About this Research Topic
Non-human primates, our closest biological relatives, are an essential component of tropical biodiversity. The study of primate ecology enriches our world and is crucial for human wellbeing and prosperity. It provides new knowledge of the interdependence between people, primates, and their shared ecosystems, which has vital implications for food production, the maintenance of clean air and water, and the protection of biodiversity in an ever-changing environment. Most of the world’s primates live in forested regions, which are being rapidly cleared for agricultural purposes and urbanization. In addition to the loss of suitable habitat, primates are at threat from hunting and the illegal wildlife trade. Primate extinction can disrupt ecosystem functioning and services, resulting in substantial biodiversity losses and socio-economic impacts for humans, both at a local and global scale.
With ongoing global environmental change and increased human activity, there is an ever-growing interest in understanding how the threat to primates may change in the future, and in turn, how primates will respond. It is essential that the decline seen in primate abundances and diversity are stopped or even reversed. To achieve this, effective conservation management strategies are necessary, which should be evidence-based and rooted in our fundamental knowledge of ecology. This can only be achieved through enhanced research and communication between academics and practitioners.
The goal of this Research Topic is to bring together and encourage collaboration between primate ecologists, conservation practitioners, and beyond. We encourage the submissions of hypothesis-driven and cross-disciplinary research on primates, specifically addressing the links between ecology and conservation. These results will inform conservation planning and will foster new knowledge that serves to protect these animals, their habitats, and the ecosystem services they provide. We welcome the submission of original research articles, reviews, short communications, policy letters, perspectives, and opinions pieces on themes including but not limited to:
• Any fundamental aspect of primate ecology of critical relevance to conservation strategies: it may involve contributions on the diet, life history, demography, reproduction, ranging and locomotory behavior, habitat selection, or on primate interactions with their biotic and abiotic environment
• The impact of anthropogenic changes on the ecology, behavior, and physiology of wild primates
• Primate trade and bushmeat hunting
• Primate habitat disturbance: habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, the effect of climate change
• Primate conservation science in practice: community-based conservation, surveys, long-term conservation outcomes, captive breeding, translocations, and reintroduction
With ongoing global environmental change and increased human activity, there is an ever-growing interest in understanding how the threat to primates may change in the future, and in turn, how primates will respond. It is essential that the decline seen in primate abundances and diversity are stopped or even reversed. To achieve this, effective conservation management strategies are necessary, which should be evidence-based and rooted in our fundamental knowledge of ecology. This can only be achieved through enhanced research and communication between academics and practitioners.
The goal of this Research Topic is to bring together and encourage collaboration between primate ecologists, conservation practitioners, and beyond. We encourage the submissions of hypothesis-driven and cross-disciplinary research on primates, specifically addressing the links between ecology and conservation. These results will inform conservation planning and will foster new knowledge that serves to protect these animals, their habitats, and the ecosystem services they provide. We welcome the submission of original research articles, reviews, short communications, policy letters, perspectives, and opinions pieces on themes including but not limited to:
• Any fundamental aspect of primate ecology of critical relevance to conservation strategies: it may involve contributions on the diet, life history, demography, reproduction, ranging and locomotory behavior, habitat selection, or on primate interactions with their biotic and abiotic environment
• The impact of anthropogenic changes on the ecology, behavior, and physiology of wild primates
• Primate trade and bushmeat hunting
• Primate habitat disturbance: habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, the effect of climate change
• Primate conservation science in practice: community-based conservation, surveys, long-term conservation outcomes, captive breeding, translocations, and reintroduction
Keywords: Primates, Ecology, Conservation, Community, Global Change, Human Impact
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
