Angela Dassow

Professor Angela Dassow received her B.S. 2003年获得威斯康辛大学麦迪逊分校野生动物生态学和昆虫学学位. 在一家自然历史博物馆做了几年爬行动物学的首席准备和助理馆长之后, she joined Prof. Michael Coen’s lab and earned her M.S. in zoology in 2010 and Ph.D. in zoology in 2014. She joined the Carthage faculty in 2015.

Prof. Dassow’s research focuses on computational analyses of animal vocalizations, exploring correlates with human linguistic phenomena at the phonetic, morphological, and syntactic levels. This work has centered on understanding the vocal communication systems of wild and captive white-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar); however, she has examined other species as well, ranging across a variety of taxa including cetaceans, bats, canids, and songbirds. By combining aspects of ecology, linguistics, computer science, and information theory, 我们能够对白掌长臂猿的交流能力获得新的见解，并展示了它们声音交流系统中以前未被认识到的复杂性和结构.

Audio Clips:

White-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar)在拉辛动物学会发出雌性特有的响亮叫声和雄性特有的结尾序列来宣布它们的领土. Listen to the audio clip 

Media Mentions:

Animal Welfare Institute Funds Original Research on Human-Wildlife Conflicts

达索教授是动物福利研究所资助的六名人类与野生动物冲突原创性研究的获得者之一. (Animal Welfare Institute, November 12, 2019)

Ape Conversations: Researchers Listen To, Analyze Gibbons At The Racine Zoo

Prof. Dassow researches the vocalizations of two white-handed gibbons at the Racine Zoo. (WUWM 89.7, August 8, 2019)

Carthage team records sweet, yet secret language of gibbons

Prof. Dassow and two students, Joy Layton and Azniv Khaligin, study the complex language of two gibbons at the Racine Zoo. (Kenosha News, July 2, 2019)

全球十大赌钱排行app研究人员研究长臂猿，以了解声音进化如何导致人类语言

Prof. 达索与学生阿兹尼夫·卡利吉安和乔伊·莱顿在拉辛动物园研究长臂猿的发声. (Journal Sentinel, July 1, 2019)

What I Learned in Puerto Rico

Prof. Angela Dassow discusses her experiences in Puerto Rico during J-Term 2019. (Urban Milwaukee, April 3, 2019)

Women in science have made ground-breaking contributions

Prof. 达索撰写了一篇令人信服的关于STEM女性及其对现代科学的强大贡献的评论. (Kenosha News, March 25, 2019)

Girls inspired by ‘Women in Science’ event

Prof. Dassow participates in Kenosha Public Museum event celebrating women in science. (Kenosha News, March 23, 2019)

Insects: A new source of protein coming to a supermarket near you

Prof. Angela Dassow says eating insects is healthy and good for the environment. (Kenosha News, December 2, 2018)

• Ph.D. — Zoology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
• M.S. — Zoology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
• B.S. — Wildlife Ecology and Entomology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

• BIO 1010 Concepts in Biology
• BIO 1110 Molecules, Cells, and Organisms

• BIO 1120 Organisms, Populations, and Systems

• BIO 2200 Introduction to Ecology

• BIO 3100 General Ecology
• BIO 3210 Animal Behavior 
• BIO 3320 Entomology

• BIO 400A Vertebrate Ecology
• 
BIO 4120 Senior Seminar

• BIO 4900 Research in Biology

“我研究的目标之一是通过描述进化产生的共性来探索脊椎动物的声音和手势交流系统, comparing developmental differences within clades, and searching call sequences for the potential of linguistic structure. 

我的另一个主要研究目标是开发和使用被动声学监测来帮助保护稀有和濒危物种. Most of this work is done in collaboration with Fauna and Flora - Vietnam, where we study the critically endangered Cao-vit gibbon (Nomascus nasutus).

Prior to focusing my research on bioacoustics and animal behavior, I studied the population dynamics of white-tailed deer, gray wolves, Blanding’s turtles, painted turtles, snapping turtles, trumpeter swans, a variety of waterfowl, raptors and songbirds, porcupines, and central Wisconsin dragonflies. 我还研究了温度变化对巴西亚马逊雨林淡水河龟幼龟性别比的影响.”

Hylobatidae – Lesser apes

“One of the species I work with is the white-handed gibbon (Hylobates lar). This species is native to Southeast Asia, 它生活在由女性领导的领地群体中，主要通过多种发声进行交流. To date, I have been able to identify and describe the vocal repertoire of this species, which consists of 27 statistically distinctive acoustic units. 我还能识别出它们捕食者警告叫声的动机和参考序列. 目前的研究工作主要集中在了解野生种群和圈养种群之间的叫声和尾语发展.

我研究的另一个物种是极度濒危的高维长臂猿。. This species was thought to be extinct, but it was rediscovered in Northern Vietnam. Our current efforts are focused on characterizing the vocal repertoire, 绘制领地边界，开发它们发声的自动检测算法，作为被动跟踪它们在野外活动的一种手段.” 

