Gisela Kaplan facts for kids

Gisela Kaplan is an Australian scientist who studies animal behavior. She is an ethologist, which means she studies how animals behave in their natural homes. She also specializes in ornithology, the study of birds, and primatology, the study of primates like monkeys and apes.

Professor Kaplan is a special kind of professor called a professor emeritus at the University of New England in Australia. This title is given to professors who have retired but are still highly respected for their work. She is also an honorary professor at the Queensland Brain Institute.

Studying Animal Behavior

Gisela Kaplan earned her first Doctor of Philosophy degree from Monash University. A Doctor of Philosophy, or PhD, is a very high university degree that shows someone is an expert in their field.

She has written many books. One of her important research projects was about the sounds that Australian magpies make. She wrote a special paper called a thesis about "The Vocal Behaviour of Australian Magpies." This means she studied how magpies communicate using their voices.

In 2011, the University of New England gave her an honorary Doctorate of Science. This is a special award given to people who have made amazing contributions, even if they didn't study for that specific degree there.

In 2015, she became an honorary fellow of the American Ornithological Society. This is a group of experts who study birds. The next year, she was given the title of emeritus professor by the University of New England.

Professor Kaplan also won the Whitley Award in Behavioural Zoology in 2017 for her book called Bird Minds. This award recognizes excellent books about animals. She has also shared her knowledge in interviews on ABC Radio.

In March 2021, she was chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales. This is a group of top scientists and thinkers. In 2024, she received a special honor called an Honorary Member of the Order of Australia. This award recognized her important work in science education and her research into how animals behave.

Helping Animals

In the 1990s, Gisela Kaplan started helping native Australian birds. She would hand-raise them and help them get better if they were hurt or orphaned. She still does this important work in her free time today.