AnthroNotes Volume 20 No. 1 Spring 1998
TEACHER'S CORNER: ZOO LABSby Alison S. Brooks
Lab 1: Locomotion1
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Walk by at least 8 cages with different primatesand record what the most active animal in the cage isdoing as you walk by—for example, sitting, groom-ing, sleeping, brachiating (hanging from branches andswinging arm to arm), knuckle or fist walking, hang-ing by the tail and one leg, slow quadrapedal climbingor leaping (indicate whether quadrapedal running likea cat or vertical clinging and leaping where animalspush off with hind limbs, twist in mid-air, and landon hind limbs). Record the name of the primate andthe locomotion pattern.2. For 3 primates who were moving, describehow the method of locomotion you observed isrelated to the animals' anatomy. What physical fea-tures help the animals move, such as tail form, loca-tion of special friction skin (like skin on our palm),form of nails, long legs or ankles, long arms, graspingor flat feet, bare knuckles, long curved fingers, curvedspine, deep chest,etc.)3. Select any active adult primate to observe for15 minutes. Then observe an infant primate (of thesame species) for 15 minutes. Estimate about howmuch of the time is spent in each of the different loco-motor activities—walking on all fours, walking orstanding on two legs, brachiating, jumping from hind-limbs and landing on forelimbs, jumping from hind-limbs and landing on hind-limbs. Discuss the similar-ities and differences between the adult and infantsmovement.
Lab 2: CommunicationTypes of Communication Acts to Observe (the num-bers and letters will be used as explained below):
I. Olfactory: taste and smell
a. smelling of one animal by anotherb. smelling of other object and/or eating objectand then same thing done by second animal
c. "marking"—urinating, licking, or rubbing a
part of the body against part of the environment which is then smelled by another animal
II. Tactile:
3.. groomingb. hand clasping or arm embrace
c. kissingd. nipping
e. wrestling, rolling together
f. touching another animal
III. Visual:
a. postures-rigid, relaxedb. gestures—aggressive: raised eyebrows or openmouth display threatening: "rushes," shaking
stick, slapping ground or cage appeasement:bowing to ground; presenting hand, face, orhindquarters; holding up one hand.
c. facial expressions—aggressive: stares, eye brow
raises, yawns or canine displays; appeasementgrinsd. chasing
e. use of hands to signal communication
IV. Vocal-auditory:
a. speakingb. listening
c. shoutingd. laughing
e. hooting or calling—series of similar noisesmostly vowels
f. chattering—series of similar noises mostlyconsonantsHow to Attack Problems:1. Choose a group of animals which interestsyou. Don't worry too much about being able to "hear"voices, there is plenty of silent communication towatch.2. Watch the group for 10 minutes learning toidentify animals and "logical" behavior sequences,(you may want to assign names to animals).
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3. Begin to take notes—try to take notes eitherin terms of behavior sequences or time intervals (makeseparate notebook entry for each one or two minuteperiod).Example (note assignment of letters and num-bers to communication acts):
a. A swings over to B who looks up (IIIc) Theywrestle (He)b. B bites at A (lid)4. Watch for 20 minutes. Afterwards add com-munication numbers and letters to the descriptions.5. Do a similar observation on a human group.6. Summarize the communicative acts for bothnonhuman primate group and human group.7. Try to summarize your observations and find-ings—what are the most common communication
acts, which animals communicate the most, how dononhuman primates differ in communication actsfrom humans?
Lab 3: Mother-Infant InteractionThe relationship of the infant primate to other ani-mals of its own species has been the subject of consid-erable experimentation and observation, both in cap-tivity and in the wild. This lab involves a quantitative
study of these relationships and an attempt to see pat-terns of interaction and socialization in a group ofcaged primates.
1
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Observe any two different groups with infantsfor 20 minutes each. Record in detailed notes thebehavior of the infant and those with whom it inter-acts over this time. Take notes particularly on:
a. Number of times infant contacts other animals (specify mother, adult, male, juvenile,
etc.)b. Number of times infant breaks contact withother animals.
c. Number of times other animal contactsinfant.d. Number of times other animal breaks contactwith infant. Describe the general nature ofthe contact in each instance. Also note if theinfant is threatened or approached by otheranimals. Note which animals the infant hasthe most interaction with.2. For each species, estimate the percentage oftime spent by the infant in various activities, such asgrooming, eating, playing, cuddling, sitting, etc.3. Write a brief summary comparing the interac-tions of infants in the two groups.
