Toque macaques are medium-sized,
brightly colored, and socially active monkeys. Dr. Wolfgang
Dittus and colleagues have been studying these monkeys in
the Nature Sanctuary and Archaeological Reserve for the past
36 years, making it one of the world's longest-running primate
behavior studies. For all the macaques born since 1968, they
know the identities, birthdays, kinships, and a whole detective's
dossier of other details about these toque macaques. Dittus’s
research is clarifying the relationships among the monkeys'
ecology, behavior, environment, heredity, social standing,
and disease, in influencing individual survival and reproduction.
From
the EB3 Journal
Our first day of work was just
a walk through a sanctuary where we were taught how to identify
different plants and trees that are used by the monkeys. We
had a series of 12 trees and shrubs that we had to draw and
create notes to help us easily identify them in the field.
It’s a little hard to remember all of the trees and
shrubs now, but I know in just a few days I will be able to
identify all of them confidently without having to look back
into the notebook where I have drawn all the pictures.
Read more of the EB3 journal>>
Click here for classroom activities and resources, Q &
A, and team journals. This supplemental site is developed
and hosted by Cindy Ripley, Gallagher Middle School, Smithfield,
RI.
