Editorial – Continental Ties in Primate Conservation
Volume 12, Issue 4 – December 2017
Primates hold a mirror to us so that we may view our evolutionary past even as they serve as a food source to millions of people, function as indicators of forest health and are flagship species for an array of projects to conserve wilderness and ecosystems.
A few remarkable men and women have overcome insurmountable odds to chart new paths in primatology. The paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey chose three women – Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey and Birute Galdikas, dubbed as his angels or the “trimates” – for behavioral studies on chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans respectively.
This special issue on primates is ACT’s 4th anniversary issue. We somehow connected with the doyen of primate taxonomy, Colin Groves, for a freewheeling chat, just 3 weeks before he passed on in Canberra, end November. In addition to his Q & A with editor Pai, Colin’s short piece on how his book Primate Taxonomy was conceived, is featured here.
Singapore-based conservation artist, Van WangYe, has gifted ACT his original artwork, ‘Love Without Borders’ to commemorate this special issue on primates. We profile this upcoming artist who tries to faithfully represent wildlife, especially herps and marine fauna in his art.
Natasha Tworoski writes about the chimpanzee rehabilitator, Sheila Siddle, the first recipient of the ‘Circle of Compassion’ Award.
PJ Stephenson and Christina Ellis have shared with us the lessons they learned in trying to conserve the great apes in Africa.
Kelly Boyer Ontl has reported on her research findings on the impacts of artisanal small-scale gold mining (ASGM) on the critically endangered West African savanna chimpanzee.
Benis Egoh makes a case of primates in urban areas and building resilient cities.
Big thanks to all our contributors for choosing to publish with us.
The next issue is due March 2018 and is planned as a special issue on the antelopes of Africa.
As always, we look forward to your contributions. Wishing our readers a great year ahead!
Sincerely,
Murali Pai, Editor
Israel Bionyi, Deputy Editor
Alain Senghor K. Ngute, Assistant Editor