After 23 years, UW-Madison anthropology professor Karen Strier knows that her life’s work – studying and helping to protect the endangered muriqui monkeys of Brazil – comes with its own rewards.
“I think it’s impossible not to develop a great affection (for the monkeys),” Strier said. “There really is a sense every time I go back and see them that they’re my friends. There’s also this exquisite sensation of building trust with another species, and the idea that they would let us into their lives.”