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Sylvia Taylor Session Information
On August 14, 2006, the Animal Behavior Society (ABS) will host a special educational session exploring the essential relationship between a knowledge of primate behavior and the ability to provide for the welfare of primates, both in the wild and in captivity.
Sylvia Taylor Invited Paper Session
Primate Behavior Studies: Essential to Primate Welfare
On August 14, 2006, the Animal Behavior Society (ABS) will host a special educational session exploring the essential relationship between a knowledge of primate behavior and the ability to provide for the welfare of primates, both in the wild and in captivity. This session will be held in memory of Dr. Sylvia Taylor, an active ABS member and the primate field specialist for the USDA, APHIS, AC at the time of her death in January, 2005. This session will bring together people from the fields of primatology, ethology, conservation biology, and applied animal behavior, along with anyone else interested in primate behavior and/or welfare, for a discussion forum in which all can work together to improve our knowledge and care of the animals which Dr. Taylor loved.
The initial talk (keynote) of this session will address the relationship between understanding behavior and providing for welfare; e.g., primate (both human and nonhuman) behavior must be understood to ensure adequate habitat is maintained in the wild and adequate care is provided in captivity, and applied behavioral studies can help determine what is important to captive primate welfare. The keynote will also include a discussion of primate communication studies. The next few talks will address research in other applied behavioral aspects of captive primate welfare; e.g., conditioning primates to decrease aggression in social housing situations, training primates to cooperate with necessary veterinary procedures, and using consumer demand types of studies to determine the preferences of captive primates for various husbandry alternatives and enrichment methods. Following these four talks, there will be a panel discussion forum on the interaction of applied behavior studies and primate welfare.
The next series of talks will address what is known and what still needs to become known with regard to primate behavior in three common captivity situations and in the wild. The three captivity situations to be addressed are the research/dealer facilities, the primate sanctuaries, and the zoos (and other exhibitors). There will then be a panel discussion forum on these four topics, followed by a panel discussion forum with all eight speakers. Audience participation in these discussions will be highly encouraged.
Although the speaker list is tentative until funding for the session has been obtained (see Donations), the current list includes the following speakers, by topic or title:
Sue Savage-Rumbaugh: Session Keynote/Rethinking the Evolutionary Paradigm.
David Seelig: Social housing of captive primates: A Tail of Two Monkeys.
Gail Laule: Enhancing primate care and welfare through the use of positive reinforcement training.
Steve Schapiro: Control, choice, and assessments of the value of behavioral management to captive primates.
Kate Baker: Enrichment and Primate Centers: Closing the gap between research and practice.
Linda Brent: Lifelong wellbeing: Applying animal welfare science to nonhuman primates in sanctuaries.
Terry Maple : The Essential Role of Animal Behavior in the Design of Superior Zoo Exhibits.
Elizabeth Lonsdorf: The role of studying behavior in the conservation of chimpanzees and gorillas.
This special session will be a part of the 2006 Animal Behavior Society Annual Meeting. Information is available on that website regarding the location, transportation, food, housing, registration, etc., for the entire ABS meeting, including this special session. Single Day registrations will be available at the door at $80 for nonmembers, $45 for members.
Yu- Fang Tseng (2007) shared with Rebecca Hale (2007)