In this paper, a co-infection with Toxoplasma gondii and Capillaria hepatica in a ring-tailed lemur is described. As a protozoan parasite, T. gondii can affect nearly all warm-blooded species, causing toxoplasmosis. In lemurs, toxoplasmosis has severe clinical manifestations leading to death. C. hepatica also affects a broad range of mammals, causing hepatic capillariasis. Although it is not known to be lethal, its potential predisposition to toxoplasmosis in our case is of great interest.

Terrestrial drinking is not normally reported for arboreal primates. Here we report observations of terrestrial drinking from man-made watering holes by Temminck’s red colobus (Piliocolobus badius temminckii) at two sites in The Gambia. Our observations show that shallow man-made watering holes, not harbouring predators, were used by different age classes. The implications of this behaviour for this endangered subspecies and the trend of increasing temperatures in The Gambia are discussed.

Lentiviral immunodeficiency viruses cause AIDS in humans and in non-human primates. Macaques are a suitable animal model to study infection, disease and the immune response against the retrovirus. As to prion disease, we established a rhesus monkey infection model for this unique infectious pathogen. Animals were experimentally infected with human and bovine prions. Unlike in human prion disease (Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease), we observed early and late stages of disease.

For the first time internal structures of the nasal region were studied in different ontogenetic stages of selected species of tree shrews (Scandentia) based on histology and µCT. The observed morphology of the turbinal skeleton reveals important characters for future systematic analyses. The pattern of the interorbital septum, a bony plate that separates the orbits, and its relevance for the closely related Primates are discussed in terms of ontogeny and functional morphology.

The benefits of training laboratory primates include improved welfare, facilitated husbandry, quality of data, and human/animal relationships. Refined ways of using negative reinforcement are discussed, as well as target training and management perspectives on primate training. Several approaches to managing fear are described: systematic desensitization/counter conditioning (SD/CC) versus combined reinforcement training (NPRT).