IRES Track I: Engaging students in management oriented research to conserve rainforest primates in Uganda

为了成功地保护雨林灵长类动物，需要确定和解决目前影响其野外生存的挑战。这种类型的研究需要科学家和野生动物管理者之间的互动，以解决保护问题。通过这个IRES资助的项目，来自纽约城市大学亨特学院的美国本科生和一年级研究生将进行综合管理导向的研究，旨在解决乌干达的灵长类动物保护问题。 在为期三年的8周夏季体验中，18名学生将与乌干达野生动物管理局的公园管理员在乌干达基巴莱国家公园进行合作研究，这是一个热带雨林国家公园，拥有高密度的灵长类动物。学生将解决与三个紧迫的保护主题相关的问题：1）全球变化和灵长类动物营养; 2）野生猿类的生态旅游; 3）灵长类动物栖息地的入侵植物物种。 通过开展这项研究，学生将参与在乌干达身临其境的体验，他们将获得实地经验，并在Makerere大学的生物野外站了解乌干达文化。他们将通过撰写一份研究提案来发展他们的科学技能，该提案涉及灵长类动物保护，构建可验证的假设和进行实地考察。然后，学生将在乌干达和美国的几个论坛上分析，报告和讨论他们的结果。他们将学习如何通过与记者和公共关系专业人员一起工作，通过乌干达的媒体传播他们的成果。亨特学院是一个少数民族服务机构，至少50%的学生选择这种经验将在科学代表性不足的少数民族。全球变化对热带森林及其居民产生了紧迫的后果，即使它们在国家公园受到保护。猴子和猿尤其如此，因为与大多数其他哺乳动物相比，它们生长得更慢，寿命更长，繁殖率也更低。为了成功地保护灵长类动物，经验研究需要与有效的管理相结合。12名本科生和6名硕士生将在乌干达基巴莱国家公园的三个夏季队列中进行为期8周的研究。基巴莱国家公园是乌干达西部的一个热带雨林，拥有高度多样性和密度的灵长类动物。学生将调查管理导向的研究问题，将促进乌干达野生动物管理局专业人员的指导下灵长类动物保护。他们将从事三个主题的研究重点：（1）学生将调查灵长类动物的摄食生态学，树叶的营养化学，食物供应和食物密度，并将当前模式与长期数据集进行比较;（2）学生将研究生态旅游的不同参数如何影响黑猩猩的生态和行为;（3）学生将探索入侵和外来灌木影响植物群落多样性和灵长类动物食物供应的方式。所有学生研究人员中至少有一半将是STEM中代表性不足的少数民族本科生和研究生。 学生将参与保护工作，并将他们的研究纳入保护计划。他们将学习如何编写媒体简报，并将他们的研究成果传达给乌干达公众。学生们还将在纽约市、亨特学院和乌干达的几个论坛上展示他们的研究成果。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

To successfully conserve rainforest primates, the current challenges affecting their survival in the wild need to be identified and addressed. This type of research requires interaction among scientists and wildlife managers to solve conservation problems. Through this IRES funded project, U.S. undergraduates and first year graduate students from Hunter College of the City University of New York will conduct integrative management-oriented research that is aimed towards addressing primate conservation in Uganda. During 8-week summer experiences over three years, eighteen students will conduct collaborative research with park wardens of the Uganda Wildlife Authority in Kibale National Park, Uganda, a tropical rainforest national park that hosts high densities of primates. Students will tackle problems related to three pressing conservation themes: 1) global change and primate nutrition; 2) ecotourism of wild apes; 3) invasive plant species in primate habitats. By undertaking this research, students will be involved in an immersive experience in Uganda where they will gain field experience and learn about Ugandan culture at Makerere University’s Biological Field Station. They will develop their scientific skills by writing a research proposal that addresses primate conservation, constructing testable hypotheses and conducting fieldwork. Students will then analyze, report and discuss their results in several forums in Uganda and the USA. They will learn how to communicate their results through the media in Uganda by working alongside journalists and public relations professionals. Hunter College is a minority serving institution and at least 50% of the students selected for this experience will be underrepresented minorities in the sciences. Global change has pressing outcomes for tropical forests and their inhabitants even when they are protected in national parks. This is particularly true for monkeys and apes, because they grow more slowly, have longer lives and modest reproductive rates compared to most other mammals. To successfully conserve primates, empirical research needs to be combined with effective management. Twelve undergraduates and six master’s students will conduct research for eight weeks in three summer cohorts in Kibale National Park, Uganda, a tropical rainforest in western Uganda that hosts a high diversity and density of primates. Students will investigate management-oriented research questions that will promote primate conservation under the guidance of Uganda Wildlife Authority professionals. They will engage in research foci under three themes: (1) Students will investigate primate feeding ecology, nutritional chemistry of tree leaves, food availability and food density, and compare current patterns with long term datasets; (2) Students will examine different parameters of ecotourism in relation to how it might affect chimpanzee ecology and behavior; (3) Students will explore the ways that invasive and exotic shrubs affects plant community diversity and the primate food supply. At least half of all the student researchers will be underrepresented minority undergraduates and graduate students in STEM. Students will participate in conservation efforts and integrate their research into conservation plans. They will learn how to prepare media briefs and communicate their research findings to the Ugandan public. Students will also present their research within several forums in New York City, at Hunter College and in Uganda.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.