The Lawrence Jacobsen Library
Books Received (Primate-Science/PrimateLit)

PRIMATES FACE TO FACE: CONSERVATION IMPLICATIONS OF
HUMAN-NONHUMAN PRIMATE INTERCONNECTIONS
 

Edited by


Agustin Fuentes
and
Linda D. Wolfe



Cambridge University Press 2002



FROM THE BACK COVER


Human and nonhuman primates share intertwined destinies. As our closest evolutionary relatives, nonhuman primates are integral
elements in our mythologies, diets and scientific paradigms, yet most species now face an uncertain future through exploitation
for the pet and bushmeat trades as wel1 as progressive habitat loss. New information about disease transmission, dietary and
economic linkage, and the continuing international focus on conservation and primate research have created a surge of interest
in primates. Focus on the diverse interaction of human and nonhuman primates has become an important component in primatological
and ethnographic studies. By examining the diverse and fascinating range of relationships between humans and other primates, and
how this plays a critical role in conservation practice and programs, Primates Face to Face disseminates the information gained
from the anthropological study of nonhuman primates to the wider academic and non-academic world.


Agustin Fuentes is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Primate Behavior and Ecology Program at Central
Washington University. His research interests include primate behavioral ecology, the evolution of social organization, and
conservation theory and practice.


Linda D. Wolfe is Professor and Chair of Anthropology at East Carolina University. Her research focuses on primate sexual and
social behaviors.



CONTENTS


List of contributors xi


Foreword by Karen B. Strier xv


Acknowledgements xvii


Part 1: Science and nonhuman primates 1


1. Anthropology and primatology 5
Phyllis Dolhinow


2. Resistance to the cross-species perspective in anthropology 25
Mary M. Pavelka


3. The ethics and efficacy of biomedical research in
chimpanzees with special regard to HIV research 45
Roger S. Fouts, Deborah H. Fouts,
and Gabriel S. Waters


Part 2: Cultural views of nonhuman primates 61


4. Monkey as food, monkey as child: Guaja symbolic cannibalism 63
Loretta Ann Cormier


5. Ethnoecology of monkeys among the Bari of Venezuela:
perception, use and conservation 85
Manuel Lizarralde


6. Primates in Matsigenka subsistence and world view 101
Glenn H. Shepard


7. Monkey King in China: basis for a conservation policy? 137
Frances D. Burton


8. Reflections on the concept of nature and
gorillas in Rwanda: implications for conservation 163
Pascale Sicotte and Prosper Uwengeli


Part 3: Conservation of nonhuman primates 183


9. Monkeys, humans and politics in
the Mentawai Islands: no simple solutions in a complex world 187
Agustin Fuentes


10. Conservation must pursue human-nature biosynergy in
the era of social chaos and bushmeat commerce 208
Anthony L. Rose


11. A cultural primatological study of
Macaca fascicularis on Ngeaur Island, Republic of Palau 240
Bruce Wheatley, Rebecca Stephenson,
Hiro Kurashina and Kelly Marsh-Kautz


12. Monkeys in the backyard: encroaching wildlife and
rural communities in Japan 254
David S. Sprague


Part 4: Government actions, local economies and nonhuman primates 273


13. The primatologist as minority advocate 277
Ardith A. Eudey


14. Monkey business? The conservation implications of
macaque ethnoprimatology in southern Thailand 288
Leslie E. Sponsel, Nukul Ruttanadakul
And Poranee Natadecha-Sponsel


15. Rhesus macaques: a comparative study of two sites,
Jaipur, India, and Silver Springs, Florida 310
Linda D. Wolfe


Index 331



CONTRIBUTORS


Frances Burton
Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto at Scarborough,
1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada M1C 1A4
Burton@scar.utoronto.ca


Loretta A. Cormier
Department of Anthropology, 338 Ullman Building, University of Alabama,
Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294-3350, USA
Lcormier@uab.edu


Phyllis Dolhinow
Department of Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley,
CA 94720, USA
Dolhinow@qal.berkeley.edu


Ardith Eudey
Editor, Asian Primates; Vice-Chair for Asia, IUCN Specialist Group,
164 Dayton St, Upland, CA 91786-3120, USA
Eudey@aol.com


Deborah H. Fouts
Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute, Central Washington
University, Ellensburg, WA 98926, USA
Foutsd@cwu.edu


Roger S. Fouts
Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute, Central Washington
University, Ellensburg, WA 98926, USA
Foutsr@cwu.edu


