Field Research Training Program: Wildlife Biology
Quick Facts
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2023 Start Dates:
Spring - Flexible Feb and March start date (Conservation Genetics and Wildlife Health)
Summer - May 29, June 12, July 3 (ALL program tracks) - Minimum Commitment: 5 weeks (in special cases we will consider 4 weeks)
- Location: Los Amigos Biological Station, Peru
- Application Deadline EXTENDED to June 3: Exclusively for July start date applications only
- Program Fee: $2450 for 5 weeks; $490 each additional week. Fee includes food+lodging at the field station, training and use of field equipment. Fee DOES NOT include transportation to field station.
- Pandemic Contingencies: If this program is cancelled by FPI for issues beyond our control, all fees paid will be refunded, minus a 1.5% credit card processing fee.
- More information in the FAQ below the program description.
Program Specialty Tracks
Our long-term research training program features four specialty tracks. While participants all work together to make the field season a success, those enrolled in a given specialty track will spend approximately 60% of their time engaged in the core activities of that particular project. The remaining 40% of the time is spent learning more general field skills that support all projects, as well as helping out other teams that need assistance. The goal is to offer a more well-rounded experience that will better prepare students for future field studies and research.
Primate Monitoring
Program Background
Since 2009, the smallest rainforest primates at the Los Amigos Biological Station where we conduct our research have been monitored in a unique long-term program spanning 17 social groups, over 200 unique animals. Initially, the focus had been limited to two species: the saddleback tamarin (Leontocebus weddelli) and the emperor tamarin (Saguinus imperator), but our mark-recapture program now also incorporates capuchins (Sapajus apella macrocephalus) and brown titi monkeys (Plecturocebus brunneus). Although it began with a study of genetic chimerism, this monitoring program has expanded to include studies on health, communication, reproduction, behavior, and movement. It integrates several tools in a conservationists’ toolbox – from field genomics to miniaturized GPS tracking – in order to get a complete picture of the biology of these mammals, which is critical to their protection across South America.
This training program provides a singular opportunity for individuals with an interest in primate monitoring, zoology, or veterinary science to gain practical skills and experience that are not easy to come by.
All of this work is sanctioned by the Amazon Conservation Association, the Animal Care Committee of Washington University in St. Louis, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in Perú.
Left: Saguinus imperator, Right: Leontocebus weddelli (Photos by Ishaan Raghunandan)
The Annual Primate Health Survey
Each year, we conduct a comprehensive health screening of each tamarin in the study population of ~15 groups. (The only year we have ever missed since 2009 is 2020 due to the pandemic.) Recently, our scope has expanded to include capuchin monkeys (Sapajus apella macrocephalus) and brown titi monkeys (Plecturocebus brunneus).
Our primate mark-recapture program at this site is unique in that it does not disturb habituation to the observer. Groups voluntarily enter baited traps placed in locations never revealed to the public. We do not coerce them in any way or tranquilize them using darts. Once captured, each group is processed as a whole using safe, verified protocols and released directly at the capture site on the same day within a few hours of capture.
Each animal receives a health check, including dental screening, and samples are collected for mercury testing, disease screening, and genotyping for relatedness to other individuals. In addition to the invaluable information gleaned about the health of these primate populations, we are also able to provide each group with GPS or radio collars, and each individual with a temporary ID tag that drops off within a couple of months.
Social groups function by sticking together, so one of their most basic functions is to make collective decisions about where to go and how to get there. This is an area that combines two highly active fields of research: movement ecology and social behavior. By stitching them together, we hope to understand how social dynamics influence (and are influenced by) group movement.
Traditionally, primatologists have studied movement ecology by following primate groups and directly observing their behavior. For small primates like tamarins, this is still the main way we get information on movement. It’s challenging work due to their small size and highly arboreal habits, but it’s the only way to get data on feeding, social behavior, predation, and other ecologically and evolutionarily significant events.
GPS Tracking
In the past, we’ve collected spatial information from handheld GPS trackers, which give us a good sense for the group’s overall space use (home range size, distance traveled per day, etc.), but ultimately a handheld GPS unit tells you where the observer has gone, not where the animals have gone. Nevertheless, this has been the only way to get GPS data about these very small monkeys – until now.
Starting in 2021, we added a GPS tracking protocol to our observation program. We’ve designed a tiny tracking device we call a Biscuit that can fit on a primate, and this year we plan to put it into operation. In combination with the behavioral data collected, the trackers will give us unprecedented detail on movement patterns, allowing us to track space use not only at the group level, but also at the individual level. We’ll be able to observe how individual movements contribute to the overall movement of the group.
In combination with high-resolution remote sensing data, the GPS tracks also tell us about the tamarins’ microhabitat selection. We can now begin to ask questions about why tamarins are found in certain forest patches but not others, as well as what kinds of vegetation structure they prefer for high-value activities like sleeping and foraging.
This project uses the following methods to study movement ecology:
- Radiotelemetry to locate a group’s sleep tree at the end and beginning of each day
- Track tamarin groups from sleep trees via full and half-day follows
- Spend most of our time off trail, moving through thick vegetation and over any hills and ravines the monkeys might take us through.
- Use custom-built GPS collars to track several individuals in each group, and validate the accuracy of these data with traditional GPS monitoring
- Use a LoRa communications network to collate all automated GPS locations for animals to monitor all primate groups simultaneously.
