Our research is predicated on three guiding principles:
1. Quality Science
No project or experiment is worth doing unless it has the potential to make a real contribution to the science of behavioral neuroendocrinology. All research projects in the CRC meet high standards of science, including hypothesis-driven research, quality control in behavioral and endocrine measures, and publication in high-quality, peer-reviewed journals.
Our research has been published in high-impact journals, including:
- Nature
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Hormones and Behavior
- Physiology and Behavior
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Animal Behaviour
- Developmental Psychobiology
- General and Comparative Endocrinology
2. Animal Welfare
No project is worth doing if it compromises the health and psychological well-being of the animal. This principal is manifested in the way in which we house our animals in the colony (large enclosures with rich and varied food and environments), the use of noninvasive research methodologies (urine and fecal collection, rather than blood sampling, unobtrusive observations of animals in normal intact social groups), and in the quality of care and husbandry for the animals.
We are accredited and adhere to The US Government Principles for the Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training
3. Contributions to Primate Conservation
Two of the three species we currently study (Callithrix penicillata, and Callithrix geoffroyi) are listed on CITES Appendix II (vulnerable to extinction). Therefore we are committed to contributing to the knowledge base for captive breeding and management for these and other threatened and endangered marmosets. The North American population of C. geoffroyiis managed by a Species Survival Plan (SSP) under the auspices of the Association of Zoos and Aquaria (AZA), and UNO is an active participant in this breeding plan to promote the long term maintenance of genetic variability in the captive population.
The Callitrichid Research Center has been a member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums since 2006, and currently is the only university-based facility that is accredited by this organization.
