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Gordon, Jason, Blue and Stephen are just a few of the more than 500 baboons who have found a home at the Centre for Animal Rehabilitation and Education (CARE), South Africa's only wildlife sanctuary dedicated to the care of Chacma baboons.
Lia Schwartz, a senior, spent her summer volunteering for CARE, which specializes in the rehabilitation and re-release of physically and psychologically abused or orphaned baboons. Schwartz, a biological anthropology major, used the money she received from the Cutlow Grant, an anthropology-related award from the University, to go to South Africa to work with the organization for one month.
Though CARE is not typically used as a research center, Schwartz said that Rita Miljo, a philanthropist who founded the organization in 1989, was more than happy to let her conduct research with the baboons.
"It's amazing to apply what you learn from the primates to humans," Schwartz said.
The center cares for baboons suffering from various degrees of abandonment or abuse. Their goal is not only to rehabilitate the baboons but to also educate the public on the lack of governmental policies in place in South Africa to protect them.
Molly Fenn, who is also a senior and biological anthropology major, spent nearly two months of her summer in 2006 working with CARE. She first heard about the organization when she was watching Animal Planet's "Growing Up Baboon," a show that profiled the organization and its efforts to aid the abused animals. Schwartz said she heard about CARE through Fenn.
While in South Africa, Fenn and Schwartz had the opportunity to work directly with the baboons taken in by the organization. When under early care, the baboons are entirely dependent on humans to act as their parents to care for them.
"They are so much like people and so affected by not having parents," said Schwartz, who has always wanted to be a primatologist.