Primate Handling:
- Conduct a primate handling session including sample collection, morphometric data collection, monitoring of animals under anesthesia, and safe release
- Appropriately restrain and handle wild primates with proper technique and PPE
- Record data on animal weight, TPRs (temperature, pulse and respiration), injuries, dentition, and much more.
- Collect biological samples such as feces, urine, hair and blood from each animal
- Construct and organize animal processing kits and in-situ animal processing tents
- Determine sex and appropriate age of individuals by morphological characters
Primate Tracking:
- Identify primate species by sight and sound
- Comfortably and safely work and move on and off trail systems in a Neotropical rainforest
- Track primates by sight, sound, radio telemetry, and GPS devices
- Conduct full-day behavioral follows of wild primates using focal, scan, and ad-libitum data sampling methods recorded on Animal Observer software
Data Analysis:
- Clean and organize data for a relational database system
- Organize and project spatial data in QGIS and Garmin BaseCamp
- (Optional): write analytic software in R
- (Optional): analyze spatial data in QGIS
Research assistants will also have the opportunity to contribute to publications that result from this research. As with other FPI projects, we do not give co-authorship for collecting data alone, but we do welcome students interested in data analyses for potential future publications.
We are currently recruiting participants with the following requirements. If you are uncertain if you are eligible, don’t rule out the program – please contact us to confirm first!
Minimum Requirements:
- You must be at least 18 years of age by the time the training program begins (no upper age-limit)
- Participants must be physically able to walk 4 miles a day in difficult terrain and temperatures
- Due to the nature of the work and weather constraints, participants must be willing to be flexible about their weekly and daily schedules
Preferred Skills:
- Participants must demonstrate a grounding or strong interest in animal monitoring and biology.
- Previous field experience is not required, but previous behavioral research experience is a plus.
- Participants will not be discriminated against for medical conditions they might have; we must determine that being on this project will not pose an immediate risk to their health.
- Participants must be willing to maintain long hours in the field, and return to complete data entry in the evenings.
- Sometimes we wait and are unsuccessful – this is the nature of the work. Participants must demonstrate patience.
- Participants must be reliable – when a team is assigned to work with a group of animals, days of planning go into the execution of the protocol. Carelessness and tardiness on the part of the participant could jeopardize the entire project.
- Participants must exhibit a willingness to adjust your schedule to primate daily activity patterns. This can require waking up early, sometimes by 4 or 5 am, and going to bed early, 8 or 9 pm.
Who Should Join our Field Team?
- Those with a strong interest in primates, including those in anthropology or biology fields of study
- Those who want wildlife handling experience, but also to experience tracking wild primates
- Those who want to work on a modern program with significant enhancements in various conservation technologies.
Biodiversity and Wildlife Health
Program Background
The Madre de Dios (MDD) region of Peru is part of the Tropical Andes Biodiversity Hotspot, which includes the Andes mountains and the adjacent lowlands of Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, and Bolivia, and some portions of northern Argentina and Chile. Within the hotspot, the MDD has been designated Peru’s “biodiversity capital” by law, with over 50% of it protected either in a private conservation concession or as a regional protected area. A 2018 assessment of the MDD revealed the following statistics: 6809 plant, 1212 bird, 272 fish, 256 mammal, 183 amphibian, and 143 reptile species. The indigenous groups living in this region most certainly have valuable knowledge of these species, and likely more that are new to science, but even among those documented by scientists, there is much yet to be learned. The Los Amigos Conservation Hub where this study takes place is within the Los Amigos Conservation Concession, established in 2000.
Figure: Overall Neotropical primate species richness compared to primate richness in the Amazon basin. The red-to-yellow gradient color indicates high-to-low richness of primates that are endemic to the Amazon. (a) A west-eastern gradient from the Andes mountains toward the Atlantic Ocean is observed, where the main tributaries of the Amazon river delimit the distribution of several primate species. (b) The Amazon hosts the higher gridded richness of primates in the Neotropics. Figure adopted from: Sales, L., Ribeiro, B.R., Chapman, C.A. and Loyola, R., 2020. Multiple dimensions of climate change on the distribution of Amazon primates. Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation
A very small proportion of these animals have their DNA sequenced, with records saved in global biodiversity databases. Even fewer still have complete genomes assembled. The primary reasons for this are a) a disparity in the rate of development of sequencing technologies and the accessibility of these technologies globally – while one end of the spectrum races ahead, it leaves several others behind; b) high costs to conducting genomic studies; c) the difficulty of acquiring biological samples from so many animal species and d), the need to export specimens out of the MDD region for analysis.
All of this is about to change, and necessarily so, for two reasons:
- Biodiversity loss is at a critical level in the region. A recent study found that between 1993 and 2013, forest cover was converted to agriculture by 470%, to mining areas by 938%, and urban areas expanded into agricultural land by 187%. This was inspired in part by the lagging economic development of the MDD region, which stimulated several programs to encourage infrastructure building and job development. In 2010 for example, the Interoceanic Highway that connects the Pacific ports of Peru with Brazil was completed, which has encouraged immigration, economic development, and the growth of many secondary roads. Unfortunately, as in many places globally, the balance between development and conservation is a delicate one, not easily maintained.
