PRIMATE CONSERVATION

ANTHRO 458

Primate behavior examined from an evolutionary and ecological perspective, focusing on adaptations to the social and nonsocial environment. Topics include: nepotism, reciprocity, competition, cooperation, sex differences, the ecological role of primates in their communities, cognition, and conservation. Considers the major threats to primates today, and how behavioral adaptations and anthropogenic variables interact to affect the future survival of primates at local, regional, and global scales.

PSYCH 450

Explore the psychology and biology of our closest living ancestors and how it can provide insights into human behavior and cognition. Learn how a variety of factors (ecological, evolutionary, developmental, and experiential) shape the variation we see across and within primate species. Topics include investigation of similarities and differences across taxa in development, learning, memory, evolution of the brain, spatial navigation, tool-use, social behavior, parental behavior, communication, self-recognition, and theory of mind, as well as ethical issues and conservation.

ANTHRO 420

Supervised research on topics selected by students. Independently design a research project, synthesize methods and empirical results, and report one's findings. Develop the skills necessary for independent research in Primatology.

ANTHRO 603

Examination of theory relevant to the evolution of humans and nonhuman primates including morphological, behavioral, and genetic aspects.

ANTHRO 444

Comprehensive look at primate nutritional ecology. Topics include: nutrition in the context of animal foraging theory; anatomy and physiology of primate digestion; essential macronutrients, micronutrients, energy, and plant secondary compounds; field and laboratory methods used by primatologists to study primate nutrition; and how nutrition informs or intersects with primate reproduction, social behavior, disease and conservation. Discussion of the evolution of human nutrition and diet and how the study of nutrition in an evolutionary framework can inform the study of modern human health.