The Values and Challenges of Long-Term Field Studies

In this chapter, we review some of the benefits and challenges of long-term primate field studies. We define long-term studies as those that cover a significant part of the study species’ life cycle; in reality, many studies have already extended over multiple generations. We first provide a brief overview of the historical beginnings of modern primate field studies, most of which lay in the 1950s and early 1960s. Next, we identify a number of biological constraints and scientific questions that necessitate and justify a long-term approach to studying wild primate populations. Most research questions in this context are related to fitness determinants and outcomes and can be broadly classified as addressing either aspects of behavior, life history and demography, or the possible interactions among them. Positive side effects of long-term field projects on the conservation of the study site or the study species have recently become additional important reasons for the continuation of these projects. Studying individually known primates over years and decades also poses some unique challenges, however, especially with respect to data management and funding. We close this chapter by summarizing some of the unique insights about primate social systems and life history only made possible by the long-term nature of the studies, focusing on the chapters making up the remainder of this volume.