- Sequencing has just become smaller, more efficient, and less costly with the advent of portable nanopore sequencers produced by Oxford Nanopore Technologies. In conjunction with dozens of other pieces of equipment that now have slimmer more field-friendly versions on the market, field genomics is fast-approaching a reality instead of a dream.
Program Background
Long-term data on animal pathogens and parasites, as well as their health, are indicators of population and community wellbeing. Animal extractions from the wild, or changes to habitat or climate, can be reflected in metrics such as parasite/pathogen richness (unique number of species) or diversity (evenness of species distributions), and parameters such as animal weight or complete blood counts. In conjunction with our mark and recapture research programs, we have been safely collecting a variety of sample types for microscopic and molecular laboratory analysis to monitor wildlife disease and health since 2012 (see our publications page). These prior efforts have never seemed more important than they are today, as the world works toward overcoming a global pandemic. Only through longterm sampling programs can we tackle questions such as:
- Is parasite species diversity changing and how fast?
- To what extent are pathogens/parasites shared across multiple host species (e.g. in addition to bats, do monkeys, rodents, or marsupials harbor natural coronavirus infection)?
- Which parasite/pathogens impact animal health?
- Which humans diseases pose a risk to wildlife, and vice versa?
All of our research methods have been carefully practiced and refined by our senior scientists, and several wildlife veterinarians with whom we collaborate. Sampling protocols are comprehensive but put the comfort and safety of the animals above our own. For example, to ensure the maximum safety of the animals, we conduct all processing in the jungle, at the screening site. We limit the number of animals we screen each day. We begin each day very early, setting up our processing tents before dawn and closing them at an appropriate time to ensure that no animal is held overnight or for an entire day, depending on whether the animal is nocturnal or diurnal. Thus, we cause as minimal a disruption of their lives as is possible. Samples from this program are analyzed on site and at partner laboratories in the USA and Peru using microscopy and molecular techniques. Further on site training in field molecular genetics may be possible for participants.
High biosecurity standards and animal handling and sampling protocols are sanctioned by the Amazon Conservation Association, the Animal Care Committee of Washington University in St. Louis, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in Perú.
Noninvasive Sample Collecting
Some of the least studied mammals in the Amazon rainforest are unknown to us because of their cryptic nature. One does not get to track them or habituate them as easily as one can with most primates, for example. For them, we have to get clever. Our goal is to develop molecular tools to assist with population monitoring along with our partners, but to do so, we need to establish reliable ways of sampling from a single individual in the wild. Today, we can test for armadillos or tayras in general, but we cannot easily say how many of each exactly are present in an environment. This requires a single DNA sample, from a single animal, reliably collected and analysed before degradation in tropical environments.
Enter the hair snare – a simple, low-cost device that animals rub against, painlessly depositing a few hairs, after which the device will seal off the sample to keep it separate from the next such animal. By placement of “smart” snares at varying heights, accompanied with differing scent-lures, we will explore how to collect from cryptic animals such as tayras, capybaras, peccary, armidillos, etc. Our list is intentionally broad, because this has never been attempted on a large-scale before in the region. Who will come by? Only time and the inventiveness of this team will tell!
Smart Trap Technology
Broad-scale animal monitoring for wildlife health or biomonitoring is often restricted because safe animal handling standards require the frequent checking of trap lines. Often, days go by with no success, and the manual effort expended on trap monitoring is extremely high. We are developing systems that we can attach to existing hardware that will make each trapping event quick and efficient. Each trap will alert scientists a distance away, allowing them to quickly and efficiently process animals, as they are captured. Traps will also receive modifications to hold animals for a short period of time and then release them (in the case of small rodents and marsupials), then sealing off the entrance to protect fecal and hair samples deposited noninvasively inside. This will allow us to expand the area covered each night, reduce stress on animals, improve screening efficiencies and achieve project goals in a safer and more consistent manner.
Program Goals
In 2022, we will be conducting large-scale biodiversity screens of mammals in the region, which will be used to develop genetic and genomic resources and tools for more targeted population monitoring of focal species in the future. To this end, we will:
- Utilize eDNA monitoring techniques from water and soil.
- Trial rapid-tests for critical species in specific environments, such as anacondas and giant river otters
- Coordinate morphometric and DNA barcoding based species identification for all animals screened in various programs on site.
- Monitor hair-snares and conduct biological sampling of medium-sized mammals. Samples include footprints, hair, and feces from (we hope!) tayras, short-eared dogs, peccary, coati, olingos, kinkajous, armadillos, and margays.
- Conduct multiple bioblitzes for rapid biodiversity inventorying.
In addition, our ongoing disease and health surveillance efforts will continue to focus on primates, bats, small to medium-sized terrestrial mammals, and birds. Our interest in blood, gastrointestinal, and ectoparasites continues as well, as baseline data acquired from prior seasons provide our best measures of ecological change. Hosting multiple concomitant parasite/pathogen infections is the norm for wildlife, so we are monitoring for statistically significant changes in prevalence, richness, or abundance of infections.
In 2021, a molecular laboratory was established at our field site in coordination with the In Situ Labs Initiative, a field-based biosurveillance collaboration led by FPI. As a result, samples no longer need to be sent away from the collection site for analysis. There are enormous advantages to this, some of which you can read about here. We are now able to rely more heavily on the use of genetic techniques for detection and classification of parasites and pathogens.