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Lab 4: General Behavior1. Watch any group of three or more primatesfor 30 minutes. Try to assign a name to each animalobserved, and if possible, note the animal's sex andapproximate age. If your group has more than fouranimals in it, choose one or two animals to focusupon during your observation.2. Describe how each animal is physically differ-ent from the others.3. After 5 minutes of observation, begin to takecareful notes on what is happening in the group. Tryto identify "behavior sequences"—a series of interac-tions or behaviors which seem to begin and end.What happens during each sequence, who is involved,how long does the behavior last?4. Note what the animals are doing, whatexpressions and communication acts are involved,which animals are interacting most intensely.5. Look for differences in behavior among theadult males, adult females, infants, and juveniles.6. Try to summarize the group's behavior duringthe time you observed. Can you make any "educatedguesses" about the dynamics of the group you wereobserving—i.e., which animals are related; which ani-mals prefer to interact with one another; which ani-mals are older, younger; which are dominant or sub-missive?
Lab 5: Dominance/Submissive BehaviorDescribe dominance/submissive behavior in a groupof caged primates and discern the rank order (if any)of individuals in the group.The following events or interactions are con-nected with dominance behavior in various species:Approach-Retreat Interactions1. Spatial supplanting of subordinate bydominant2. Avoidance of dominant by subordinantAggressive actions on the part of one animal3. Threats (e.g., stares, postural fixation, specialvocalizations, etc.)4. Displays (e.g., canine (yawn), tree shaking,chest beating, etc.)5. Chasing
Approach-Approach Interactions6. Presenting7. Grooming8. Mounting9 Other submissive gestures (reach out a hand
—chimps)10. Control of desirable food (and females-though this is a more disputed concept whichyou probably won't be able to observe.)Observe one group of animals housed togetherfor 40 minutes. Make a chart with those 10 interac-tions across the top and the list of animals in the cagedown one side. Note "dominance" interactions as theyoccur, under type of interaction and animals involved,
e.g. under supplanting you might have a "d" for ani-mal 4 and an "s" for animal 6, indicating that animal4 spatially supplanted animal 6. Any given interactionmay fall into more than one type: mark it under asmany types as relevant but indicate that it is onebehavior sequence (for instance, you might numberinteractions sequentially ld-ls, 2d-2s, 3d-3s, etc.).Rank animals in order of number of d's. Rank inorder of number of s's. What do you perceive to be therank order of the animals in this group? What kind ofinteraction is most closely correlated (by eye) withyour rank order? Is the rank order of some animals(e.g., very young juveniles) improved by their associa-tion with a more dominant animal? Hand in notesand chart along with your conclusions. (Note: oneproblem you may find is that the most dominant ani-mal may be avoided by others, resulting in little inter-action.)
Classification of the Living PrimatesORDER: PRIMATESSUBORDER: PROSIMIIFAMILY: Lemuridae (lemurs)FAMILY: Indriidae (indris, sifakas)FAMILY: Daubentoniidae (aye-aye)FAMILY: Lorisidae (lorises, galagos, bush baby,potto)FAMILY: Tarsiidae (tarsiers)SUBORDER: ANTHROPOIDEAINFRAORDER: PLATYRRHINI (New World)
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SUPERFAMILY: CEBOIDEAFAMILY: Calitrichidae (marmosets, tamarins)FAMILY: Cebidae (squirrel, spider, howler, Capuchinmonkeys)INFRAORDER: CATARRHINI (Old World)SUPERFAMILY: CERCOPITHECOIDEAFAMILY: Cercopithecidae (monkeys)SUBFAMILY: Cercopithecinae (baboon, macaque,guenon, mangabey)SUBFAMILY: Colobinae (Colobus, lagurs)
[Editors' Note: All of the zoo labs were designed for observationof monkeys and apes at the National Zoological Park,Washington, D.C. These activities, written by Alison S. Brooksfor classes at George Washington University, were tested byCarolyn Gecan, an anthropology teacher at Thomas JeffersonHigh School for Science and Technology in Fairfax, VA. Theseactivities can be adapted for use in any zoological environment.]
References on Primates:Napier, J. R. and P.H. Napier, 1985. The Natural History ofthe Primates. London: British Museum (Natural History).SUPERFAMILY: HOMINOIDEA (apes, humans)FAMILY: Hylobatidae (gibbons, siamangs)FAMILY: Pongidae (orangutans)FAMILY: Panidae (chimp, gorilla, bonobo)FAMILY: Hominidae (human)
Ciochan, R.L and R.A. Nisbett, eds., 1998. The PrimateAnthology: Essays on Primate Behavior, Ecology and Conserva-tion from Natural History. New Jersey: Prentice Hall (selec-tions from Natural History magazine).
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