Karen
Zambetta
(Binti Jua at Brookfield Zoo)
Department of Anthropology
Southern Illinois University
Carbondale, IL 62901
618-536-6651
livz@siu.edu
I
am currently a M.A. student at Southern Illinois University at
Carbondale. My research interests are the
behavior
of captive gorilla populations, including environmental enrichment.
Conservation ecology and the role
of both in situ and ex situ conservation programs is
both a concern of my present research, as well as an interest
for future work. I am also interested in the culture of zoos and
the relationship between zoo
curators and visitors and zoo visitors’ perceptions of the great apes.
Master's
Thesis
My Master's thesis focuses on differences in utilization of enrichment
categories between variables of captive lowland gorillas. I
looked at age, sex and a number of life history variables in
seven gorillas at Brookfield Zoo Chicago, IL and four
gorillas housed at Fort Worth Zoo, Fort Worth, Texas.
Results show many interesting patterns of enrichment usage in all
categories. The single pregnant female studied showed much higher uses
of structural enrichment as she spent much of her time in an area that
was out of sight of zoo visitors. Future research on the use of
enrichment of pregnant animals should show if this is an important
requirement for all pregnant females. The geriatric gorillas included
in the study also showed less use of enrichment overall, which
corresponds to Baker's (2000) findings that older chimpanzees use less
enrichment. The juvenile subject also used the same enrichment item in
more than one context (Figure 1).
Figure 1: On the left, Nadaya uses a object (boomer ball) in a feeding
or foraging context and on the right Nadaya uses the same object in a
play context slapping the ball to make a loud sound.
The rearing of individuals
also showed interesting differences between the categories of mother
reared and hand reared, as well as whether the individual is held alone
or with a group. (bachelor group were not studied, but would be an
interesting comparison.) This study will be of help to both
keepers that are trying to enrich the lives of their gorillas to tailor
their enrichment program, as well as researchers interested in
the behavior of wild and captive gorillas.
Education:
▪1997-1999: Southern Illinois
University at Carbondale, graduated December, 1999.
Silverback Ramar at
Brookfield Zoo
Major: Physical Anthropology GPA 4.0
▪2003-Present: MA
candidate at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.
FIELD AND LABORATORY EXPERIENCE:
▪June
1998-August 1998: Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute,
Ellensburg, WA. Summer apprentice program: 400 hours of experience in chimpanzee care and research. Participated in two studies; one involving live data collection of five chimpanzees and the other using recorded data via videotape.
▪July-August 1999: Data collection at the National Museum of Kenya,
Nairobi, Kenya. Work included measuring the glenoid area of several
extant east African mammal species, as well as several fossil mammal
species.
▪December 1999-April 2000: Free Again Wildlife Refuge, Colp, IL
Cleaning enclosures and preparing food for many different species of
mammals and birds. Assisted Bev Shofstal, (owner), in rescues,
triage and general health care, and help to relocate rehabbed
animals. (Silverback Ramar at Brookfield Zoo)
▪March 1999-Present: Spear’s Animal Hospital, Carbondale, IL. Veterinarian’s Assistant. Assist veterinarians with
surgical and laboratory procedures, general animal
care, exposing and processing x-rays, filling prescriptions,
etc.
TEACHING EXPERIENCE:
▪2003-2004: Teaching
assistantship, Department of Anthropology, Southern Illinois University.
(for ANTH 104: The Human Experience).
▪2004
(fall): Teaching Assistantship, Department of Anthropology, Southern
Illinois University. (for ANTH 300E:
Biological Anthropology Laboratory).
▪2005 (spring): Teaching assistantship,
Department of Anthropology, Southern Illinois University
at Carbondale, (for 202: America’s Diverse Cultures).
PUBLICATIONS & PRESENTATIONS:
▪1999: “Ecological Aspects of Locomotion: modern hominoids across continents.”
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, Suppl. 28:161
(abstract).
▪1999: “Ecological Aspects of Locomotion: modern hominoids across continents.” Presented
at the 68th Annual Meeting of the American Association of
Physical
Anthropologists, Columbus, Ohio.
▪2005: “Age, sex and life
history differences in the utilization of enrichment in captive lowland
gorillas”
American
Journal of Physical Anthropology, Suppl. 40:229 (abstract).
▪2005: “Age, sex and life history differences in the utilization of enrichment in captive lowland gorillas” Presented at the 74th Annual Meeting of the Association
of
Physical Anthropologists, Milwaukee, WI.