Our Furry Cousins
written by students, Granville Kaynor & Adi Ford
The ATA College Prep biology class took a field trip to UT’s Welch Hall to observe a “Hot Science Cool Talk,” last Friday, April 4th. The talk, hosted by Professor Anthony Di Fiore, focused mainly on wild spider monkeys, and how their behavioral patterns are similar to those of humans. Before Professor Fiore’s presentation, his UT graduate student helpers held various exciting activities at their booths. For example, there were spider monkey board games, informational spider monkey packets to read and skeletons of spider monkeys for display. During the lecture, Professor Fiore touched on the similar social behavioral patterns between humans, chimpanzees, and spider monkeys. These three groups seem to have a fission-fusion type of social behavioral pattern, meaning that they form different social groups throughout the day. The Professor also mentioned that spider monkeys and chimpanzees form territorial groups that are sometimes infiltrated by other groups. The monkeys patrol the borders of other monkey’s territories in effort to expand their own territory. Professor Fiore pointed out that this mimics the behavior of former primitive humans. However, Professor Fiore explained that obtaining this information is not easy because the specimens live in tall trees and hardly ever come out due to the potential danger of other predators such as the puma and cheetah.
ATA College Prep’s biology class is very grateful for this opportunity to learn outside the walls of the classroom and we hope to visit UT again soon.