Cat Hobaiter

@nakedprimate.bsky.social

1932 Followers 825 Following

Primatologist studying communication and cognition in wild apes. Some time academic. Full time naked ape. PI Wild Minds Lab @ University of St Andrews. She/her. www.wildminds.ac.uk

A black and white box plot labelled ‘plotting the invisible ratio’
A carved baboon heard figure on a dark granite sarcophagus
The image shows a mature male sacred baboon with prominent white cheek ruffs and a gray shoulder mantle. Two magnified sections highlight the colouration of the cheek ruffs and shoulder mantle. To the right, a graph displays reflectance percentage on the y-axis and wavelength in nanometers on the x-axis, ranging from 400 to 700 nanometers. The graph includes two lines: one for cheek ruffs and another for the shoulder mantle, both showing higher reflectance than the golden lion tamarin, which is also depicted. The cheek ruffs line is above the shoulder mantle line, indicating higher reflectance. The golden lion tamarin line is lower, showing less reflectance across the spectrum.
Interestingly, male baboons show a higher reflectance spectrum than golden lion tamarins - former holders of the ‘shiniest monkey’ award.
Pelts of two silvery coloured hamadryas baboons in the AMNH collection
A full moon on the left and bright silver male hamadryas baboon on left
A statue of a scribe on the left and a large sacred Ibis embodying Thoth on the right
Two of the team are caught mid swim to get through a beautiful remote guelta in the Ennedi RCNE in Chad by a group of camels and two children with a donkey on the loose blocking the way, high cliffs surround us in warm early morning desert light
Two excited chimpanzees exchange gestures
A male chimpanzee enters inside a baobab while displaying
A black and white photo of a large fat baobab tree trunk with a hollow
A meme about common linguistics tropes with one about ‘what is a word’ and ‘my species can do it too’ circled
Looking out at a sliver of sunlight shining into a dark rocky cave
My left foreharm and hand coated in ingrained ash with a poorly chosen white swatch watch on
A small black lizard is well camouflaged in the folds of a north face duffel
A baboon poop perched on top of a rock in the Guinean savannah
Photo through the windscreen of sunrise through the dust cloud of the truck in front
A tarantula lifts several legs while army ants move on the ground - black and white shot
Fireflies twinkle in a dark forest evening
A brown freckled faced adult male chimpanzee sits in dark dense leafy undergrowth
A man giving a presentation in front of a screen with data and guppy fish on it
The autumn cover of Orion magazine
Three large colourful duffels stacked inside each other
The shadow of a man in the darkness walks through a puddle of light in shoulder high grass
A black and white photo of a machete stuck standing vertically into a muddy forest floor
A silvery tree frog with gold flecked eyes clings to a small branch
Black and white photo of a small snake in bamboo rafters
A large very hairy stripped orange caterpillar curled up asleep on stones
The base of a very chonky folded baobab tree trunk
A road - now a river - on way into the park
A grainy black and white photo of heavy rain on a street as people walk through the water
A caveman points at a picture of a dinosaur tail spikes and calls them thagomizers
3 large duffles stacked on top of each other
a chimpanzee with a strong centre part standing on a forest trail
A chimpanzee (Jura) reaches for figs on a branch
two chimpanzees grooming in the forest
A distinguished older male chimpanzee naps in the sun
A chimpanzee with a freckled face looks at the camera
An earlier post with a garden of Eden scene by Ruben’s is flagged as ‘adult’ content
A chimp on the ground scrumping yellow fruit
A chimpanzee sits on a branch looking off into the canopy
A paragraph from the paper starts with a gothic illuminated letter L with a scrumping monkey
Larson cartoon of a caveman labelling the tail spikes of stegosaurids as a ‘thagomizer’.
Classic Drake meme with 'more jargon, then, linguistic relativism'
two young gorillas spin on lianas
a four panel figure from the paper - panel b shows a mountain gorilla 'cocking' their leg to lay it on another
a mountain gorilla silverback slides carefully down a tree
two 4-year PhD positions in the Ape Behaviour & Ecology Group of the Department of Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Zurich, and the Wild Minds Lab of the School of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of St Andrews, to study wild chimpanzees and bonobos. The PhD candidates will work within the Creative Ape Project. The overall goal of the project is to enhance our understanding of the evolution of creativity, and to shed light on whether humans are a uniquely 'creative ape'. To do so we will apply a comparative approach, quantifying the creative capacities of wild non-human apes to investigate the underlying drivers that shape creative expression across species. The project explores four interconnected topics: i) Making mavericks, ii) Funny guys and arty-types, iii) Lone ape geniuses, and iv) Creative ape economies. We employ a comprehensive approach that leverages long-term datasets, new field data, detailed manual video-coding, bespoke automated deep-learning models, and advanced modelling, to extract rich information on the ways in which apes solve problems in their daily lives. Excellent collaborative, independent working and time management skills are essential. Previous field experience (incl. behavioural data collection) is required, and experience working in remote places under difficult living conditions is highly recommended. The project will require strong data management and data analysis skills, and 12-18 months of field work split into 2-3 periods. Please submit your application in a single PDF to kathelijne.koops@iea.uzh.ch and clh42@st-andrews.ac.uk – by 4th of August 2025. Feel free to get in touch if you have any inquiries about the positions. Applications should include: 1) cover letter stating your motivation and how your expertise fits the project (max. 1 page), 2) Curriculum Vitae, 3) copy of the highest degree obtained, 4) names and contact details of two referees, and 5) reprints of 1-2 selected publications
An insect with patterned leaf shaped foot shields stands on a mesh window
A bw shot of a peaceful baboon looking down while being groomed
A small neon green caterpillar with black spikes and a vicious attitude
A view on the Sahara out of a plan window, red sands and blue skies
Blue skies looking west towards glen etive
A sunny burn in Glencoe
A weather forecast showing a week of sunshine
A black lab dog stands to attention in a sunny field
A chimpanzee drums on an amazing buttressed tree
A 3D scan of a buttressed tree