Genetic methods have emerged as the most efficient, reliable, and now cost effective way of screening samples, and providing training opportunities in molecular research, especially where infrastructure is lacking is a core part of FPI’s educational programs. In addition, bacterial pathogen and RNA virus discovery will be added to our surveillance efforts, which will be highly informative to wildlife biologists, conservationists, and human health professionals in the Amazon region and worldwide.
Finally, in 2021 we also incorporated ecotoxicology into the research program. In the Madre de Dios department of Peru, where the Los Amigos Conservation Hub is located, the extent of gold mining increased by almost ten times between 1993 and 2013. As a result, mercury (an element commonly used to extract gold) is accumulating in the environment and its human and wildlife inhabitants at an extraordinary rate. Mercury accumulation is associated with neurological and reproductive dysfunction, and is noted to induce lasting, sometimes generational, epigenetic changes, and the full extent of harm it may be causing to the Amazon remains elusive. We are now analyzing all noninvasive tissues collected for methylmercury content, and especially look forward to achieving the analysis in the field where data can be put to immediate use.
Training and Activities
- Field sampling for environmental DNA screening programs
- GPS navigation training for off-trail navigation
- Sample biobanking under field conditions
- Species identification using morphometrics
- Sample coordination during field anesthetizations of mid-sized mammals by veterinarians.
- Best practices for personal safety and wellbeing while conducting field work in forest systems
- Non-invasive sample collection
- Animal tracking and safe capture-release techniques
- Safe animal handling procedure focused on bats, small mammals, and birds, including a number of opportunities to participate directly in collection events
- Sample collection, handling, labeling, and storage protocols, including the use of sterile technique to prevent self-contamination and preserve specimen integrity
- Animal health data collection and data management
Who Can Apply?
We are currently recruiting participants with the following qualities. If you are uncertain if you are eligible don’t rule out the program, please contact us to confirm.
Minimum Requirements:
- You must be at least 18 years of age by the time the training program begins (no upper age-limit)
- A letter of recommendation from a source that can substantiate the participant’s experience and skills
- Previous lab experience in molecular biology is required. Pipetting, PCR and gel electrophoresis experience at a minimum.
- Must be able to carry at least a 20 lb back pack during field expeditions
- Fluency in spreadsheet management via Excel.
- A vaccine to COVID-19 (see FAQ below for details)
- Participants must be in good physical condition, with the capability to walk 4 miles a day
Preferred Requirements:
- Ideal participants will be biology majors, have taken anatomy- and morphology-based courses, and/or demonstrate a strong interest in natural history.
- Genomics experience is not required, you will gain this on this program, but prior laboratory experience is welcomed.
- Participants will not be discriminated against for medical conditions they might have; we must determine that being on this project will not pose an immediate risk to their health
- Participants must be willing to maintain long hours in the field and the laboratory, with every effort made to balance this across the program.
- Participants must be reliable – when a team is assigned to work with a group of animals, days of planning go into the execution of the protocol. Carelessness and tardiness on the part of the participant could jeopardize the entire project.
- Participants must be detail-oriented; our job is to track species across several capture programs
- Due to the nature of the work and weather constraints, participants MUST be willing to be flexible about their schedules
We take great pride in being able to provide high quality research and training experiences to a diverse student body. The following list is not exhaustive and is intended to give a sense of the backgrounds of participants that have found great value in this program.
- One Health professionals or trainees
- Veterinarians, pre-veterinary students, veterinary technicians
- Public health students and professionals
- Individuals interested in ecological research
- Those with a keen interest in biodiversity conservation and conservation genomics
- Lovers of Latin names and taxonomic identification
- Those with prior laboratory skills eager to transpose these to a cutting-edge field laboratory.
Remote Animal Censusing
The “Naturechip” is an all-in-one camera trap, RFID tag reader, and weigh scale. It will be deployed in several use cases, beginning with tracking the microchipped primates in the study population. Typically, the wildlife handling team spends several weeks manually monitoring up to 11 sites at once to record primate habituation to baited sites. By modifying the Naturechip we plan to automate this process into a system that will alert scientists at camp at the arrival of the groups to each site, the ID of the group, as well as record detailed images for later analysis. This will free up our team to expand to new sites and operate with a smaller footprint. But the potential for this device is virtually limitless – one or more of its components could be used in long-term monitoring sites globally. One of the goals of this research program is to investigate other use-cases.

Animal Movement & Spatial Ecology
Program Background
Movement ecology is the study of the drivers and consequences of all movement phenomena. Drivers include environmental changes, distribution of resources, inter- and intraspecific interactions, social organisation, physiology/anatomy and navigation capabilities. Consequences include alterations to the species’ population genetic landscape, spatial structure of plant communities via seed dispersal, transmission of pathogens and parasites, and changes to the activity patterns of other sympatric animals. Importantly, the drivers and consequences of animal movement are dynamic, existing in a perpetual feedback which influences the ecosystem as a whole. Our goal is to make visible this interdependent matrix of factors in a tropical rainforest by collecting unprecedented layers of data on habitat in conjunction with animal movement.
