stayed high up in their man-made structures, consisting of multiple metal bars covered with nets, ropes, and hammocks. The female and juvenile orangutans stayed above ground from 12:58 P.M. to 1:31 P.M., and again from 1:48 P.M. until 2:00 P.M, approximately 45 minutes. During

Chimpanzees (Figure 1) are the closest living relatives to us, and they share 99 percent of our DNA (1). Chimpanzees have distinct group territoriality. Male chimpanzees “patrol” near the boundary between the two ranges, at that time they move very carefully and quietly, and they can cease to listen and observe the range of their neighbors. Patrolling individuals are likely to face cruel and violent

During my research of Orangutans and Mandrills I observed them in captivity at the San Diego Zoo. My observations included a 20 minute observation of each primate as it cohabitated with other Primates and with other members of its own species. My findings will support the research of Orangutans and Mandrills through firsthand observations.

We as humans have our inner monkey to thank for much of the “human” characteristics that we enjoy today. The ways that we see the world, walk, and even think have been shaped by our primate ancestors. Though humans didn’t evolve from modern monkeys, it’s clearly evident that we do share an evolutionary relationship: a common ancestor. A particular creature called Notharctus, while perhaps not the exact common ancestor between humans and monkeys, played an important role in the development of one of the most defining primate features: the hand.

The New Caledonian Crested Gecko is one of the most sought out reptiles in the herptoculture hobby today. This medium-sized gecko has all the qualities of what to expect of a pet lizard. They combine their sheer beauty and low maintenance and docile tempers, making it an all around great pet to own (Rhacodactylus, p. 16). In the herpetological society, the crested gecko’s popularity has grown above hobbyist, into the hands of many first time pet owners, giving a first time experience made easy. According to Fester, (2007) “the rare Crested Gecko thought to be extinct but rediscovered in New Caledonia in 1994” (fester’ at Ireland

Kavanagh, M. & Morris, D. (1983). Complete guide to monkeys, apes and other primates. London: Viking Press.

Have you ever wondered if animals share humanlike qualities? When you go to the zoo, you can observe an animal's behavior. For example, if you're staring at a few nocturnal owls, you may think that these creatures are much like yourself when you stay up all night studying. Then you take a look at the gorillas in their artificial habitat.

I decided to look at the sexual behavior of bonobos because they are known for their frequent sexual behavior. Though they are not one of the types of great apes mentioned in the book, a bonobo is nonetheless a great ape that belongs in the same genus as the common chimpanzee. Furuichi et al. observed bonobos in their naturalistic habitat in Wamba, Democratic Republic

Primates beguile me, as all life and nature does; for much of my life I have wanted to volunteer my abilities of assisting conservation. As the years have gone by me the opportunity never presented itself in this manner and now that it finally has, my mind cannot help but be joyous. As a child at the zoo or the animal shelter, I always wanted to be inside with those strange and amazing creatures, be they Gibbons, cats, snakes or spiders. My hands held a python and my shoulder served as a branch for a tarantula when I was still a child, all of those moments were gratifying and made me feel fully cognizant of the natural worlds around me. In that brief time I stepped out from the shadows of the excursionist and into the field of the specialist,

Animals and human beings come into contact with each other in the different environment across the world. This has been fostered by human settlement in most regions that were delegated for animals. Whenever there is a contact between human and animals, there is a chance for the development of a relationship. Although human beings are familiar with the interaction of companion animals like cats, human-animal interaction also occurs in the context of farms, laboratories and in the wilderness (Davis, Schaffner, Smith 2005). Repeated relationship can lead to developing long term friendly relationship between animals and human beings involved. Various studies have been developed in an attempt of developing the most critical and rational measures that can be utilized to enhance and develop a human-animal relationship (Campbell, Shideler, Todd, Lasley 2001). These research studies have in majority concentrated on domesticated species. This research paper is developed to critically analyze the human- primate relationship. The study critically is developed to show how human beings can conserve primate as valuable species.

The conclusion at the end shows how Burling believes that there is human communication between human and ape, however, to support the claims, the study could have been carried out better

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the Los Angeles zoo on a beautiful, sunny Thursday (October 19th). Although I arrived off schedule which left a minimal amount of time to observe primates, I managed my time well. After being told that the larger animals get put away earlier, I figured my first stop would be at an ape enclosure. The ape I chose to see that day was the gorilla. The time that I began my observation was at approximately 3:05. At that time only one ape was quite visible and he was sitting at the front making eye contact with me making it seem as if he is HABITUATED. Next, post gorilla watching, I had the chance to take a gander at the ring railed lemurs at 3:40. These prosimians all had their own personalities which interested me deeply. Lastly, and certainly not least on my journey through the LA zoo, I had the chance of looking at the mandrills which were once classified as baboons. Considering that two baby mandrills were present and only a month old, this was my favorite exhibit to see because of their high energy and randomness of actions.