Abstract
One of the main challenges when integrating biological and social perspectives in primatology is overcoming interdisciplinary barriers. Unfamiliarity with subject-specific theory and language, distinct disciplinary-bound approaches to research, and academic boundaries aimed at “preserving the integrity” of subject disciplines can hinder developments in interdisciplinary research. With growing interest in how humans and other primates share landscapes, and recognition of the importance of combining biological and social information to do this effectively, the disparate use of terminology is becoming more evident. To tackle this problem, we dissect the meaning of what the biological sciences term studies in “human–wildlife conflict” or more recently “human–wildlife interactions” and compare it to what anthropology terms “multispecies ethnography.” In the biological sciences, human–wildlife interactions are the actions resulting from people and wild animals sharing landscapes and resources, with outcomes ranging from being beneficial or harmful to one or both species. In the social sciences, human–nonhuman relationships have been explored on a philosophical, analytical, and empirical level. Building on previous work, we advocate viewing landscapes through an interdisciplinary “multispecies lens” in which humans are observed as one of multiple organisms that interact with other species to shape and create environments. To illustrate these interconnections we use the case study of coexistence between people of the Nalu ethnic group and Critically Endangered western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytesverus) at Cantanhez National Park in Guinea-Bissau, to demonstrate how biological and social research approaches can be complementary and can inform conservation initiatives at the human–primate interface. Finally, we discuss how combining perspectives from ethnoprimatology with those from multispecies ethnography can advance the study of ethnoprimatology to aid productive discourse and enhance future interdisciplinary research.
Highlights
One of the main challenges when integrating biological and social perspectives in primatology is overcoming interdisciplinary barriers
We dissect the meaning of what the biological sciences term studies in Bhuman–wildlife conflict^ or more recently Bhuman–wildlife interactions^ (e.g., Hockings 2016; Humle and Hill 2016; Woodroffe et al 2005) and compare it to what the social sciences term Bmultispecies ethnography^ (e.g., Haraway 2008; Kirksey and Helmreich 2010)
The known complexity of factors influencing the availability and management of resources in Cantanhez National Park (CNP), as well as limited data on overlapping habitat and resource use by people and chimpanzees, impelled us to design and implement a mixed-methods approach. We explored these dynamics from a multispecies perspective, combining ethnoprimatology with multispecies ethnography, which further integrates anthropological and biological approaches
Summary
Our study showed that Nalu people and chimpanzees Bmeet^ frequently in CNP and overlap extensively in their use of wild resources, including important chimpanzee foods such as oil palm (Elaeis guineensis), velvet tamarind (Dialium guineensis), and saba (Saba senegalensis) (Hockings et al unpubl. data). Participants, including young people, women, men, male and female leaders, and guides working for the National Park, indicated tolerance toward chimpanzees feeding on plant species that are highly valued by people, and suggested a general acceptance and acknowledgment over conservation concerns among researchers and NGOs developing chimpanzee conservation in the region. These findings, along with our data on human and chimpanzee plant use in CNP, are currently being used to inform decisions going forward for chimpanzee conservation at a local and national level in Guinea-Bissau
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