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Primate meeting draws global crowd

Published Tuesday, April 01, 2008 2:23 PM

By David Berman
Summerville Journal Scene ®

It may not boast lush rain forests or remote jungles but for primate enthusiasts from across the globe, Knightsville was the place to be last weekend.

People from as far as Cameroon, Nepal, the Netherlands and Australia — and as near as Summerville and Clemson — gathered for the International Primate Protection League's 10th members' meeting.

Held every two years, the meeting brings members of the IPPL to Shirley McGreal's 28-acre sanctuary, which serves as a haven for 38 gibbons — small, tree-dwelling apes native to Southeast Asia — and as the epicenter of the organization's international efforts.

McGreal founded the nonprofit organization in 1973 while she was living in Thailand. Its mission remains the same today — to promote the conservation and protection of all nonhuman primates including apes, monkeys and lemurs around the world. Coordinating an international network of 15,000 members, McGreal works to curb illegal primate trafficking and encourage the efforts of sanctuaries and protection groups worldwide. England's Prince Philip is among her most devoted supporters.

The sanctuary was founded in Dorchester County in 1977 soon after McGreal's husband took a job in the area.

IPPL's diverse membership — which ranges from casual supporters with a keen interest in primates to those who are on the frontline exposing the maltreatment of the beloved animals — was represented at the meeting.

Moving at a brisk pace, the three-day event included more than a dozen lectures and open forums on the most pressing issues facing primates worldwide.

On Saturday alone, the lineup included Ardith Eudey, a primatologist and member of the IPPL advisory board who talked about the birth of the IPPL; Matt Rossell, an activist who secretly filmed the mistreatment of monkeys in an Oregon research laboratory; Mangal Raj Shresta, a member of Wildlife Watch Group who detailed the plight of rhesus monkeys in Nepal; and a woman from Malaysia who, based upon the nature of her critical comments, requested that her photograph not be taken for fear of reprisal from her country's government.

Jean Martin, Shirley McGreal's twin sister, said attendance at the meeting grew over the years but has stabilized. For three days, it's a tight-knit community.

"We all get to know each other," she said.

Pam Dauphin flew down from St. Louis to attend the meeting. A self-proclaimed "chimp person," Dauphin actively attends workshops and conferences on primates, including those hosted by noted primatologist Jane Goodall.

"This is more intimate — more grass roots," Dauphin said of the IPPL meeting. "Being every two years, she [McGreal] can get better speakers."

"We don't miss it," Dauphin said. "We come every year. It keeps us going."

Debbie Misotti, of Clewiston, Fla., was excited to be at her first IPPL meeting. She said other noted animal activists have buffers between them and the public, but not McGreal. "She's accessible," Misotti said.

During several lectures, Misotti kept her notebook at arm's length in case she wanted to jot down something she learned. The most significant lesson she took away from the meeting, however, was outside.

Misotti took every opportunity to study the sanctuary's expansive system of enclosures in an effort to improve the sanctuary for gibbons, spider monkeys and capuchin monkeys she runs with her husband.

"I've used up six cameras already," Misotti said. "She [McGreal] does such creative things with caging. That's what I'm so interested in and I want to recreate it at my facility."

Contact David Berman at 873-9424 ext. 214 or dberman@journalscene.com

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