Agustin Fuentes
Department of Anthropology and Primate Behavior and Ecology Program,
Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA 98926-7544, USA
Afuentes@cwu.edu


Hiro Kurashina
Director, Richard Flores Taitano Micronesian Area Research Center,
University of Guam, USA


Manuel Lizarralde
Departments of Anthropology and Botany, Mail Box 5407, Connecticut College,
270 Mohegan Ave., New London, CT 06320-4196, USA
Mliz@conncoll.edu


Kelly G. Marsh-Kautz
Micronesian Area Studies, University of Guam, USA


Mary M. Pavelka
Department of Anthropology, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive,
NW, Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N4
Pavelka@acs.ucalgary.ca


Poranee Natadecha-Sponsel
Chaminade University, USA


Anthony L. Rose
Wildlife Protectors Fund/The Gorilla Foundation/The Biosynergy
Institute/Bushmeat Project, P.O. Box 488, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254, USA
Bushmeat@biosynergy.org


Nukul Ruttanadakul
Department of Zoology, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand


Glenn H. Shepard Jr.
Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazonia (INPA), Department of Botany
(CPBO), C.P. 478, Manaus, Amazonas 69083-000, Brazil
ghs@inpa.gov.br / GshepardJr@aol.com


Pascale Sicotte
Department of Anthropology, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive,
NW, Calgary, Canada T2N 1N4
Sicotte@acs.ucalgary.ca


Leslie E. Sponsel
Department of Anthropology, University of Hawaii, 2424 Maile Way- SSB 346,
Honolulu, HI 96822-2223, USA
Sponsel@hawaii.edu


David S. Sprague
Senior Researcher, Ecological Management Unit, Ecosystem Research Group,
National Institute for Agro-Environmental Sciences, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8604,
Japan
Sprague@naies.affrc.go.jp


Rebecca Stephenson
Department of Anthropology, University of Guam, USA


Karen B. Strier
Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Madison,
Madison, WI 53706, USA


Prosper Uwengeli
Centre de Recherche a Karisoke, Rwanda


Gabriel S. Waters
Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute, Central Washington
University, Ellensburg, WA 98926, USA


Bruce P. Wheatley
Department of Anthropology, University of Alabama, Birmingham,
AL 35294-3350, USA
Bwheat@uab.edu


Linda D. Wolfe
Department of Anthropology, Brewster A 215, East Carolina University,
Greenville, NC 27858, USA
Wolfel@mail.ecu.edu



INTRODUCTION


Human and nonhuman primates share intertwined destinies. Nonhuman primates are our closest evolutionary relatives and integral
elements in our mythologies, diets, and scientific paradigms. The study of all primates (human and nonhuman) continues to be a
rapidly expanding field. Recently, specific focus on the multifarious interaction of human and nonhuman primates, termed
'ethnoprimatology' or 'cultural primatology', is becoming a major component in primatological studies. We feel that it is possible
view human and nonhuman primates as co-participants in a rapidly escalating realm of ecological and cultural change. The fields
of investigation into human ecology, nonhuman primate ecology and behavior, and conservation are traditionally considered
distinct avenues of investigation. It is our contention, however, that conservation is most effective when human and nonhuman
primate ecology and behavior are seen as interconnected and treated as a unified area of investigation. In this book we hope to
illustrate that a constructive approach to assessing conservation realities can be obtained by including elements of human culture
and ecology, nonhuman primate behavior and ecology, and creating a picture of a broad and dynamic interconnected cultural and
biological ecosystem.


Whereas general ecology is seen as the set of interactions between organisms and their environment, cultural ecology can be
envisioned as cultural models of the environment and the relation between a people and their ecological space. Although many
human societies tend to envision the environment, or ecosystem, as external to themselves, there are also many that exist in a
less dichotomous, more interconnected context. Humans are primates, and mammals, that interact with their environment via a wide
set of biological and cultural adaptations and innovations. By examining instances of this interconnectivity, especially through
our closest relatives, we are able to gain a broader conceptualization of the context of human ecology.


Currently, one primarily associates the term 'conservation' with the notion of biodiversity: conservation with a goal of
maintaining and/or supporting the diverse and varied ecosystems on this planet and their inhabitants. Much of this work attempts
to discover basal patterns of behavior and ecological adaptation in 'pristine' or minimally impacted environments to better
understand evolutionary systems prior to human impact. This is probably the best known and most practiced form of conservation, but
cultural conservation is also significant, although less well defined. Cultural conservation ranges from the archiving of cultural
heritage to the reintroduction of traditional or previous behavior patterns or adaptations of particular cultures. It is rare
(in practice) for biodiversity and cultural conservation practices to significantly overlap in their application. In the chapters
of this book we present a range of diverse instances where the interconnection between human and nonhuman primates would necessitate
a merging of cultural and biodiversity conservation paradigms.


