Research Activity Report
Supported by “Leading Graduate Program in Primatology and Wildlife Science”(Please be sure to submit this report after the trip that supported by PWS.)

2014. 09. 02
Affiliation/Positio

Primate Research Institute/D1

NamenRafaela Sayuri Cicalise Takeshita

1. Country/location of visit
Danum Valley, Borneo, Malaysia/Hanoi, Vietnam/Bogor, Indonesia
2. Research projectNon-invasive analysis of adrenal hormones in wild orangutans and Japanese macaques/Presentation at Conference
3. Date (departing from/returning to Japan)
2014.08.02 – 2014. 08. 22 (21 days)
4. Main host researcher and affiliation
Renata Mendonça, Primate Research Institute/XXV Congress of the Primatological Society/Symposium on
Diversity and Conservation of Asian Primates
5. Progress and results of your research/activity (You can attach extra pages if needed)
Please insert one or more pictures (to be publicly released). Below each picture, please provide a brief description.

I have been living in Japan for 3 years, but for the first time I had the opportunity to take a trip to the developing
countries in south east Asia, and I can say that it was an extraordinary experience. In the period of three weeks I
traveled to three countries (Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia), and in each of them I learned a little bit about their
history, culture, and of course, primates.
First I went to Danum Valley conservation area, the largest protected lowland rainforest in Sabah, Malaysia. This placeis the home of more than 340 species of birds, 124 species of mammals and 72 reptiles, and 56 amphibians. Among
primates, we can see pig-tailed monkeys (Macaca radiata), long tailed monkeys (Macaca fascicularis), red-leafmonkeys (Presbytis rubicunda), and orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus), the latter being the reason of my trip.
As part of my PhD research, I am conducting a collaborative research with Renata Mendonça, a PhD student of thePrimate Research Institute. Our goal is to evaluate the hormonal profile of wild orangutans and compare with captive
animals from Japanese zoos. This approach may be useful to improve the conditions of captivity and to monitor wild
primate populations.
However, the purpose of my visit was not to conduct research, but to observe wild orangutans (Figure 1) and to assist
the investigators on data collection. Whenever possible, we followed then from early morning (when we knew theirsleeping site) until late afternoon when they go to sleep. If we had the chance, we also collected urine (Figure 2-A) andfecal samples (Figure 2-B). In one week we could find 3 orangutans and their infants (Yanti and Sely, Beth and Lom,and Lina and Kate). I have been studying Japanese monkeys for almost 3 years, which are very different from those
apes in many ways. The fact that they are mainly arboreal (and sometimes it is hard to see them), solitary and larger
than monkeys, I already knew from the literature. But I could experience many things I did not know: you can stare into
their eyes (don't ever do this to Japanese monkeys), their aggressive display behavior is similar to humans "sending akiss" (Figure 3), and they make many nests throughout the day, not only for sleeping (particularly the infants). On thetrails we could also see pig-tailed monkeys (Figure 4-A), long tailed monkeys (Figure 4-B) and red-leaf monkeys(Figure 4-C). I was very amazed and pleased to see them for the first time in the wild: free, apparently healthy, andbeautiful. This was a good experience, and I really hope to go back there someday.

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Research Activity Report
Supported by “Leading Graduate Program in Primatology and Wildlife Science”(Please be sure to submit this report after the trip that supported by PWS.)

Figure 1. Wild female orangutan (Yanti) and her infant (Sely).

A	 B	 

Figure 2. Orangutan urine (A) and fecal (B) collection

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Figure 3. Female orangutan displaying aggressive behavior towards observers

Figure 4. (A) red leaf monkey, (B) pig-tailed monkey, (C) long-tailed monkey
In the following week, I went to Hanoi, Vietnam, to attend the XXV Congress of the Primatological Society. The
conference was very productive for me. I gave an oral presentation about my previous work on adrenal hormones
in Japanese monkeys, but it was good to hear the ongoing studies from other researchers on this topic. I also had
the chance to meet experts and get feedback for my future research. Moreover, I helped Andrew MacIntosh torecord interviews from primatologists for the Primate Cast, the podcast dedicated to primatology (Figure 5). The
first episode of this series is already available on <www.cicasp.pri.kyoto-u.ac.jp/news/podcasts/ips1>

I interviewed Dr. James Higham (Department of Anthropology, New York University, USA), Dr. Júlio César
Bicca-Marques (Department of Biodiversity and Ecology, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul,Submit to：report@wildlife-science.org

2014.05.27 version

Research Activity Report
Supported by “Leading Graduate Program in Primatology and Wildlife Science”(Please be sure to submit this report after the trip that supported by PWS.)

Brazil), and Dr. Elisabetta Visalberghi (Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, Italy). It was a great
opportunity to hear more about their research and it was a good training as graduate student. I also used thischance to talk to them about my research and possible future collaboration. Dr. Elisabetta has in fact agreed withmy visit to Rome next year for the European Federation of Primatology meetngs and to see the lab facilities of theInstitute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies in Italy. She is also my PWS Italian mentor, so I might be able
to practice my language abilities when I visit her in Rome.

Figure 5. Interview with (A) Dr. James Higham, (B) Dr. Júlio César Bicca-Marques, and (C) Dr. Elisabetta
Visalbergui.

Finally, I went to Bogor, Indonesia, to attend the 4º Asian Primate symposium on biodiversity and conservation ofAsian primates. I heard many interesting talks and I met lots of researchers focused on primate conservation. I
also had the chance to talk about my study on Japanese macaques (Figure 6), and I was surprised and happy to see
many people interested in my study. In the last day, we went to Jakarta in an excursion to Ragunan Zoo. We saw
many species of primates, including langurs (Figure 7-A), proboscis monkeys (Figure 7-B), crested monkeys(Figure 7-C), long-tailed monkeys (Figure 7-D), chimpanzees (Figure 7-E), and gorilas (Figure 7-F). I confess that
I was not very excited to see them in cages and enclosures, especially after experiencing the wildlife in Malaysia.
But I was happy to see that many enclosures have good conditions, including a huge natural vegetation andenrichment. I hope our efforts on primate research may help to provide a happy and comfortable life for thoseanimals.

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Research Activity Report
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Figure 6. Oral presentation on endocrinology in Japanese macaques

Figure 7. Primates from Ragunan Zoo, Jakarta. (A) langurs, (B) proboscis monkey, (C) crested monkey, (D)long-tailed monkey, (E) chimpanzee, (F) gorila.

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Research Activity Report
Supported by “Leading Graduate Program in Primatology and Wildlife Science”(Please be sure to submit this report after the trip that supported by PWS.)

6. Acknowledgements
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the PWS program and Prof. Tetsuro Matsuzawa for the opportunity
to experience the life in Southeast Asia. I also thank my advisors, Prof. Michael Huffman and Prof. Fred
Bercovitch for their guidance and support, to Renata Mendonça and the assistants Eddy, Pollye, and Mizzi, forhosting me and guiding me in Danum Valley, to Prof. Andrew MacIntosh for the opportunity to assist andparticipate in the Primate Cast, to Dr. James Higham, Dr. Júlio César Bicca-Marques, and Dr. Elisabetta
Visalberghi for kindly agreeing in join the interview for the podcast series, to Ms. Naoko Mizuno for the pictures,to Prof. Hiroo Imai for the invitation to participate in the Asian Primate symposium in Bogor, and to all the staffs
from Indonesia who guided us to the conference hall and to Ragunan Zoo.	 

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