The Simien Mountains Gelada Research Project is a long-term, interdisciplinary study of wild geladas (Theropithecus gelada) in Ethiopia's Simien Mountains National Park. Founded in 2005 by Drs. Jacinta Beehner and Thore Bergman, the project is now led by Drs. Thore Bergman, Amy Lu, Noah Snyder-Mackler, and India Schneider-Crease.
Our work asks why geladas are so unusual among primates:
- Why are geladas the last living members of the genus Theropithecus?
- Why do they live in exceptionally large, multi-level societies?
- What does the red "bleeding heart" patch on the chest and neck signal?
- How do they thrive at high altitude on an almost entirely grass-based diet?
We combine long-term behavioral records on about 300 known individuals with genomics, endocrinology, immunology, and field ecology to study sociality, disease, hormones, adaptation, survival, and reproductive success. Read more on our research page.
The Simien Mountains Gelada Research Project is a collaboration among the University of Michigan, Stony Brook University, Arizona State University, and the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority.