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In
this series, we share our gorilla research and care activities
with you through the following features:
1)
Caregiver Corner (what
it's like to interact and communicate with gorillas Koko, Ndume
and Michael)
2) Research Revelations
(what we're learning through interspecies communication and
what it means for humanity)
prepared
by our staff under the supervision of Dr. Penny Patterson, Director
of Research. (Journal PhotoBlog
Archive) |
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| Caregiver Corner: "Ndume's Birthday Mural" by Laura & Christa |
December 07, 2005 |
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Dr.
Francine "Penny" Patterson has a Ph.D. in Developmental
Psychology from Stanford. She is President and Research
Director of The Gorilla Foundation, and a Member
of the Board of ApeNet - a consortium of foundations
supporting the welfare of great apes through interspecies
communication. She is also the Editor-in-Chief of
"Gorilla, the journal of The Gorilla Foundation/Koko.org."
"Penny's Journal" provides insight into her facinating
relationship with Koko and a way to share with us
her experiences as Koko lives, learns and communicates
"The
differences between humans and gorillas are greatly
overshadowed by what we have in common — and by
communicating with them, we can learn as much about
our own true nature as theirs." Penny Patterson |
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What do you
get a gorilla who has everything? This thought was running through
caregiver Laura Mullen’s mind as she attempted to pick out a
present for Ndume’s
24th birthday. Besides giving him what he always wants, good
food and lots of it, Laura wanted to do something special, something
that he could enjoy for months to come. After much deliberation,
Laura came up with the idea of painting a jungle mural in Ndume’s
room, in the building we refer to as X. An excellent idea, the
enriching mural would provide Ndume with a new more interesting
environment to spend his days.
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Ndume's
New Language Board |
The Gorilla Foundation’s library provided many accurate references
for the incorporation of native habitat plants, trees and flowers
into the planned jungle scene. Laura enlisted the help of our
volunteer Facilities Manager (and Creative Director) and all
of the caregivers and set out to paint the walls and resurface
the floor. A vibrant green color was chosen for the floor as
green has been shown to be calming for captive apes, and the
goal was to make his environment as calming and relaxing as
possible. On Ndume’s birthday he galloped into the outdoor enclosure
and was at first hesitant to enter X. Once he was inside he
ran his hands along the floor feeling the smooth new surface
and performed an up close inspection of the images of trees
and plants on the wall, thoroughly examining his new surroundings.
Ndume seems to enjoy his new scenery, happily sitting among
the plants and trees.
He also enjoys his new wall-based "language board"
(see partial view at right), which enables him to communicate
his wants and needs to both caregivers and Koko without having
to learn sign language.
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Laura
Mullen is a Research Assistant / Caregiver (and
enrichment specialist) for the Gorilla Foundation. Laura
has a degree in anthropology and a minor in primatology
from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia where she studied
capuchin monkeys at Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center
under world-renowned research Dr. Frans de Waal. After
graduating, Laura moved out to San Francisco and started
working as a Veterinary Technician at the San Francisco
SPCA Animal Shelter. Fascinated by interspecies communication,
Laura has always kept her eye on Koko and her progress.
She started taking sign language at age 12 after reading
about Project Koko. When job opportunities arose at TGF,
she knew it was finally to return to primate conservation. |
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Dr.
Christa Nunes is a Research Associate/Gorilla
Caregiver for the Gorilla Foundation. She came to the
Gorilla foundation in 2004 with a Bachelors degree from
UCLA, a Masters in Aerospace Engineering from the University
of Colorado (where she led several zero gravity experiments
that flew on the Space Shuttle) and a PhD. in Bioengineering
from UCSF and UC Berkeley, After her Ph.D., Christa embarked
on a 2 year journey around the world, where she had the
opportunity to visit the SUSA gorilla family on the densely
forested Karisimbi Volcano in northern Rwanda. That experience
proved to be life altering, as Christa realized that she
wanted to dedicate herself to the conservation of these
incredible beings — which she now can do. |
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Please
email us at research_feedback@koko.org
if you have any questions, or would like to share an observation
or insight about the preceding interspecies conversations.
Your feedback can inform our research and is a vital part
of our mission.
Thank you,
Dr. Francine Penny Patterson
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