Elizabeth Herrelko

Based out of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland's Edinburgh Zoo, I have the pleasure of working on the Chimpcam Project with the staff and chimpanzees of Budongo Trail, scientists from the University of Stirling, and wildlife filmmakers from Burning Gold Productions (under commission of the BBC and Animal Planet).

Supervisors

Sarah-Jane Vick
Hannah Buchanan-Smith

Education

University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, UK
PhD in Psychology, expected 2011

Hunter College, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
Master of Arts in Psychology - Animal Behavior and Conservation, 2006
• Thesis: Effects of environmental and demographic changes on the social behavior within a captive troop of squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus)
• Committee: Dr. Sheila Chase (Hunter College) and Dr. Colleen McCann (Bronx Zoo)

Fordham University, Bronx, NY, USA
Bachelor of Science in Psychology, 2003

Links

www.chimpcam.com

The Chimpcam Project (my PhD research) involves a unique collaboration between chimpanzees, university scientists, zoo experts, and wildlife filmmakers, information on collaborators and funding bodies is available on the my chimpcam project webpage . Funded to give a camera to a group of chimpanzees to "see what they would do with it", we developed a cognitive research programme (the first for the chimpanzees of Budongo Trail) that revolved around the use of video cameras and computer tests.

Chimpcam consisted of several training periods and studies that introduced the chimpanzees to the concept of video and how to use a touchscreen monitor to make choices. With each study building on the last in degree of involvement and interaction with live video feeds, we were allowing the chimpanzees to learn about the relationship between themselves, what they saw on the monitor, and the camera. We began with a relatively passive use of video, self-recognition, increasing along the way to the ultimate step of providing the chimpanzees with a free-form camera to use.

Each chimpanzee's reaction to the the studies will teach us about individual differences, comprehension and behaviour while working in a group setting, and the impact the addition of a cogntive research programme had on the group's anxiety-related behaviours. While the cognitive aspect of this project was the drive behind its design, the end result covers a broad array of topics including welfare (working with happy and healthy chimpanzees is of great importance to the staff and scientific outcomes), chimpanzee introductions, and public engagement with science.