about
precious gems
Thousands of species around the globe, including the eight spotlighted here, face shaky futures.  

piping plover PROJECT UPDATE
Saving the Piping Plover
Zoo scientists asked to create population model to assess the extinction risk faced by the Great Plains population of plovers.   

publications

Cranfield, M., Gaffikin, L., Minnis, R., Nutter, F., Rwego, I., Travis, D. and Whittier, C.  2006.  Clinical Response to Decision Tree for the Mountain Gorilla (Gorilla beringeii) as a Model for Great Apes.  American Journal of Primatology: Special Topics Issue, 68: 909-927.  

Howard, J.G., Moreland, R.B., Marinari, P.E. and Wildt, D.E.  2006.  Use of reproductive technology for black-footed ferret recovery.  Symposium on the Status of the Black-Footed Ferret and its Habitat, Fort Collins, Colorado. In press.  

Lonsdorf, E.V.  2006.  The role of the mother in the acquisition of tool-use skills in wild chimpanzees.  Animal Cognition, 9: 36-46.  

Lonsdorf, E.V., Travis, D., Pusey, A.E. and Goodall, J.  2006.  Using retrospective health data from the Gombe chimpanzee study to inform future monitoring efforts.  American Journal of Primatology: Special Topics Issue on Disease Risk Analysis, 68: 897-908.  

Santymire, R.M., Marinari, P.E., Kreeger, J.S., Wolf, K.N., Wildt, D.E. and Howard, J.G.  2006.  Reproductive deficiency and asynchrony in yearling male black-footed ferrets.  Symposium on the Status of the Black-Footed Ferret and its Habitat. January 28 – 29, 2004, Fort Collins, Colorado. In press.  

Lonsdorf, E.V.  2005.  Sex differences in the development of termite-fishing skills in wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) of Gombe National Park, Tanzania.  Animal Behaviour, 70: 673-683.  

Pukazhenthi, B., Howard, J.G., Aitken-Palmer, C., Crosier, A., Santymire, R. and Wildt, D.E.  2005.  Challenges in cryopreserving endangered mammal spermatozoa: the value of acrosomal integrity.  Proceedings: Society for Cryobiology, Cryobiology. In press.  

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wild populations at risk
As many wild populations are small and require management, Lincoln Park Zoo’s experience with zoo populations provides a strong foundation for its involvement with the conservation of wild populations. The zoo initiates and supports projects that scientifically identify risks to wild populations and test hypotheses aimed at ensuring their survival.

Central to these conservation projects is the development of links to the zoo’s animal collection, the training and empowerment of young conservation biologists, and the establishment of strategies to provide firm scientific bases for conservation actions. The program blends conceptual expertise with key field sites that enable Lincoln Park Zoo staff to lead and supervise projects with the support of full-time field biologists. Conceptually, the emphasis is on projects that address:

Our geographic focal areas are:

  • East Africa
  • Latin America (Costa Rica, Argentina, Brazil)
  • Chicago and Midwestern United States

If you are interested in collaborating with a zoo staff scientist or working within the program’s focal areas, please send a detailed inquiry e-mail to conservation@lpzoo.org.

Researchers with field conservation projects at the zoo include Elizabeth Lonsdorf, Dominic Travis, Lisa Faust, Joanne Earnhardt, Colleen Lynch and Eric Lonsdorf.

Recent projects in field conservation include Gombe National Park Ecosystem Health Project, Tarangire Elephant Modeling and the Channel Island Fox Reintroduction Modeling Project.

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