"o succeeded!" On September 28th, there was some news in the e-mail of scientists working in the field station of Cayo San Diego. Cayo Santiago, a 38-acre tropical island off the coast of Puerto Rico and home to about 1,5 rhesus monkeys, won the local nicknames "Monkey Island", "KDSP" and "KDSP". Each monkey on the island was assigned a unique three-character ID and soon began to feel like its name. Monkey zero zero is a woman, and we sometimes call it "Ooooo". She is now an old lady in the age of monkey, and she is loved because of her lively personality. We just got the news that she survived Hurricane Maria. A unique scientific resource
Cayo San Diego Field Station is the longest-running primate field station in the world. Since its establishment in 1938, generations of monkeys have lived under the gaze of human beings. Only monkeys live on the island; People travel by boat from Punta Santiago on the east coast of Puerto Rico for 15 minutes every day.
in the past 8 years, amazing diversity research has been conducted in Cayo. Some scientists, like me, study cognition. My students and I analyze how monkeys think and solve problems. Do they follow others to find what they see like human beings? (Yes) When they don't know something, can they reflect on their knowledge-this is a sign of human reasoning? Surprisingly, yes! Other scientists know which monkeys are friends, which monkeys can fight and which monkeys have many suitors by observing the interaction between monkeys. The researchers tracked the genes, hormones and bones of these animals after death. We know who their parents are, how they treat their children, and finally, their fate.
A great deal of data about the birth and death of each monkey and its contribution to the next generation allows scientists to ask questions in biology, anthropology and psychology that can't be answered anywhere else. This microcosm of the monkey society opens the door to the lives of these highly intelligent and socialized primates, so that we can better understand our own lives. Thirty minutes after Hurricane Maria landed south of Cayo San Diego, an island and a town were destroyed < P >, and American scientists scrambled to get in touch with the students. A few days later, we finally found the director of the research station, Angelina Ruiz Lan Vides. Scientists arranged a helicopter to enable her to investigate Punta Santiago and Cayo Santiago. The photos and videos she sent back were extremely destructive.
Punta Santiago, where many staff members lived, was destroyed. A photo taken from a helicopter shows a huge chalk message: "S.O.S.Necesitamos Agua/Comida”-"-we need water and food.
Cayo Santiago, formerly two lush islands connected by an isthmus, is now unrecognizable. The forest is brown, the mangroves are flooded and the isthmus is flooded. Research laboratories and other infrastructure have been reduced to pieces. But the monkey was found! Somehow, despite our expectations, many Korean monkeys have weathered the storm. In the next few days, other staff members will go to Kayo by boat and start looking for every monkey, such as o-this process will take several weeks. Mobilize scientists
A group of international scientists based in Cayo know that we must take action. In addition to my team at the University of Michigan, researchers from the University of Buffalo, Leipzig, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Washington University, new york University and Yale University also began to organize disaster relief work.
a direct concern is water: monkeys rely on a rainwater reservoir system to collect fresh water. With the contact of the staff, we learned that people in Punta San Diego also urgently need clean water. Power is because credit card machines and ATMs are broken, so other important materials include solar lamps, diesel (which was rationed at that time), food and cash.
Our group has set up two GoFundMe relief points, one for staff and local communities, and the other for monkeys. So far, these funds have raised $45, and nearly $1, respectively. Now, we are organizing the transportation of equipment that is vital to the well-being of human beings and animals, such as reservoirs, water purification systems and satellite phones. We are also trying to evacuate the staff whose homes were destroyed.
The space station has food for monkeys, but we must make sure that the food will not run out, especially now that all the natural vegetation they can eat has disappeared. In the long run, we are organizing the reconstruction of the damaged research infrastructure.
the support we received reflects the influence of Cayo on the larger scientific community. Hundreds of researchers work in Cayo. I first came here 15 years ago, when I was a college student. Many students have tasted the real science on Cayo Island for the first time, and they have gone all out to donate and publicize relief activities. The crisis of human beings and animals "KDSP" Some observers may question our concern about saving animals when people all over Puerto Rico suffer, but this is not an either-or choice. The Cayo Santiago field station is the livelihood of many dedicated staff living in Punta Santiago. We can't help monkeys without helping to rebuild the town. Our goal is to have both.
The staff and researchers working in Cayo, San Diego are the managers of these animals, and they can't survive without our help. Many Puerto Rican workers have spent many years taking care of monkeys like O. Now they are rebuilding Cayo San Diego every morning and then working in their own homes in the afternoon.
Cayo San Diego is a unique place. Stopping the current humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico should be everyone's primary goal. However, long-term recovery from Hurricane Maria will also mean preserving Puerto Rico's artistic, cultural and scientific treasures for future generations, such as the Cayo San Diego Field Station.
Alexandra Rosati, Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan
This article was originally published in a dialogue. Read the original. “