(Update 4th November 2011.  We were very sorry to hear of Alan’s death earlier today.  A fantastic guy and unmatched friend of gibbons.  Rest in peace Alan.)

What better way to spend Christmas than in the company of your favourite gibbons?   That’s exactly what my wife Erin and I did on the 26th December 2008, on our second visit to the Gibbon Conservation Center at Santa Clarita, California – home to some of the world’s rarest gibbons.

As well as catching up with gibbon families first met in September and described in this earlier post, I recorded the gibbons singing, and an extended interview with the Founder and Director of the Center, Alan Mootnick.

Much of what Alan has to say about working in gibbon conservation with various institutes, authorities, and peoples around the world, and particularly in Asia, is also relevant to other species.

Each recording lasts between 3 and 10 minutes, with the entire interview as one edit included at the end.

 

Part 1 – Arrival

An early morning tour ends in a noisy chorus.

 

Part 2 – Introduction

Alan introduces the aims of the Center, the various gibbon genera and species, and gives a disturbing account of the threats facing wild gibbons.

 

Part 3 – Breeding Program

Alan describes the breeding program for the Javan gibbon – of which only 4000 remain in the wild, the Center’s collaboration with zoos – including in the UK, and the challenges of finding gibbons for study in the wild.

 

Part 4 – Taxonomy

Gibbon genomics, taxonomy, and a showcase of mistaken identity.  The challenges of moving gibbons and their DNA around the world, and the role  of faeces in working out bloodlines.

Part 5 – Behaviour

Including apparent similarities with man, and discussion around gibbon song and brachiation (swinging arm to arm).  The highlight is Alan’s empirically supported theory of hostile genital or anal presenting – ‘gibbon mooning’ in other words.

Part 6 – Volunteer Program

Including the possibility of joining the Center from the UK.

Part 7 – Threats

Discusses issues around land management and deforestation in Indonesia, the illegal trade in gibbons, and the impact that’s having on the gibbon population.  Also some tips on how to work to best effect when dealing with zoos in Asia.

And this is the entire interview as a single edit:

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60Mb. Approx. 1 hour. Copyright, all rights reserved, 2009, Tim Jones  communicatescience.com

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If you enjoyed hearing about – and hearing ! – the gibbons of Santa Clarita, and would like to make a donation, you can do so here.