1

News from the forest

Introduction

Dear funders and supporters,

With this newsletter I hope to inform you on the

progress of the study I am currently conducting on

the population density of Callicebus oenanthe in

Ojos de Agua, a conservation concession in

North-eastern Peru.

We have now collected almost half of our data and

have had numerous encounters with the titis,

tamarins, howler monkeys, snakes, butterflies and most of all mosquitoes.

In this newsletter I will introduce you to the team I am working with and to the two

main collaborators: Proyecto Mono Tocón and ABOFOA. We will tell you about the

research site, the (slight changes in) methodology and what we will be doing during

our next trips (all of which will be accompanied with some pictures!).

Introducing the team

Upon arrival in Moyobamba, the city where the office of Proyecto Mono Tocón (PMT)

is based, the whole team of PMT was waiting to greet me and Dr. Carolina Garcia

Suikkanen in the office. After a few days of recovering from the long trip and jet lag

and meeting the team, it was time for a period full of meetings and practice of our

research methods. Let me introduce you to the most important collaborators and

members of my team (Fig. 1):

Dr. Carolina Garcia Suikkanen: Carolina is from Spain and conducted her

PhD on corridors and habitat connectivity. She will work as a volunteer for the

project for a period of six months. Her first project is a duplicate of my study,

In this newsletter:

Introduction

Introducing the team

Methodology

Pictures from the field

Planned trips

Acknowledgements

2

conducted in a different forest type. Numerous meetings and trial sessions in

the field with both research teams have ensured that our methodology is

similar and properly tested.

Eduardo Pinel: Eduardo is 24 years old, comes from Honduras and holds a

licenciate in Biology. For his final project he spent 7 months in the jungle of

Honduras to estimate the population density of Cebus capuchinus. He is one

of my two assistants. He has a lot of experience in working with GIS

programs, which is a very important aspect of our study. Eduardo is highly

motivated and knows his fair share of facts about most of the animals we find

in the forest.

Jaime Sierro: Jaime is the second assistant, 23 years old and comes from

Spain. He has been a volunteer for Proyecto Mono Tocón since January. He

holds a degree in Biology and hopes to start an MSc in Evolution, Biodiversity

and Conservation in September. Even though Jaime has not worked much

with primates before, he makes up for this in his enthusiasm and will to learn

all about the methods we use.

Silvy van Kuijk: I am a 26-year old student on the MSc in Primate

Conservsation at Oxford Brookes University. I have a BSc in Psychology &

Neuroscience and have also studied Veterinary Medicine for a few years. I

have worked as a volunteer on rescue centers in Namibia and Sulawesi and

in a primate park in the Netherlands. This is my first real field work, and I am

enjoying every second of it! I am eager to return to the jungle to conduct more

research as soon as I have finished my MSc!

ABOFOA: The Asociación el Bosque de Futuro Ojos de Agua is a local

association run by a group of farmers from the village of Pucacaca. They

protect conservation concession Ojos de Agua from the pressures of

deforestation and preserve its beauty for future generations. ABOFOA allows

the research team into the area and also provides us with guides that know

the area like the back of their hand. All guides that accompany us are

members of the association. They do not only take us to our listening areas,

but also show us all the beautiful wildlife and flora that the area has to offer.

Their presence and guidance enriches our trips and we are very thankful for

their help and motivation to conserve the area.

PMT: Proyecto Mono Tocón is a young conservation NGO that aims to protect

local wildlife like the San Martin titi monkey. Since the establishment in 2007,

the team of PMT has grown considerably, many collaborations have been

formed and research has been conducted. Working with this young and

dynamic team showed me the possibilities and power of conservation

initiatives run by local people. It is an honour to be able to help PMT in their

conservation efforts for Callicebus oenanthe.

3

Figure 1. Introducing from l. to r.: Eduardo Pinel, Carolina Garcia, Tiberio (guide), Arnaldo (guide),

Silvy van Kuijk, Jaime Sierro, Felipe (director ABOFOA).

