Laboratory Maintenance and Equipment Care
The Proyecto Primates laboratory is where we do most of our
camp work (measuring fruits, pressing plants, working on the computer,
transcribing data, and so on). We also store plant samples and feeding
source samples there, and have a small reference library available. A
number of us share this space, so it is important to keep it (fairly) clean and
organized. It is kind of up to you how you want to share/organize the
space – feel free to personalize it with photos, posters, and so on – and how
to divide the one chore of sweeping all the dead cockroach parts out every
month or so.
More importantly, this is where we keep some of the project’s more sensitive
equipment – an electronic balance, the field radios, the laser rangefinder,
telemetry equipment, recording and playback equipment, the computer and
printer, etc. All electronic equipment not currently being used regularly
should be kept in the “dry box” or in an airtight plastic container along with
active silica gel for dessication.
Note: There is a database on the computer in Proyecto
Primates folder in the Shared Documents folder with the inventory
data. In that database is listed WHERE each important project item can be
found and should be kept, as well as some information about how particular
items need to be stored. All Proyecto Primates folks should familiarize
themselves with this inventory database and with the care instructions for
project equipment A.S.A.P. We have a lot of high quality and important
electronic equipment here which must be treated well. Please try to keep
the lab organized and clean, update the inventory database as needed, and
apprise me ASAP when it looks like we are getting low on any supplies (e.g.,
tree tags, flagging, data books, etc.).
A couple of important pieces of information about specific
items…
- COMPUTER – The brand new project computer is a Mac
Mini running software called Boot Camp, which allows us to use key PC
programs (ArcView, Access). This is perhaps the most important piece
of electronic gear we have down here now, so we need to treat it with
care! I have set up user accounts for each of you, with your
password being the Genus (1st letter capitalized) of the main taxon you
are working on. Mike = Saimiri, Luke = Cebus, Andres = Ateles, Chris
= Lagothrix. This gives you a space to keep your files
organized. The databases and other Proyecto Primates stuff are in
the Proyecto Primates folder inside the Shared Documents
folder, which is accessible from each of your accounts. My
administrator account has backup copies of the software I’ve installed on
the machine should it be necessary to reinstall those. The partition
that is set up for running Boot Camp is not huge (only 15 GB) so please
try not to store too much on the computer… burn things like personal
photos to CD and don’t fill up the hard drive with mp3s. Also, I’ve
noticed that when SWITCHING between user accounts, the Mac doesn’t seem to
like it… sometimes the keyboard or the mouse locks up. I think that’s
probably a power issue, and I would recommend trying NOT to do a lot of
switching between users without shutting down to avoid the locking up
problem.
IMPORTANT COMPUTER NOTES: Given
that this computer is so new and so important to us – and given that it has on
it all of the data from my project with Eduardo from the last few years, I want
to STRONGLY discourage you from letting other folks work on it. It’s fine
if one of you wants to do something for someone else on this machine, but I do
NOT want someone working on it on their own with the possibility of damaging
the machine, or erasing or copying data files! ALSO, any time you add
data to one of the databases, you MUST back it up to the Passport external hard
drive, and copies of the latest database should be burned to CD every month for
a second backup.
- RECHARGABLE BATTERIES / VIDEO CAMERA BATTERY / RADIOS
– These SHOULD NOT stay in their chargers for more than 24 hours as that
can overcharge them and reduce their lifespans. Once one of these items
has been charged, remove it and store it OUT of the charger until it is
used. Periodically, it is a good idea to let the batteries and
radios run all the way out and then charge them again. This prevents
the buildup of a “charge memory” in the battery, which can reduce its
lifespan and performance. Also, the radios should be turned OFF when
in the charger. Note that the radios are NOT waterproof, so you
should keep them in a plastic bag (you can use them straight through
the bag). The radios right now are set on a common channel, and
there are instructions in the folder of equipment manuals that describe
how to change those settings if necessary (which would probably be the
case only if you accidentally change the them). Radios should be taken
out of their bags, wiped dry, and plugged in to charge overnight in the
lab EVERY night you plan on using them the next day – a full charge takes
about 10 hours.
- CAMERA TRAPS – These are currently set up at the
salt lick and are Andres and Mike’s responsibility for checking and
maintenance. There is a cardboard box inside of the "dry box"
with additional digital still camera trap and video camera trap
supplies, including an extra 16MB memory stick, as well an extra battery
and charger and some tapes for the video camera. Please don’t put
other stuff in this cardboard box, and please keep these items in the dry
box until needed.
- RADIOCOLLARS – In order to keep the
radiocollars not currently in place on animals in good working order, it
is necessary to activate the collars once per month and let them run for
24 hours or so. To activate the collars, remove the small magnet that is
taped to the side of the collar, which will allow the collar to begin
transmitting (you should verify this by listening to the collar with one
of the receivers). After letting the collar transmit for 24 hours or
so, replace the magnet, make sure the collar has stopped transmitting, and
return the collar to storage.
- BINOCULARS and TELEMETRY RECEIVERS – These
are critical (and expensive) pieces of equipment that you will use
every day, so you NEED to TREAT THEM WELL. Properly cared for, they
will last many, many years. You will have a specific set of
binoculars and a specific receiver and antenna assigned to you that is your
responsibility to treat well. If there are any problems that arise
with the units you are using, let us know A.S.A.P. The binoculars
are waterproof, so it is okay to use them in the rain and humidity –
putting them in the dry box every once in a while will help them out a
bit, too. The telemetry equipment is NOT waterproof, so you should
keep the receiver in a plastic bag inside of the carrying case at all
times in the field (you can use it straight through the bag, if you keep
the top of the bag open) and periodically (e.g., every week) let your
telemetry unit dry out in the dry box. Regarding the antennas, these
are robust but not unbreakable. PLEASE be careful in how you treat
them so that the elements do not bend too much or break, which (obviously)
makes them not work so well.
A SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT THE
BINOCULARS: These are VERY GOOD binoculars with high quality optics that are
essential for the kind of detailed phenological monitoring you will be doing on
this project. You should NEVER, EVER clean them with anything other than
lens tissue (or toilet paper) and lens cleaning solution (or contact lens
solution) – especially NOT on your shirts! You should clean your
binoculars whenever your lenses accumulate dirt or grit on them. The
reason I am such a stickler about this is that your binoculars are by far your
most important piece of equipment you have as a primatologist – you will spend
a good portion of every day looking through them.