Primatological and cultural anthropologists bring a wealth of comparative analyses and a holistic approach to the ever-increasing
complexity of studying nonhuman primates in the countries where they occur. It is in countries where social and economic realities
clash with conservation and research priorities that anthropologists are especially suited to tackling the conflicts and problems
that may arise. Nonhuman primates are, moreover, an important element in the overall anthropological paradigm. That is, the
inclusion of nonhuman primates both as a comparative base for the study of human evolution and biology, and as important players
in the folklore and practice of many human cultures, can enrich anthropology. We should note, however, that nonhuman primates and
other animals have value in and of themselves and should be conserved for this intrinsic value. Because this book is focused on
the interaction between human and nonhuman primates, we do not fully explore the issues of the potential conflict among members
of national governments who covet financial gain from the products of their forests, global conservation organizations, the
desires of local human inhabitants, and the rights of all organisms to co-exist. These are, however, important issues and we hope
that the chapters in our book will contribute to a broader understanding of human-nonhuman primate interplay.


Ties between human and nonhuman primates have taken the spotlight recently. New information about disease transmission
(the SIVcpz-HIV connection), dietary and economic linkage (i.e. the bushmeat trade and ecotourism), and the continuing
international focus on conservation and primate research, have created a surge of interest in this topic. This book seeks to
disseminate information gained from the anthropological study of the nonhuman primates to the wider academic and nonacademic
world. Understanding the diverse and fascinating range of cultural, ecological, and evolutionary relationships between humans
and other primates provides us with a greater basis to understand, appreciate and conserve the world around us. We hope that
this book begins to fill the gap in our understanding of human and nonhuman primate interconnections and provides a broad base
for understanding the critical role nonhuman primates play in cultural and ecological conservation practice and programs.


This book, however, is not only about conservation and ecological interconnections. We also address the overall multifaceted
relationship between contemporary humans and nonhuman primates and the need to take the cultural practices of the local people,
whether they are Guaja Indians or research scientists, into account when attempting to study the nonhuman primates. Because some
studies of human-nonhuman primate interactions have been conducted longer than others have, the chapters are uneven in length and
style, but not in quality. We did not, moreover, attempt to make the chapters all the same length nor do they all express the
same viewpoints. We wanted to give each author(s) wide latitude to describe their research and express their views. We consider
this feature of our edited volume a strength and hope that the reader finds this diverse compilation interesting and important.


The first part of this book provides a glimpse of the current central role that nonhuman primates play in our scientific culture.
Two chapters discuss the relevance of nonhuman primates in anthropology and behavioral and evolutionary science in general and a
third tackles the role of chimpanzees in the HIV-AIDS investigations. Part 2 delves into the important symbolism and cultural role
monkeys and apes hold for some peoples in Amazonia, China, and central Africa. This section explores aspects of co-ecologies, or
sympatric existence, between humans and the nonhuman primates that live around, or with, them. The third part presents a discussion
of conservation in the modern world, examining aspects of economy, ecology, and politics in the context of endangered populations
of primates in Africa and Asia. Finally, Part 4 focuses on specific socio-economic interrelationships between macaque monkeys and
humans and a personal overview of a primatologist's role as political activist.


It is our hope that this volume will be of great benefit to those studying, or just interested in, conservation, biodiversity,
cultural diversity and primate behavior. Anthropologists, biologists, social scientists, and resource managers should find
significant overviews and descriptions of a wide array of primate-related ecological, cultural, evolutionary and political human
practices. Hopefully, after finishing this volume the reader will have gained a better sense of the interconnections between
primates across a range of ecological and cultural boundaries. In compiling this volume we realize that it is an attempt to embark
on a new direction and that synthesizing such a broad array of information is a substantial undertaking. We hope to be able to
look back in five or ten years and have the sense that this volume provided at worst interest in, or at best a call to action to
embark upon, a relatively new and holistic way to talk and think about ourselves, the other primates and our communal place in the
world around us.


Agustin Fuentes & Linda D. Wolfe




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Price: $90.00(Hardbound) ISBN: 0-521-79109-X