Unlike the majority of other studies on animal movement that invest heavily in one or two closely-associated species, our present interest is the broader animal network. Building from our large-scale wildlife mark-recapture and monitoring efforts that span small rodents to arboreal primates and aerial bats/birds, we have a unique opportunity to document the movement of many sympatric species simultaneously. While this may seem like an obvious study that many have attempted before, in reality, research on community-level movement phenomena have never been undertaken in a Neotropical system, and rarely anywhere else, but not for lack of interest. Among many potential explanations for this, three are most likely : 1) tagging wildlife is expensive, 2) existing animal tag technology is biased toward a minority of large charismatic animals , 3) rarely do field biologists, plant ecologists, wildlife geneticists, wildlife veterinarians, endocrinologists, and toxicologists have the opportunity to influence the design, creation, and intended use of animal tracking technology and consequently the species and systems they value most are omitted from the process. For example, imagine how camera traps might be different if they were primarily developed for field scientists and not game hunting.
Always aware of this need, since 2018 FPI has been directly and indirectly (through select partners) working on redoing tracking and monitoring technology from the point of view of the field scientists. To date, we have prototyped a range of devices that passively and actively collect animal presence or movement data. These include Naturechips, LoRa mesh networks, autonomous animal stakeout systems, and diverse animal tracking systems (intended to span the smallest to largest Neoptrical animals).

Program Goals
First, our goal is to place long-term movement tracking systems on as many animals as possible within a known area of forest. This will involve not only the mark-capture and placement of many animal tags, but the the installation, testing, and monitoring of a continuous data collection system. In this regard, we are presently focused on the use of a LoRa mesh network that extends for several kilometers at the Los Amigos Biological Station. While the study area is only approximately 900 hectares, the topography and density of plant species creates significant barriers to radio normal radio communication systems, meanwhile satelite enabled data retrieval systems are still too expensive for practical use at the community-level. A LoRa mesh network will employ a variety of carefully placed receiving that can facilitate data hopping from area of forest to the next, until data ultimately arrives at the base station. For animals that cannot be tagged or that have home ranges far larger than the limits of our target forest plot, we will set-up other non-invasive techniques for documenting their presence and use of the target area.
Second, once we have established our system for continously monitoring animal movement/presence, we get busying collecting other data layers (representing the causes and consequences of animal movement). Obvious data layers are things like forest structure (distribution of certain microhabitats, tree density, canopy height, etc.), and plant phenology (or the occurence of fruits over space and time). However, less obvious are things like animal reproductive status, age, microbiome, and interspecific animal interactions that just as much can influence animal movement, which teams of FPI researchers and research trainees will focus on.
LoRa Communications Network
Our project deploys a number of animal detection and tracking systems in the forest, most of which are enabled for LoRa signal transmission. The long range, low power radio platform called LoRa was developed by Semtech and is utilized by the Internet of Things as their platform of choice. Our study area is being wired using a combination of towers, tall trees, and solar systems to listen continuously to the many sensors and loggers we deploy including animal-carried collars, motion triggers, touch triggers, and eventually acoustic triggers. Such technology has been extensively tested in open environments such as the African savannah but suffers range-restrictions in the Amazon where the signal must effectively travel from sensor to receiver through solid walls of wood. There are a several systems that can potentially overcome this barrier, and for now LoRa is our focus.
Left: The LoRa Base station during prototyping. Here we can see the various components – an SD card reader, a GSM module, OLED screen and of course the LoRa module and antenna. Right: Handheld units to quickly test LoRa range. This device acts both as a transmitter (sending out its GPS location) and receiver allowing for quick analysis of range and reliability of the LoRa network.
Wearable Animal Trackers
The “Biscuit” is a low-weight, low-cost tracker that can function on a single coin cell battery for several months. It is designed to fit on a tamarin, in a collar weighing less than 20g with batteries included. It’s also designed to resist the efforts of tamarins and their tamarin friends from ingeniously picking it apart or destroying it in some way. It communicates via LoRa to let us remotely track our long-term study subjects from sleep tree to sleep tree (something a researcher can do but with less precision and only for a handful of days before a nice respite is needed).
It’s big sister, the “Cookie” is a device under construction that will be adaptable to placement on mid-sized mammals. Mostly, it will use the same “brain” as the Biscuit, while increasing its battery life, varying sensors, and possibly improving communication ranges. Other potential improvements under consideration include powering via solar panels, which could work well for canopy dwelling species.
- Deployment and monitoring of smart traps for biosurveillance
- Work on setup of CTT grid (tentative)
- Assist in optimizing LoRa communication network
- Gain familiarity with passive animal monitoring technology
- Data pipeline development for sensor produced data
- Daily expeditions into the rainforest for sensor deployment and checks
- Presence at mark-recapture events where animals will be tagged with tracking devices
- Prior knowledge with programming (ArduinoIDE/Rasberry Pi/Java/Python) may be beneficial, and should be mentioned in the interview.
We are currently recruiting participants with the following requirements. If you are uncertain if you are eligible, don’t rule out the program – please contact us to confirm first!
