Field assistant for bonobo habituation

 The LuiKotale Bonobo Project (LKBP) is looking for field assistants for an ongoing habituation project. The field site is located in a remote forest outside Salonga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A forest camp at Ekongo facilitates life and work of a team of international and Congolese field assistants. Daily fieldwork includes locating and following unhabituated bonobos and collecting information that helps identification of individual bonobos. Walking long distances (5-20 km per day) across dense forest terrain is common and for navigation, candidates will relay on GPS devices. Before starting with habituation work, candidates will be trained by research staff working with habituated bonobos in order to learn to identify acoustic cues, feeding remains, nest sites etc. Habituation work can be frustrating as the effort to locate and follow apes is high compared to the time that people are able to observe bonobos.

Field conditions are physically and mentally challenging. The forest is often dense and swampy and assistants are sometimes exposed to severe weather and tropical diseases. The research camp has no running water, electricity, phone coverage, or internet access. Daily communication is limited to short emails. Satellite phones are available in the event of an emergency. Assistants live in tents, eat simple foods (e.g., beans, manioc and rice), and there are no opportunities to visit places with shops, restaurants or recreation facilities. Please carefully consider whether you will able to cope with these conditions for an extended period of time before applying for this position.

Qualifications/Experience:

Ideal candidates express an interest in primate behavior and forest ecology, demonstrate strong organizational skills and proficiency with the French language. Due to the challenging physical and social environment at the field site, candidates must be (a) physically fit; (b) resistant to mental stress; (c) self-motivated and able to work with minimal supervision while out in the field. Tolerance towards different social customs and beliefs is an important requirement. Note that the LKBP adheres strictly to gender equality and will not tolerate any form of sexual harassment. Previous experience using Microsoft Excel and navigating with a compass and GPS unit are assets, but not required.

Salary/Funding:

300 Euro/month during training and 500 Euro/month thereafter

Support provided for internship/volunteer positions (travel, meals, lodging):

- food (mix of mainly local food and some western food items)

- lodging (in tents) at the field site

- airfare for one domestic flight from Kinshasa to the field site and back*

- expenses for long-term visa*

- contribution to an international return flight of up to 800 Euro*

*reimbursement ONLY AFTER SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF THE APPOINTMENT

Please note that people joining the research team in the field are required to have a health insurance that covers expenses for evacuation by charter plane in a case of emergency. Expenses for the health insurance cannot be covered by the project.

Term of Appointment: 9 month starting in March 2023

Comments:

Applications include an updated CV, a letter of motivation that shows how the candidate meets the qualifications outlined above, and references of three people (or their contact information). Applications should be send to Dr. Gottfried Hohmann (hohmann@eva.mpg.de) and to Barbara Fruth (bfruth@ab.mpg.de).

Information about the research and conservation activities at LuiKotale is available at

https://www.ab.mpg.de/342195/prof-dr-barbara-fruth

https://www.eva.mpg.de/primat/research-groups/bonobos/luikotale-study-site.html

https://www.bonobo-alive.org/index.html

 

Contact Information:

Dr. Gottfried Hohmann

Deutscher Platz 6

Leipzig 04103

Germany

Telephone Number:

++49 341 3550 208

Website:

http://www.eva.mpg.de

E-mail Address:

hohmann@eva.mpg.de