Lyn named Great Ape Trust’s interim director

 The Great Ape Trust has named Heidi Lyn, a leading primate researcher from the University of Southern Mississippi, as its interim director. Lyn, an associate professor, first collaborated with Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, the Des Moines-based research organization’s lead scientist, in 1995 and more recently conducted a study comparing the Great Ape Trust’s bonobos to those in zoo environments. In addition to her research with primates, Lyn has published on the communicative and cognitive behaviors of sea mammals such as dolphins, belugas and walrus. In her new position, Lyn said she is eager to renew her collaborative research efforts with Savage-Rumbaugh, who this week was designated a senior scientist by the Great Ape Trust board of directors. Lyn replaces William Fields, who served as the organization’s executive director since 2007.

The Great Ape Trust has named Heidi Lyn, a leading primate researcher from the University of Southern Mississippi, as its interim director. Lyn, an associate professor, first collaborated with Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, the Des Moines-based research organization’s lead scientist, in 1995 and more recently conducted a study comparing the Great Ape Trust’s bonobos to those in zoo environments. In addition to her research with primates, Lyn has published on the communicative and cognitive behaviors of sea mammals such as dolphins, belugas and walrus. In her new position, Lyn said she is eager to renew her collaborative research efforts with Savage-Rumbaugh, who this week was designated a senior scientist by the Great Ape Trust board of directors. Lyn replaces William Fields, who served as the organization’s executive director since 2007.