Canidae – Gray wolves

“In collaboration with the Timber Wolf Information Network, we are exploring the possibility of tracking gray wolves (Canis lupus), 通过记录它们的嚎叫，然后分析这些叫声来寻找可以识别个体的声音标记.  To date, 我们已经能够准确地对吼叫集进行聚类，我们未来的挑战将包括在我们的数据集中添加更多的个体, tracking vocal changes over time, and correctly classifying unlabeled howls.”

Hominidae – Western lowland gorillas

“University of Mississippi Anthropology Professor Dr. 卡洛琳·弗雷瓦尔德和我正在合作一个项目，在孟菲斯动物园对低地大猩猩的行为进行首次正式研究. 这项研究的目的是确定每只大猩猩的活动预算是多少. To accomplish this, we are building an ethogram of various foraging, locomotor, and agonistic behaviors between the four gorillas currently housed there.”

Turtle Robots

“Vocal production in freshwater turtles is an emerging field of study.  Several species of turtles have already been recorded, vocal repertoires described and in the case of one species, maternal care has been associated with vocal interactivity with hatchlings. 目前的挑战包括在海龟离开筑巢海滩后追踪它们. Their small size makes radio transmitters prohibitive, 但海龟追踪机器人可以跟踪海龟，并记录幼龟之间的声音互动. 这项研究的主要目标是建立和部署一个自主水下航行器(AUV)来跟踪一只孵化的海龟并记录它的声音互动.”

Student Projects

“我建议学生们进行与我正在进行的项目相关的本科研究. I am happy to speak with prospective students about their ideas and interests.”

Student Presentations

2023

• Menendez, A., Groszek, A, & Dassow, A. 利用发声多边化技术对高维长臂猿进行被动声学监测. NCUR Poster

2021

• Khaligian, A., Layton, J., Utter, J. & Dassow, A. Function of onset timing in white-handed gibbon (Hylobates lar) communication. NCUR Poster

2020

• Khaligian, A. & Dassow, A. Patterns of play behavior in white-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar). Celebration of Scholars
• Utter, J. & Dassow, A. 白掌长臂猿(Hylobates lar) Hoo Note发声在不同捕食者类型反应中的作用. Celebration of Scholars
• Roschii, R. & Dassow, A. 研究野生白掌长臂猿(Hylobates lar)发声的开始时间和二重奏产生的持续时间. Celebration of Scholars
• McKinnon, K. & Dassow, A. Examining the behavioral ontogeny in captive white-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar). Celebration of Scholars
• McCombe, C. & Dassow, A. Refining acoustic unit classification of the Hylobates lar vocal repertoire. Celebration of Scholars
• Layton, J. & Dassow, A. 圈养白掌长臂猿的游戏发声特征(Hylobates lar). Celebration of Scholars

2019

• Khaligian, Azniv and Layton, Joy. Play behavior in captive white-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar). Midstates Poster
• Hull, Cara. 圈养和野生成年白掌长臂猿大叫声分析. Celebration of Scholars Poster
• DeRoach, Olivia and Yont, Ryan. 雄性白掌长臂猿(Hylobates lar)鸣叫对捕食者模式的响应分析. Celebration of Scholars Poster
• McCombe, Caitlin. 重新定义白掌长臂猿声乐曲目中的声学单位(Hylobates lar). Celebration of Scholars Poster
• Roschi, Rachel. 研究白掌长臂猿(Hylobates lar)发声的大叫声产生的开始时间. Celebration of Scholars Poster
• Van Dame, Katherine and McKinnon, Kathryn. 拉辛动物学会白掌长臂猿(Hylobates lar)活动预算. Celebration of Scholars Poster
• Khaligian, Azniv and Layton, Joy. Play vocalizations in white-handed gibbons (Hylobates lar). SURE Poster

2018

• Hull, Cara and McCombe, Caitlin. Vocal features used to determine individuality among wild gray wolves (Canis lupus). Celebration of Scholars Poster
• Steffen, Alexandra. 西部小竹狐猴(Hapalemur occidentalis)觅食行为研究. Celebration of Scholars Poster
• DeRoach, Olivia, Steffen, Alexandra and Yont, Ryan. 野生和圈养白掌长臂猿(Hylobates lar)叫声大的研究. Celebration of Scholars Poster
• McKinnon, Kathryn and Van Dame, Katherine. Activity budgets of lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) at the Memphis Zoo. Celebration of Scholars Poster
• Hull, Cara and McCombe, Caitlin. 野外漫游灰狼(Canis lupus)寿命监测的声学特征. NCUR Poster

2017            

• Hull, Cara and McCombe, Caitlin. 野外漫游灰狼(Canis lupus)寿命监测的声学特征. Midstates Poster
• Hull, Cara and McCombe, Caitlin. 野外漫游灰狼(Canis lupus)寿命识别与监测的声学特征. SURE Poster
• Steffen, Alexandra. 白掌长臂猿(hyloates lar)大鸣声和尾声的非典型发声研究. Celebration of Scholars Poster