Minimum Requirements:
- You must be at least 18 years of age by the time the training program begins (no upper age-limit)
- A letter of recommendation from a source that can substantiate the participant’s experience and skills
- A vaccine to COVID-19 (see FAQ below for details)
- Participants must be in good physical condition, with the capability to walk 4 miles a day
- Due to the nature of the work and weather constraints, participants must be willing to be flexible about their weekly and daily schedules
Preferred Skills:
- Participants must demonstrate a grounding or strong interest in animal monitoring and biology
- Previous field experience is not required, but previous behavioral research experience is a plus
- Participants will not be discriminated against for medical conditions they might have; we must determine that being on this project will not pose an immediate risk to their health
- Participants must be willing to maintain long hours in the field, and return to complete data entry in the evenings.
- Sometimes we wait and are unsuccessful – this is the nature of the work. Participants must demonstrate patience
- Participants must be reliable – when a team is assigned to work with a group of animals, days of planning go into the execution of the protocol. Carelessness and tardiness on the part of the participant could jeopardize the entire project.
- Participants must exhibit a willingness to adjust your schedule to primate daily activity patterns. This can require waking up early, sometimes by 4 or 5 am, and going to bed early, 8 or 9 pm.
Who we are looking for:
- Participants who enjoy puzzles and welcome a challenge, since most of what we are attempting in this program has never been attempted before at this scale.
- Participants with shop skills and technology/programming experience will enjoy this program
- If you like to build things, innovate, solve puzzles and invent technological or programmatic solutions to problems, then this program is for you.
Conservation Genetics
Program Background
With funding from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation in 2021, FPI partnered with Amazon Conservation, Conservación Amazónica (ACCA), San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, and the Washington University School of Medicine to build capacity for field-based biosurveillance where it is needed most. This led to the formation of the In Situ Labs Initiative and the construction of a molecular laboratory at the Los Amigos Biological Station in Southeastern Peru.
Historically, access to advanced laboratory technology has been largely confined to foreign researchers from outside tropical rainforest habitat countries. This as lots of unfortunate consequence such as risks of degradation of samples during lengthy transport, many costs associated with transport and storage, hassles of export and import permits (especially time consuming and difficult for young researchers and graduate students to accommodate), massive delays to completed studies involved genetic techniques, and of course the fact that in-country scientists are not able to equally participate in scientific or conservation research. Thus, we have many aims with the creatioof the ISL and establishment of its first field genetics hub.
In the next several years a variety of projects will be carried out pertaining to pathogen screening, population assessment with species-specific SNP sets, molecular based dietary and microbiome analyses, and ecotoxicology (especially focused on the movement and uneven accumulation of methylmercury).
Program Goals
We are in the early phases of standardizing field molecular research operations at the Los Amigos Station. Among the top priorities are:
- Routine DNA barcoding of plant and animal species from the surrounding forest. These data will fill in gaps in presence species reference databases such as BOLD Systems and NCBI
- Routine pathogen screening and basic pathogen characterization involve wildlife parasites, bacterial pathogens, RNA and DNA virus.
- Molecular identification of wildlife from trace DNA samples collected in the environment (scat, foot prints, hairs, etc.)
- eDNA metabarcoding
All of these are essential tools for applied conservation.
Skills and Training
Participant experience very much depends on the laboratory’s work schedule. We will not be doing all lab activities simultaneously or continuously. You will shadow and assist scientists as they carry out a range of tasks, which are likely to include some (but not necessarily all) of what is listed below:
- Basic laboratory skills including: DNA extraction, PCR amplification, electrophoresis and indexing
- Advanced laboratory skills including library prep and portable nanopore-based sequencing.
- DNA barcoding including submission to BOLD databases
- Bioinformatics pipeline executions for field genomics
- Field genetics (DNA/RNA extraction, PCR, nanopore-based amplicon sequencing)
- Methylmercury testing
- Sample handling, labeling, and storage protocols, including the use of sterile technique to prevent self-contamination and preserve specimen integrity.
We are currently recruiting participants with the following requirements. If you are uncertain if you are eligible, don’t rule out the program – please contact us to confirm first!
Minimum Requirements:
- You must be at least 18 years of age by the time the training program begins (no upper age-limit)
- A letter of recommendation from a source that can substantiate the participant’s experience and skills
- A vaccine to COVID-19 (see FAQ below for details)
- Participants must be in good physical condition, with the capability to walk 4 miles a day
- Due to the nature of the work and weather constraints, participants must be willing to be flexible about their weekly and daily schedules
Preferred Skills:
- Participants must demonstrate a grounding or strong interest in animal monitoring and biology
- Previous field experience is not required, but previous behavioral research experience is a plus
- Participants will not be discriminated against for medical conditions they might have; we must determine that being on this project will not pose an immediate risk to their health
- Participants must be willing to maintain long hours in the field, and return to complete data entry in the evenings.
- Sometimes we wait and are unsuccessful – this is the nature of the work. Participants must demonstrate patience
- Participants must be reliable – when a team is assigned to work with a group of animals, days of planning go into the execution of the protocol. Carelessness and tardiness on the part of the participant could jeopardize the entire project.
- Participants must exhibit a willingness to adjust your schedule to primate daily activity patterns. This can require waking up early, sometimes by 4 or 5 am, and going to bed early, 8 or 9 pm.
Who Should Join our Field Team?
