The International Union for Conservation of Nature recommends that photographs such as these show a clear barrier and safe distance between primates and humans.
GUILLAUME SOUVANT / AFP via Getty Images
By Bridget Alex
The World Wildlife Protection Agency wants scientists to stop cuddling monkeys on Instagram, holding their hands with orangutans in movies and hanging around with chimpanzees on advertising photos. In a new set of guidelines released last week, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) called on scientists, students, conservationists and caretakers to stop publishing images that put themselves in close contact with depicting non-human primates.
Conservationists have been campaigning for years against films, commercials and social media posts portraying primates as attractive pets. ‘There is a causal link between how primates are portrayed and whether they survive as wild animals, or [whether] people do terrible things and try to make them pets, ”says Duke University anthropologist Brian Hare, who did not work on the guidelines but called them welcome and” necessary. “
Primatologist Siân Waters of Durham University and others became frustrated by colleagues posing with their study subjects on book jackets, in research conversations and on social media. About 2 years ago, they formed a group within IUCN, the Division of Primate Specialist Group for Human-Primate Interactions. From their first agenda items: setting guidelines for best practice for photos or videos with non-human primates.
To do this, they first examined experiments by Hare and others that demonstrate the damage done to certain types of primate images. For example, people who viewed advertisements with chimpanzees in human environments, such as an office, were more likely to think that chimpanzees are fine pets, and were less concerned about their conservation status. Other studies have documented the true world correlations: After videos of people playing with primates went viral, there was an uproar in social media messages from users longing for their own primate pets.
Especially on social media, such images can spread quickly out of context, sparking public misconceptions that primates are pets, playmates and photo props. When people see experts touching primates, they also want to get close to them, say the authors of the guidelines. It is dangerous for people who can be bitten, abused or infected. And it’s also a “serious threat to primate survival,” Hare says.
By the latest count, about 60% of primate species will be extinct, including most lemurs and all monkeys – chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans. After habitat loss, poaching is a major cause of declining primate numbers. In 2013, the United Nations estimated that illegal trade caused nearly 3,000 large monkey deaths a year, or about 1% of their total population.
“Maybe a primatologist 30, 40 years ago would think it’s really cool to have their photo taken with their subject,” says Janette Wallis, director of the Kasokwa-Kityedo forest project. “Today we do not think it’s cool. This is one of those things where time teaches us what is safe, what is important, what is responsible. ”
The new guidelines indicate that photos contain a clear physical barrier or at least 7 meters between humans and primates. People should not be cradled, fed by hand or played with the animals. In addition, photographs must contain scientific equipment such as face masks, binoculars and notebooks to communicate the professional nature of primate research and care. And the list asks people with high reputations, who have already acted in close encounters, to make public statements to explain why their old images are unethical.
The Jane Goodall Institute adopted similar guidelines last year and has since tried to remove or add indemnity to photos taken decades ago, showing Goodall near chimpanzees. “Over 6 decades, we have developed thinking,” says Shawn Sweeney, co-vice president of communications and policy for the institute. “We do not want to continue to normalize that it is good to get in touch with these animals.” He adds that he and colleagues are pleased to see the matter discussed at an international forum.
But it can present a problem for shrines and other non-profit organizations that rely on public donations. There are more than 100 primate shrines worldwide; many get most of their income from contributions, gifts and grants. In their promotional videos and photos, orphaned primates may be rescued and rehabilitated by staff. These evocative images are a ‘double-edged sword’, for preservation, Hare says. It tends to attract donors, who need organizations to protect primates in the wild and to care for those already in rescue areas. But it also makes people think primates are suitable pets.
Even if some organizations do not accept the guidelines, they should make individual researchers and caregivers think twice about their own social media, says Marni LaFleur, a primatologist at the University of California, San Diego, who contributed to the new rules. “I really hope that people will appreciate the well-being of these animals more than they ‘like’ them.”