Areas of Focus

Progressive Primatology

Fisher Center scientists actively contribute to the study of primates (monkeys and apes). They approach their research with a comparative perspective—often conducting parallel studies with the gorillas, chimpanzees, and Japanese macaques at Lincoln Park Zoo— and prioritize studies that keep the primates’ natural social groups together at all times.

With more than 100 peer-reviewed publications on primate biology, behavior, and cognition, the Fisher Center is increasingly recognized as a leader in the field. In 2016, the center hosted the largest-ever primatology conference, which was attended by more 1,500 scientists from around the world.

Inside the Primate Mind

While much of the research at the Fisher Center focuses on behavior, its scientists are also very interested in cognition—what is going on inside the minds of primates. Using non-invasive techniques— such as monitoring their eye movements with infrared trackers and providing them with voluntary puzzles and touchscreen tests—Fisher Center scientists have gained new insight into how humanity’s closest relatives see the world around them, which can help guide their care in zoos and sanctuaries.

In 2010, Fisher Center scientists published a book, The Mind of the Chimpanzee, that remains the most contemporary collection of studies from respected scientists worldwide seeking to understand how chimpanzees think, learn, and feel.

Primate Welfare

The Fisher Center prioritizes studies that help advance the care and management of primates, even beyond zoos. For many years, it has partnered with Chimp Haven, the national chimpanzee sanctuary in Louisiana, in a unique collaboration to advance methods of welfare assessment for chimpanzees.

And in 2007, Lincoln Park Zoo created Project ChimpCARE, an initiative to help advance protections for chimpanzees in suboptimal conditions across the United States. Through this initiative, Fisher Center scientists contributed to changes in federal regulations that increased protections for chimpanzees nationwide.

Conservation in the Republic of Congo

While some Fisher Center researchers study the primates at Lincoln Park Zoo, others work deep in the rainforest of the Republic of Congo. Through a partnership with the Goualougo Triangle Ape Project, they leverage science to promote increased protections for the endangered gorilla and chimpanzee populations in and around the Nouabale-Ndoki National Forest.

By working with local communities and governments, as well as the logging industry itself, Fisher Center scientists are affecting change in logging practices in the Congo basin. This work has helped contribute to significant advances in conserving these unique ecosystems, such as the annexation of the Goualougo Triangle to the National Park in 2013.