Curriculum Vitae
| US Fish and Wildlife grant awarded: | The Future of the Bili Ape: Distribution, Protection, and Awareness on a Regional and National Level. 2012-2013. |
| Principle Investigator: | Dr. Thurston C. Hicks |
| CFDA number | 15.629 |
| DUNS number:: | 037228256+0000 |
| Under the Great Ape Conservation Act of 2000 (USC 6303), Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 / Congo Basin Forest Partnership Project Coordinator Bili-Uere Survey Project 2012 A collaboration between MPI-EVA & Lukuru Wildlife Research Foundation, with assistance from African Wildlife Foundation. |
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| Name | Thurston Cleveland Hicks |
| Nationality | United States of America |
| Date of birth | February 21, 1972 |
| Born in Raleigh, North Carolina | |
| Research interests | Distribution, conservation status, and behavioral ecology of the African great apes; African great ape behavioral diversity. |
EDUCATION
| 2010 – Present | Guest researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Department of Primatology. |
| 2004 – 2010 | PhD Thesis, University of Amsterdam. “A Chimpanzee Mega-Culture? Exploring behavioral continuity in Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii across northern DR Congo”. [Link]. In order to complete this thesis, I spent two and a half years in the field in DR Congo studying the Bili-Uele chimpanzees. |
| 2001 – 2004 | Master’s thesis, Central Washington University: "Chimpanzee Tool Use in the Ngotto Forest, Central African Republic,” based on the data I collected during my 2001–2002 field expedition to the Ngotto Forest, CAR. |
| 1990 – 1994 | Undergraduate studies: NC State University and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (I graduated from the latter with a degree in Anthropology). |
FIELD AND LABORATORY RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
| 2004 – 2010 | Lead Scientific Director and Field Camp Manager for the Bili Apes Project, DRC. I followed the local chimpanzees and recorded feeding, nesting, and tool-use behaviors, as well as conducted transect and recce nest surveys. In total we surveyed an area encompassing approximately 35,000 km² of previously uncharted forests and savannas. We also documented an exploding chimpanzee bushmeat crisis to the south of Bili. |
| 2002 | Summer Apprentice, Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute, Ellensberg, Washington. During this period and during my subsequent graduate studies, I received basic training in animal care for the four sign language-using chimpanzees living at the sanctuary / research center, also participating in ongoing behavioral research and becoming sign-reliable for the chimpanzees. |
| 2001 – 2002 | Chief field researcher and camp manager, Ngotto Field Project, CAR, Friends of Washoe. I conducted behavioral research on chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes troglodytes) and western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla). Through the use of transect surveys, I documented the effects of selective-logging on these two species. |
| 1999 – 2001 | Field assistant, Mondika Research Station, CAR. I aided in the habituation of a group of western lowland gorillas, collecting data on their diet and behavior. In addition I managed the camp during the absence of the scientific director. |
| 1998 – 1999 | Research assistant, Project Bonobo – In-Situ, collecting behavioral data on bonobos (Pan paniscus) at the Planckendael Zoo, Belgium. |
| 1995 – 1998 | Research assistant, Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico, collecting and entering daily behavioral data on the island’s free-ranging rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). In addition, I participated in the yearly 2-month trapping season. |
| 1994 – 1995 | Research assistant, Duke Primate Center, Durham, North Carolina, collecting behavioral data on free-ranging ring- tailed lemurs (Lemur catta). I compiled matrices of the dominance hierarchies for two social groups and participated in monthly trappings and weighings. |
| 1993 | Field assistant, University of North Carolina Archaeological Dig, Mississippi, during which time I received training in archaeological excavation and participated in the unearthing of ancient Native American artifacts. |
| 1990 – 1991 | Research and field assistant, North Carolina Museum of Natural History, cleaning and preserving dinosaur fossils at the museum. I participated in the Wyoming Dinosaur Expedition in the summer of 1991. |
ORAL PRESENTATIONS AT NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIA
| 2010 | “A Mega-Culture? Behavioral continuity in the chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) of northern DR Congo.” International Primatological Society Congress XXIII, Kyoto, Japan. 17 September. |
| 2010 | “A Chimpanzee Mega-Culture? Behavioral continuity in the chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) of northern DR Congo.” The Symposium of Tropical Ecology, the University of Amsterdam. 22 October. |
| 2009 | “Exploration of a chimpanzee Mega-Culture in DR Congo.”16th PhD Day, Wageningen, The Netherlands. 10 December. |
| 2009 | “Explorations of a threatened chimpanzee ‘Mega-Culture’ in the northern DR Congo.” The Burgers Zoo, The Netherlands. March. |
| 2007 | “Apes in Congo”. IBED Day, The University of Amsterdam, Hoge Veluwe, The Netherlands. 13 September. |
| 2006 | “Beyond the speculation - Just what are the Bili apes?” International Primatological Society Congress XXI, Entebbe, Uganda. 29 June. |
| 2006 | “Some images of the Bili apes.” International Primatological Society Congress XXI, Entebbe, Uganda. 29 June. |
| 2005 | “The Bili apes – Are they special?” The European Federation of Primatologists conference in Göttingen, Germany. 12 August. |
| 2004 | “Chimpanzee tool use in the Ngotto Forest, Central African Republic.” The Rocky Mountain Pyschological Association conference, Reno, Nevada. April. |
| 2004 | “Nest construction by chimpanzees and gorillas in the Ngotto Forest, Central African Republic.” The Third Central Washington University Graduate Student and Faculty Conference. (Together with Dr. Roger Fouts I received an Outstanding Student Presentation Award for this talk). 6 May. |
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
| 2002 – 2004 | Docent at the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute’s Chimposium. I served as Presenter/Observer Guide for this program, informing visitors about chimpanzee behavior and conservation (including the threat of the bushmeat trade) and introducing visitors to the chimpanzees for brief visits. |
OTHER INFORMATION
| Languages | English native speaker, fluent in French and Spanish, conversational in Lingala, Sangho and Babenzele. German and Dutch – works in progress! |
