Apes in wild are women's thing – paleoanthropologist Louis Leakey was convinced of that. He kept women for better observers; And in his opinion, male monkeys did not react so aggressively to women. Leakey bet on three researchers to find out more about way gorillas, chimpanzees and orangutans live. Today, Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey and Birutė Galdikas are well-known "Trimates" of primate research – and who knows Louis Leakey?
The Kenyan-born Briton hoped for new insights for his own investigations; He wanted to know more about apes to learn about ancestors of man. In 1960s he recruited three women who did not yet have a name in world of science. More than that, y were considered completely unqualified. Jane Goodall was Leakeys secretary; Dian Fossey had aborted her veterinary studies and worked as a occupational rapist in a children's hospital. Birutė Galdikas studied anthropology, but was like or two completely inexperienced in field research.
The first to send Leakey was British Jane Goodall. She had already proved that she had necessary stamina when she was a child: when she was five years old, she frightened her family because she crouched for hours undetected in a stable to witness how chickens lay eggs. Even n she learned: if you want to learn something about animals, you have to be patient. Leakey motivated Goodall to travel to Africa for him to observe chimpanzees. That she had no academic degree, he didn't care. His passion and curiosity were important to him.
When all grants and permits were collected, Goodall collapsed in 1960 in Gombe Stream National Park in today's Tanzania. The permission to research in habitat of chimpanzees had been granted by authorities only on condition that young woman was accompanied. Therefore her mor Vanne travelled with her. While Vanne Goodall made contacts with locals, her daughter roamed forest. Even before sunrise, she pioneered path through undergrowth, climbed hills and trees – but chimpanzees were shy. She could still be so cautious: as soon as monkeys saw her, y took off. It went on for months.
This text comes from Special edition contemporary History Panorama.Until she got a visit from a chimpanzee she baptized "David Greybeard". In search of bananas he strayed several times through camp. His show quality opened door to world of chimpanzees. When she was out in woods, he came to her and signaled to his fellow creatures that re was no danger.
But slowly money was scarce, Jane Goodall urgently needed a success, an important discovery. "David Greybeard" helped her again. Goodall watched him liberate a branch of leaves and thus fished termites from a hill to eat m. So chimpanzee had built a tool and used it purposefully. This knowledge fundamentally changed image of apes in research.
Date Of Update: 21 March 2018, 12:03
