EAPSI: The Impact of Web Based Tourist Education on Human-Tibetan Macaque Interactions

游客的存在和噪音水平会影响猕猴的压力水平，如果处理不当，可能会导致灵长类动物与人类的互动产生潜在的危险。本研究将有助于确定通过特定网站教育游客是否会改变游客对西藏猕猴的行为，减少游客与猕猴的攻击相遇，并减少猕猴的压力指示行为。这项研究将与来自安徽大学的西藏猕猴专家李金华博士和夏东坡博士合作，在旅游胜地中国安徽的野猴谷进行。一个教育网站将通过二维码提供特定网站的信息，为期30天。研究人员将记录游客与猕猴的互动，以及游客每天使用采样方法记录行为的噪音水平。研究结果将表明智能手机技术（网站）是否可以用来减少游客的压力诱导行为，帮助黄山园艺局（HGB）的工作人员改进对猴子的管理。游客与猕猴的日常互动对猕猴和游客都有负面影响，例如猕猴攻击性和自我导向行为的发生率较高，人畜共患疾病的传播以及压力水平的增加。在中国安徽的野猴谷，游客每天都与西藏猕猴互动。一个教育网站将通过QR码随机提供30天的具体信息（如行为准则、公园规则、保护）。参观者与猕猴的互动将用人类和猕猴的心电图记录下来。研究表明，分贝水平与猕猴的压力水平之间存在相关性，因此每天都会记录分贝水平。研究人员将比较猕猴和人类行为的频率、平均分贝水平以及网站“开”和“关”的日子。研究人员预测，在“打开网站”的日子里，访问者会表现出更少的敌对行为和更低的分贝水平，猴子的攻击性和自我导向行为也会比“关闭网站”的日子低。研究结果将表明智能手机技术是否有助于减少游客的压力诱发行为，帮助黄山园艺局（HGB）的工作人员改进对猴子的管理。该奖项由美国国家科学基金会和中国科技部共同资助，隶属于东亚和太平洋暑期研究所项目，支持美国研究生的暑期研究。

Tourist presence and noise levels impacts macaques stress levels and can lead to potentially dangerous primate-human interactions if not handled properly. This study will help determine if educating tourists with a site specific website will change tourist behaviors towards Tibetan macaques, reduce tourist-macaque aggressive encounters, and reduce macaque stress-indicating behavior. This research will be conducted at Valley of the Wild Monkeys in Anhui, China, a tourist destination, in collaboration with Tibetan macaque experts, Dr. Jin-Hua Li and Dr. Dongpo Xia, from Anhui University. An educational website with site specific information will be made available through QR codes for 30 days. Researchers will record visitor-macaque interactions, and tourist noise levels daily using sampling methods to record behaviors. The results will indicate whether smartphone technology (website) can be used to reduce rates of stress inducing visitor behaviors, assisting Huangshan Garden Bureau (HGB) staff in their attempts to refine management of the monkeys.Daily visitor-macaque interactions have negative impacts on macaques and visitors such as higher rates of macaque aggressive and self-directed behaviors, zoonotic disease transfer, and increased levels of stress. Tourists interact daily with Tibetan macaques at Valley of the Wild Monkeys in Anhui, China. An educational website with site specific information (i.e. guidelines for conduct, park rules, conservation) will be made available through QR codes for 30 randomized days. Visitor-macaque interactions will be recorded using human and macaque ethograms. Research shows a correlation between decibel levels and macaque stress levels, so decibel levels will be recorded daily. Researchers will compare frequency of macaque and human behaviors, average decibel levels, and website "on" and "off" days. Researchers predict on "website on" days, visitors will exhibit fewer antagonistic behaviors and lower decibel levels, and monkeys will show lower rates of aggression and self-directed behaviors than on "website off" days. The results will indicate whether smartphone technology can help reduce rates of stress-inducing visitor behaviors, assisting Huangshan Garden Bureau (HGB) staff in their attempts to refine management of the monkeys.This award, under the East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes program, supports summer research by a U.S. graduate student and is jointly funded by NSF and the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology.