Primate research report

 Anthr 1:  Second Assignment                                                       Due Friday 10/18/2019 by 11:00 p.m.

Primate research report (20 points) 

Assignment Overview

This Second Assignment asks you to gather appropriate information from at least three (3) reputable sources and write a cohesive short report on your choice of a living, non-human primate species.  Your detailed and original report will demonstrate your understanding of the physical and social adaptations of your chosen species.

1. Your first paragraph must identify your chosen non-human primate by its scientific name (genus and species), its common name and the location of primary wild population(s) in the world.  Explain briefly why you chose this particular species.  Your first paragraph must end with a thesis statement that encapsulates your plan to provide information about this species.

1. IMPORTANT:  This assignment is about a specific species of living, non-human primate.
   1. DO NOT write about a general group term like lemur, monkey or ape.
   2. Make sure that the species you chose to write about is a non-human PRIMATE.

1. Present and analyze the current scientific research regarding this topic.

1. Your paper must end with a clear and concise conclusion that recaps your presentation and restates your thesis.

So … how do I do this?

1. Identify your chosen non-human primate species by its scientific name (genus and species) and its common name in English. Where (in the world) do they live?  What do they look like?  Is there sexual dimorphism in this species?  What is the size of the average group?  Are they diurnal or are they nocturnal?

2. Discuss the ecology of your chosen non-human primate. This section should be the largest section in your report.

1. What is the environment in which these creatures live in the wild? What do they eat?  How do they get their food?  How active are these primates in relation to the types of food that they eat?  What is the average size of the group?  What dangers do they face (predators, for example, each other, maybe?).

1. What are the behavioral relationships between each other in this particular species (social strategies)? What is their primary social group structure?  Who “leads” the group?  Are their dominance hierarchies in this primate species?  How many offspring do the females generally have at one time?  How long to offspring stay with their birth group?  Is the group female philopatric or is it male philopatric, or do all offspring leave their birth group at or around sexual maturity?

3. Finish your report with a brief discussion about the current prospects for continuity of this species in its natural habitat (endangered status).

4. Submit your completed assignment by clicking on the Turn-It-In link at the bottom of the Assignment page on the course website.

IMPORTANT:  Canvas does not accept work submitted in .pages or as Google Docs, Google Drive shared documents or as ZIP files.  Submit your paper as a Word doc or .docx or as .rtf or .pdf file.  I cannot grade your paper if I cannot open it!

REQUIREMENTS for this assignment:

1. Type your name, the topic (Second Assignment) and the due date in the top left corner of your paper.  DO NOT put anything else at the top of the page.  DO NOT use a cover page, DO NOT include an abstract for this paper.

1. Minimum at least two full pages of text.   2 to 3 pages is an appropriate length for this assignment.  Double-spaced, one-inch margins (check your left and right margins), typed in English, 12-point font.

1. Include a full source page at the end of your report (three sources minimum, more is better).  List complete source citations in APA format.  Include as much of the following information as possible:  author(s) family name followed by first initial, year of publication, title of article or book, name of journal, magazine or book including volume/issue and page numbers of publication, website where the article was published, date of website information retrieval.

Website APA citation format examples:

The Writing Center. (2019). Plagiarism. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Retrieved January 4, 2019, from https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/plagiarism/

1. Use in-text citations to identify the source(s) of quoted and/or technical and/or highly specialized information included in your paper.  In-text citations look like this:  (family name of author, first initials of author, year of publication).  For example:  (Smithson, J. 2019).  DO NOT use footnotes.  DO NOT include the entire source citation as an in-text citation.

1. IMPORTANT:  Do not plagiarize information presented in your paper.  Do not copy from any source, including the article(s) you use as references.  Do not copy and paste or change a few words in someone else’s sentence structure and call if your own.  This is still plagiarism! Plagiarized papers will receive a score of “0”.

Grading Rubric

This assignment is worth 20 points:  15 points for content and 5 points for correctly written source page.  I am looking for a well written, original and concise report on a specific topic, as well as a properly constructed reference page that contains all sources of information used in this report.

• Excellent work (score 18-20):  Demonstrates thorough understanding of the topic through specific, detailed discussion.  Analysis addresses all aspects of the assignment prompt.  Conclusion is comprehensive and concise.
• Good work (score 16-17):  Demonstrates moderate understanding of the topic through discussion, but lacks sufficient detail.  Analysis addresses aspects of the assignment prompt, but is skewed towards the student’s point of view (did not analyze the topics, just answered the questions).  Conclusion is adequate but not thorough.
• Adequate work (score 14-15):  Demonstrates some understanding of the topic but lacks sufficient discussion and details.  Analysis lacks details and/or insufficient understanding of research information.  Able to draw generic conclusion or missing conclusion.
• Inadequate work (score 12-13):  Demonstrates some understanding of the topic, but little effort was made to complete this assignment.  Opinion outweighs analysis, little demonstration of having learned anything about the topic.
• Not acceptable work (score 11 or below):  Did not understand the assignment.
• Plagiarized work or no assignment submitted:  score of “0”