- Those with an interest in genetic laboratory techniques
- Those who want to intimately understand how genomics is transforming and enhancing wildlife conservation
- Those interested in the immense potential of merging the worlds of laboratory and field science
- Those who would like to conduct cutting edge lab work in one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots






Frequently Asked Questions
1. Apply online here. You will need a CV/resume and two references.
2. Once we hear from your references, we will schedule an interview with the principal investigator of your desired project
3. If accepted, you will be notified within 1 week
4. Upon acceptance, gain student access to online training modules to get prepared before you arrive.
5. Turn in medical info, vaccination record, liability waivers, etc.
6. See you in the field!
While it is impossible to predict how the global pandemic will continue to unfold, we were able to safely conduct our programs in 2021, 2022, and fully expect to do so again in 2023. However, we do ask that all participants, upon acceptance into the program, check with us before purchasing airline tickets.
*If a program postponement occurs and a participant could no longer join on the revised dates, we would refund all fees paid up to that point, minus a 1.5% credit card processing fee. Similarly, if FPI must cancel a program completely for any reason, we will refund participant fees.
Learn more about FPI and COVID-19 HERE
If FPI cancels a program due to complications related to COVID-19, participants would receive all but 1.5% of fees already paid. The 1.5% represents the credit processing fees charged to FPI for accepting online payments.
Our cancellation policy is:
- 30 days or more before your start date: 45% refunded
- Less than 30 days from your start date: no refund is possible
Our cancellation policy specific to COVID-19:
- Before May 1st, if you cancel for a COVID-19 related reason, you will get all payments refunded, minus a 1.5% credit processing fee.
- After May 1st, FPI will have paid a large portion of your program fees to our field station partners, who provide your accommodations and meals the entire time you are on site. This means that those withdrawing due to COVID-19 after May 1st will be refunded all fees paid minus 6.5%. This portion is retained solely to cover our own credit processing fees, as well as the bank fees incurred by our partners at the Los Amigos Conservation Hub in Peru.
Yes, but it would have to be approved by your university, who will also bill you for the credit hours. If approved, there is also an additional $250 fee that serves as an honorarium for the FPI senior scientist mentoring you through this project. From there, it is just a matter of coordinating between your university mentor and the FPI researcher.
In order to train our research teams, it is necessary that everyone arrives on specific start dates and be trained together to stay on pace with their cohort.
In addition, we arrange to meet arriving groups at the airport, escort them to get COVID tested in Puerto Maldonado, and pick up any last-minute supplies before leaving very early the following morning to the field station. Getting to the field station requires travel overland to a small town called Laberinto (~45 minutes), then a 5-6 hour boat ride upriver. All of this would be difficult for most participants to do alone, which is why we ask that you arrive on fixed program start dates.
If you REALLY cannot make a particular start date, don’t abandon hope – email us and we can do our best to accommodate you.
There are pretty firm minimum requirements for each long-term research training program (typically 5 weeks). These are firm because each participant must be trained, during which time the data they collect cannot be relied upon entirely.
On the other hand, for most programs you are welcome to apply for stays that are longer than the minimum period, which is common among our student researchers. This can be arranged beforehand, or even sometimes in the field if accommodation is available at the field station.
If you have a special circumstance and want to request a shorter program time, you may contact us and we will discuss it with the lead investigators on your chosen project. There is no guarantee, but in the past we have been able to accommodate on occasion.
Our courses have fewer enrollment requirements, and we strongly encourage anyone to apply. The long-term programs involve becoming an integral part of a research team, and thus are more competitive.
You absolutely can apply to both a field course and a long-term training program if the dates will line up! In fact, if you are accepted into the long-term program you can attend a field course for a lower fee (typically a $400 discount)
No, you do not need previous research experience. These are training programs designed for participants at all levels. It can be hard to acquire field experience, so we balance our teams with veteran researchers and those new to the world of field research. We seek bright and enthusiastic candidates with the right temperament to work in this challenging environment.
The cost to participate includes:
- Lodging and all meals at the field station
- Specialized equipment and supplies necessary to conduct training and research activities.
Program fees do NOT include:
- Transportation to the field station from Puerto Maldonado
- staff will meet with you in Puerto Maldonado and guide you to the field station, but you will cover this cost (around $30) on your own
- Lodging and meals in Puerto Maldonado
- Health or travel insurance
- Required vaccinations
- Binoculars or other personal field equipment
A large majority of the fees paid to our training programs cover lodging fees charged by the host field station. Importantly, at the Los Amigos Biological Station lodging fees not only support the cost of running and maintaining a remote field site, but contribute to the larger mission of their parent NGO (Association for the Conservation of the Amazon Basin) to protect conservation areas, monitor deforestation, maintain wildlife corridors, and more.
Peer-to-Peer Fundraising
We are now able to offer a peer-to-peer fundraising program for research assistants. Once accepted, you would be able to (optionally) create a shareable profile on our platform. This is a team-based initiative, so half of your raised funds will go toward your own program fees, while the other half will go into pool to be split evenly among all program participants who had at least 5 donors. More details will be available during (and after) your interview.
Scholarships
We offer three scholarships to our programs & courses in field biology and conservation.
All Scholarships Cover:
- Meals and lodging at the field station
- Basic equipment required to attend the course (not including binocular/boots)
Scholarships Do Not Cover (unless specifically noted):
- Transportation to the local contact point.
- Binoculars, boots, basic medications, backpacks, or other personal items
- Vaccinations and medical insurance. All participants must provide proof of medical insurance before travel.
