Bi 412/512 Animal Behavior

Zoo Project Info

Updated 12 January 2012

A substantial portion of your grade in this course will come from an observational behavior project you conduct at the Oregon Zoo. You will make multiple trips to the zoo, collect data and write up a report. To do this properly you will need to learn about standard methods for animal behavior field research, statistical methods, graphical data presentation and how to organize a scientific paper.

To allow the maximum amount of time for the project, lectures on behavior methods will be given early in the term so you know how to proceed with your project. The required DVD ordered by the Campus Bookstore is essential for this.

You will be assigned an animal, and there is no choice with this. You get what you get.

  • UPDATE THURSDAY 12 JAN: Here is the animal assignment list (by code). The animals allowed are those on the most recent zoo inventory, those for which there are at least four individuals on display, and those for which there has not previously been an issue.

    A bit more information on your animal can be found in this listing .

    • Here are the steps necessary for the project:

  • Use the web or library or both to learn as much as you can about your animal.

  • Do a reconnaissance trip to observe your assigned animal. You will get a feel for what sort of techniques work and what will not work. This will cost one zoo admission (sorry).

  • Write a one page description of your question, methodology, and analysis strategy. The zoo requires each project description to include OBJECIVES, PROCEDURES, BEGINNING DATE, END DATE, END OF TERM DATE.

    I will read the description, and as necessary make suggestions and return it to you. There will be a grade for this, and there is a strict due date: Monday of the 3rd week, based on the zoo's requirements and our need to get on with the project before it is too late in the term.

    • A sample one-page proposal is here .

    When you turn in your description you must also include a check (personal or bank check) for $10.50 made out to:

    Oregon Zoo Conservation Division

    This payment is to provide you with a zoo "special study project" pass. This will be your second payment to the zoo (the first was for the reconaissance visit), but once you have your pass you can go back many times. A really good deal. Details of how the pass works can be found here. This is critical, must-read information.

    Parenthetically, I should say that it is not mandatory that you get a zoo pass. You can instead pay for a regular admission each time you go for an observation. In fact, you don't even need to submit your research proposal. Then you will suffer a course points hit. You also don't need to show up for exams, or turn in a final research report. In fact, you don't have to show up at all. The university is perfectly happy to take your tuition $$ and provide you with a nice shiny "F" on your transcript. It costs no less than an "A", though.

  • Zelick will take the collection of proposed projects and the checks and send to the zoo. Two weeks after submission of the materials , the zoo will issue a research pass. This will be about the 5th week of classes, around the 2nd week in February. After you get your pass you can perform your observations. The pass will get you 12 visits over 60 days, but you will only have 20-30 days before you have to write your report so it is the number of visits, not the time extent of the pass, that will be the limiting variable. Depending on the question you construct, you may have to sample, say, both morning and evening across days, or every two hours for one day, or the same time of day over multiple days.

  • There are some important rules, regulations and tips for conducting your study, so that you don't get frustrated... or thrown out of the zoo!

  • How long does the report have to be? What is the format? The best way to answer such questions is to provide an example which you can find here, but note that your exact format may be different based on the kind of data you obtain. That is, you don't have to make your report look exactly like the sample.