Ascaris

ASCaRIs (African Small Carnivore Research Initiatives) is a non-profit scientific organization aiming at promoting research, disseminating new knowledge and ultimately funding research projects on African small carnivores – based on much needed donations. WHY ASCARIS? Contrarily to large carnivores such as Lion, Leopard, African Wild Dog or Spotted Hyaena, African small carnivores have received very little attention from the scientific community. Yet, they also play important roles in the ecosystem. They can control some prey populations (e.g. rodents and insects) – which are often considered as agricultural pests by humans – or transport and disseminate the seeds of several plants (a phenomenon called zoochory), among other functions. In addition, some small carnivore species are highly social and therefore constitute interesting models to study the processes underlying the evolution of sociality in mammals. WHY DO WE NEED YOUR HELP? With so much emphasis put on larger, more charismatic, and sometime more endangered carnivores, it is often difficult for researchers interested in studying the smaller species to obtain enough funding to really make a difference. Yet, almost everything still needs to be discovered about the biology, ecology and behaviour of a majority of the 80+ species of small carnivores living in Africa. Your precious donations will therefore assist us in developing and funding new projects in multiple regions of this fascinating continent. These funds will be used to acquire research material, cover basic running costs (e.g. fuel for field vehicles) and pay tuition fees of postgraduate students from disadvantaged backgrounds.