*Ensure you meet the qualifications for the scholarship you are applying for before submitting an application.
Other Options
If you require help with the cost of the program, there are other options that you might pursue as well. You could start by contacting the Office of Undergraduate Research of your school, or request professional development support from your employer. Here you can explore what is available through your college/place-of-work, as well as through external funding sources. Many universities have SURF (Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship) programs, which may provide stipends for students to pursue independent research. Please note that if you do find any kind of research-related funding — as many RAs have in the past — it will need to be applied for in conjunction with us, on research projects that we approve. In this case, one of our principal investigators will consult with you about developing a project that is feasible.
All participants are required to show proof of medical insurance before joining us in the field. Many travel insurance providers can assist with emergency medical coverage and emergency medical evacuation. Be certain that COVID-19 is covered in your plan.
You will have to provide proof of a normal vaccination record (as listed here by the CDC). For travel to Peru, we require that you also get the following vaccines:
- Typhoid
- Yellow Fever
- Tetanus
- COVID-19 (no exceptions)
- Rabies pre-exposure series (only for those in programs involving wildlife handling of mammals.)
If you have the flu shot for the year, all the better. Find a travel clinic and get your shots EARLY.
A fully independent research project is not feasible in this program due to time constraints, as well as the fact that all research projects must be sanctioned by the field station, approved by an IRB/IACUC, and have the required permits from the relevant government agencies in Peru. All of our research projects have obtained the necessary approvals and permits, which cover the specific data we collect and how we use it.
That said, some candidates may have an opportunity to win a grant that will fund their program fees and travel, and that grant requires them to submit a research proposal. If this is your situation, we may be able to work with you on a proposal. You can contact us at info@fieldprojects.org and let us know your situation. Then after you officially apply to the program, you can discuss this in greater depth with one of our senior scientists.
We cannot accommodate completely independent projects, but we can assist you with finding a subset of our samples or data that has not yet been fully analyzed, which you could potentially develop further under our supervision.
Yes, you can. We do not give co-authorship for collecting data alone, but we offer interested students the opportunity to work on data analyses after the summer research program, that could lead to co-authorship in the future. Many of our former field team members have gone on to become research collaborators.
It is too early to predict any quarantine requirements that may be in place for those arriving in Peru. However, in 2021, the 14-day quarantine was permitted at each visitor’s final destination if they got there within 24 hours after landing in Lima. The field station where we work was permitted to serve as this site, since they meet all government-approved COVID protocols, and have the capacity to maintain social distance between all visitors.
Negative tests are not currently an official requirement for those arriving at the field station, but a strong recommendation. Researchers from different institutions and others who are not affiliated with FPI also use this field station, and while temperatures will be taken and screening questions will be asked of everyone, there is no guarantee that an asymptomatic or presymptomatic person won’t be present. This means that masks, social distancing, and other detailed protocols are especially important. In addition, this is why we require all participants to get vaccinated.
The first signs of suspected symptoms or a temperature above 100 degrees Fahrenheit should be reported immediately to the field station managers and FPI senior scientists. They will have protocols for isolating symptomatic guests, arranging viral testing, notifying those you have been in contact with, and evacuating you to the nearest hospital if necessary. (Note that travel to a hospital and any care there is at your own cost; make sure your insurance policy covers this.)
The nearest healthcare facilities are in Puerto Maldonado, which is approximately 4-5 hours downriver from our field site. In that city, our Peruvian partners have a recommended doctor certified by MINSA (the Ministry go Health). There are also other private and public healthcare options. The private facilities are more expensive (one of the reasons we require participants to have travel medical insurance), but they will likely be able to treat patients faster if public facilities are full.
The second option would be in Cusco, which is approximately 10 hours by car from Puerto Maldonado. There are more clinics in Cusco than Puerto Maldonado.
*While everyone will have their temperatures taken upon arrival by an infrared thermometer, we suggest that participants bring their own thermometers in their first-aid kits, and check themselves daily.
If a person must leave the field station to get treatment and recover from COVID-19, they will be permitted to return after 7 days with a negative antigen test. A negative molecular test will let someone back to the station after 14 days.
The field station’s safety protocols apply to everybody: staff, researchers, guests, and visitors. We do not yet know exactly what these will be in June 2023, but we can share some insight from 2021.
In 2021, every new person arriving at the field station met with the science director to go over the COVID-protocol with them personally, including the mandatory use of face masks, hand sanitizer, and social distancing. There are planned spaces equipped for maximum distance between people.
People living or traveling together in a group for more than 14 days were able to share the same table at the commissary and will be treated as a “grupo de aislamiento,” keeping distance from other guests or groups. Room service and/or separate seating at different tables will be arranged for all others.
The field station also practiced “cuarentena laboral.” This means that there were separate working areas, and everyone was expected to avoid using workspaces and equipment that was designated for other individuals or groups.
Our enhanced protocols in laboratory or wildlife handling situations are designed to meet or exceed scientific best practices. They are drafted in conjunction with our Peruvian partners (Conservacion Amazonica), Peruvian authorities (SERFOR) and Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees (IACUC) of our affiliate research universities. Broadly speaking, they will involve strict use of face shields, N95 masks, and gloves. Participants will receive detailed instructions on our procedures prior to departing for the field site.