Volunteers - Afrique du Sud

Posted by Tali Hoffman on 2007 May 02 (Wednesday) : 08:20 AM
from the non-human-primates-are-the-business dept.
Volunteers are required to take part in observations of the resident semi-urban chacma baboon troops of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.
The information collected will form part of the empirical dataset that will be used to determine the spatial requirements of these baboon troops, and the implications of these requirements for baboon management in the region. Two observational phases will be undertaken: the first during winter 2007 (June/July 2007) and the second during Summer 2008 (January/February 2008). During these phases volunteers will work in the pristine setting of the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve, situated approximately 50km from Cape Town city centre. Volunteers will spend their days in the field surrounded by baboons, following specific troops on foot and recording detailed habitat-specific behavioural data. Long days in the field (sunrise to sunset) will be interspersed with days off for relaxation and travel in this beautiful part of South Africa. This work provides volunteers with an opportunity to develop their skills in field biology and animal observation, and anyone with an interest in zoology, primatology, spatial ecology, behavioural ecology, conservation biology, and the reduction of human-wildlife conflict should find this work stimulating and satisfying. Volunteers must be energetic, motivated and prepared to work long hours. They must be able to participate for a minimum of one month (of either or both observation phases), and must be able to fund their transport to South Africa, and their board and lodging whilst in the country (although the latter may be subsidised to an extent).

shoffman@botzoo.uct.ac.za <shoffman@botzoo.uct.ac.za>