Field and laboratory methods in primatology : a practical guide /

This outstanding collection of papers on field methods in the study of primate biology may be the most important reference for primatologists for the foreseeable future. The volume begins with an editorial introducing the most general methodological concerns in the study of wild primates. Each of the 21 chapters focuses on a different methodological problem, issue, or technique relevant to primatology. Each chapter is a stand-alone summary of current methodology in a particular area. Though none are as comprehensive as a specialist might hope, all the chapters provide an excellent starting point and also guide the reader to other, more in-depth articles, books, and Internet sites. Particularly valuable are chapters on trapping primates (Jolly et al.), handling captured primates (Ancrenaz et al.), marking and radio-tracking (Honess and MacDonald), and vocalization recording (Geissmann). Newer, state of the art techniques such as thermoregulation and energetics (Schmid), field endocrinology (Hodges and Heistermann), and collection of fecal and other types of samples for genetic studies (Goossens et al.) are also covered. ^BSumming Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. L. Swedell CUNY Queens College