Methodology

Initially, we were going to study not only the density of C. oenanthe within

Ojos de Agua, but also take a look at their habitat requirements and compare the

results from within the conservation concession to the surrounding habitat, looking

for suitable land for expansion of the protected area. On our first 10-day trip Carolina

joined us and for the first few days, the head of research of PMT joined us as well to

train us in estimating the distance of the vocalisations of the titi monkeys. At the end

of the first trip we had a meeting in the office of PMT with both research teams and

the research department of PMT. We concluded we had put too much pressure on

ourselves. The surroundings of Ojos de Agua turned out to be pretty inaccessible

and most areas were too far away to be able to reach in the afternoon. Also, the

research team, including people that are used to the hard life in the jungle, was

completely exhausted after only the first 10 days. We had to change plans…

In the many conversations I had had with people from the project, I often

heard them say they think the monkeys prefer forest edges, but that this was never

actually tested. Carolina and me decided that it was possible in our timeframe to test

this hypothesis, as well as testing if the monkeys show a preference for either

primary or secondary forest. During our first trip, we felt very certain that we did not

need to repeat the same listening areas five days in a row, but that the singing

frequency would be higher than the 66% used in previous research. We will repeat

4

our triangulations in each area on three consecutive days, and a new study will be

developed by Carolina and PMT to test this hypothesis. This increases the number

of data points we can cover from 8 to 15.

Figure 2. With the use of Google Earth Eduardo has made a map showing all the different habitat

types: primary forest (d. green), secondary forest (l. green), agriculture (brown), deforestation (red).

Eduardo has made a map of Ojos de Agua (Fig. 2) in which the most

important habitat types are shown. Using this map, we have calculated the

percentage of primary and secondary forest. With this information we could choose

our listening areas randomly, but keeping into account that the number of data points

in each forest type match the percentage of cover.

So far, we feel confident with our approach and the first data have been

collected successfully. We will keep you updated on our progress!

Figure 3. Poisonous frog, endemic to the area.

5

Pictures from the field

The day we arrived in Pucacaca and met the people of ABOFOA, it was 38°C.

One of the guides told us the dry season was only just getting started, so this heat

was nothing yet. As we drove towards Ojos de Agua, the sun gleaming upon us, two

giant hills slowly became visible. For a second I started to doubt myself. Was I really

going to climb these monstrous mountains every day in this heat!? Coming from the

UK, where it had been snowing only two weeks earlier, and I had been sitting behind

a desk for months studying any topic related to primates, I knew I would need some

time to acclimatise… Still, I could not stop smiling. Finally I was going to hear the

monkeys in the wild, explore the forest and put my skills as team leader and young

researcher to the test!

By now, I am used to the climate and the steep hills we climb most days. Also,

the team has grown used to working together, and the guides are accustomed to our

routines. During our time in the forest, we have seen many wondrous animals that I

had never seen before. Below you will find a selection of pictures of the beautiful

creatures we found in the field.

Figure 4. Callicebus oenanthe.

6

Figure 5. Three-toed sloth.

Figure 6. We walked for hours trying to reach a stretch of secondary forest where we would situate

our next listening area. Arriving at the destination we found just one tiny tree and in the background

the soil was still smoking. The colours of the late afternoon sky and the full moon complete the story

the picture tries to tell.

7

Figure 7. Beautiful boa we spotted after a rainy weekend.

Planned trips

For the first part of this study we have lived in a wooden cabin in the heart of

Ojos de Agua, but as the next areas of interest are too far from the cabin, we will live

with a local family in Pucacaca, the town nearest to Ojos de Agua and hometown of

the people of ABOFOA. I am looking forward to this, as I hope to learn more about

the local customs and culture. Also, it is great to find out more about their

motivations for conserving Ojos de Agua and see their program for teaching the

children about Ojos de Agua with the help of Proyecto Mono Tocón.

The day we first arrived in Pucacaca, we have had a meeting with the people

of ABOFOA. The director of ABOFOA explained us all about the conservation

concession and their association. Next, we explained them the purpose of our study,

the role of the guides and the working schedule. After our last data is collected,

ABOFOA will organize a meeting in which the whole town is invited. We will show

pictures of our trips, explain what we have done, and show a little of the results we

have so far. The people of Pucacaca want to thank us for our stay by cooking us a

local dinner after our presentation. I think this will be a beautiful evening to end a

spectacular trip. We now have two more trips to go.

Once back in the UK, I will update you again on the final weeks of the study

and once the dissertation is finished, a final report will elaborate on the results of the

study. I think the study is a great success so far. This would not have been possible

without your generous funding and support! Proyecto Mono Tocón, ABOFOA, the

research team and I thank you for your support. Together we can make a difference

for the conservation of the San Martin titi monkey!

8

Acknowledgements

This study is made possible by the generous support of: