Interview With a GLT Scientist
Hi, kids!
My name is Miranda, and I am a junior reporter here at the National Zoo. My job is to interview people who work at the Zoo and learn what they do. Today, I am interviewing Jennifer Mickelberg. Jennifer is a zoologist. A zoologist is a scientist who specializes in the study of animals. Jennifer’s specialty is golden lion tamarins, or GLTs as they are called here at the Zoo. GLTs are little orange monkeys, the size of squirrels. They live in the Atlantic coastal rainforest in Brazil. Here at the National Zoo, the GLTs live in the Small Mammal House.
Last summer I caught up with Jennifer as she was performing a very special task. Jennifer was dyeing Laranja’s tail black and putting radio collars on both Laranja and Eduardo. Laranja and Eduardo are the two GLTs who were chosen to live outside at the National Zoo last summer and, along with their female twins who were born in March 2006, this summer. They are able to go anywhere they want. They are part of the Zoo’s Free Range Program. Eduardo was born here at the National Zoo. Laranja was born at the Philadelphia Zoo.
Miranda: Why did you decide to become a zoologist?
Jennifer: I have always been interested in animals and their habitats. I am particularly fascinated by monkeys and protecting their habitats.
Miranda: Did you have animals when you were a kid?
Jennifer: Sure, I had lots of pets growing up: birds, mice, fish, dogs, and cats.
Miranda: How did you become involved with GLTs?
Jennifer: Having a love of animals and science all my life, I decided to study biology when I attended college. While in school, I also worked in a laboratory where we studied the behavior of a different species of monkey. This work history, combined with my studies in biology and my interest in conservation, made this job a perfect fit for me.
Miranda: What is the Free-Range Program at the National Zoo?
Jennifer: Twenty years ago the National Zoo started letting out a family of GLTs in Beaver Valley to free range and go any place they wanted to go. This was in preparation to sending the GLTs back to Brazil for reintroduction into the wild. Today, we are not sending any more GLTs back to Brazil because there is no more habitat. But, each summer the National Zoo still releases a family of GLTs to free range because the visitors love to watch the monkeys high up in the trees, and we love to study the monkeys.
This summer we are going to be releasing Eduardo and Laranja. We hope that while they are outside, they will have babies. Tamarin monkeys almost always have twins, so we will keep our fingers crossed for Eduardo and Laranja.
Miranda: Why did you dye Laranja’s tail black?
Jennifer: We have more than 100 volunteers each summer who follow the GLTs around and record some of their behavior. Because these monkeys are so small and they go very high up in the trees, it is important to be able to tell Laranja from Eduardo very easily.
Miranda: What type of behaviors do you look for?
Jennifer: Every 15 minutes, the volunteers record what the GLTs are doing—eating, sleeping, chasing squirrels, and so on. Because I am a scientist, I am interested in learning more about the behaviors of the GLTs for future studies.
Miranda: What are radio collars, and why must the GLTs wear them?
Jennifer: We put radio collars on each GLT so that, in case the volunteers lose sight of them, we can find the monkeys with a special tracking device.
Miranda: Laranja was born at the Philadelphia Zoo. How did you get her here to the National Zoo?
Jennifer: I actually drove and picked her up. She rode in a pet carrier similar to the type of carriers you use to take your cat or dog to the vet. She was very good. Sometimes, when we need to send a GLT far away, we send them by airplane. The next time you fly, there may be a GLT in the cargo hold!
Miranda: If Laranja and Eduardo live outside, why don’t they run away?
Jennifer: Laranja and Eduardo will not run away because they are territorial. This means that they prefer to stay in an area that they can defend. We feed them every morning and afternoon and give them a nest box to sleep in. After spending the day foraging in the trees for insects and berries, they always return to their nestbox each night. As long as they have everything they need in their territory, they will have no reason to leave.
Miranda: Who helps you take care of the GLTs, both here at the National Zoo and in other zoos?
Jennifer: There are so many people who help me take care of the GLTs. There is the GLT Intern who helps take care of the free ranging GLTs. Her name is Margaret. There are the zookeepers at the Small Mammal House where the GLTs live, and there are the veterinarians who make sure that the GLTs are healthy. There are also the volunteers who watch the GLTs when they are outside, and several other people, both at the National Zoo and in other zoos.
Miranda: What is the one thing that you would like kids to remember about GLTs?
Jennifer: I think it is important to remember how special and unique the golden lion tamarins are and how much we need to protect and restore the Atlantic coastal rainforest so they have a place to live. Many other species are endangered like the golden lion tamarin, and it is very important that we all work together to try to help protect them against extinction.
You, too, can ask Jennifer questions. Click on Ask an Expert to ask her all your questions about GLTs.
Miranda
Junior Reporter
National Zoo
