Academic Advising
College of Arts & Science
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Tim Webster (Class of 2008)
double major in anthropology and zoology- from Cleveland, OH
- will begin a Ph.D. program in anthropology at Yale University, fall 2009
"Hi, I'm Tim Webster. I became interested in animal behavior and ecology at an early age; my father is the Director of Wildlife Resources at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. I grew up volunteering for him, working mostly with local birds of prey and mammals. Then, in college, during breaks from classes, I worked as an animal care intern for the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. During my first season, I worked in the cat and primate building, and it was here that I realized my interest in primates.
I chose Miami because it had a strong zoology program, and I wanted to be a zookeeper. However, after that summer at the zoo, I returned to Miami and discovered that I could combine zoology with anthropology and my interest in primates.
At Miami, you can do real research. I worked with my professors on any research project I could get my hands on. I studied female transfer behavior, association patterns and sleep tree choice of white-bellied spider monkeys (Ateles belzebuth belzebuth). I studied overall patterns in chimpanzee faunivory (consumption of animal prey), the climate of Assirik, Senegal (a west African chimpanzee site), sympatric mammals at Assirik, Senegal, and laterality in wild vs. captive chimpanzees. I also spent a summer studying ratios of different types of bones in ape and human heel bones with the director of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
I spent two terms (one Miami semester) as a Junior Visiting Fellow in the Department of Biological Anthropology, University of Cambridge. At the end of the second term I went to Uganda where I studied chimpanzee insectivory and well-digging in the Toro-Semliki Wildlife Reserve. I ended up staying in Uganda for six months! I even served as camp manager during my stay. Going for supplies involved a 3-hour drive through savannah, jungle and mountainous terrains. Driving in Africa presents many challenges including flooding, rockslides and even elephants.
I just accepted an offer from Yale University and will begin a Ph.D. program in Anthropology this fall. For my thesis, I hope to study chimpanzee feeding and nutritional ecology in Kibale National Park, Uganda.
My advice to students? Ask as many questions as you can and find professors that you want to work with. My professors pushed me when I needed to be pushed and they stepped back when I needed to be independent. Either way, their doors were always open. "
