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Chimpanzees Teach Tool Tricks to Youngsters, Expanding Understanding of Primate Intelligence
Confirmed
In Short: Chimpanzees have been observed teaching their young how to use tools, a behavior previously thought to be unique to humans, according to new research.
Since Charles Darwin observed chimpanzees using stones to crack nuts in 1871, tool use has been documented in various species, including monkeys and apes. However, the behavior seems to have evolved more frequently among chimpanzees and other primates.
In 2012, a captive cockatoo named Figaro was observed using multiple steps to process a tool, a behavior that has never been seen in this species in the wild. This suggests that the cognitive capabilities of birds have been underestimated by scientists.
Adult chimpanzees first demonstrate tool use, then hand over the implements to their infants, who copy the behavior. The research team captured 33 instances of tool transfer behavior and three attempts, where a tool was either offered and rejected, or another chimp attempted to take a tool and failed.
In the wild, observed tool use by birds has been limited to the corvids (crows and jays), which show various other complex behaviors—they’ll remember your face and recognize the passing of their dead. Dolphins can toss objects as a form of play, which some scientists consider to be a type of tool use, particularly when it involves another member of the same species.
What's confirmed
- Since Charles Darwin observed chimpanzees using stones to crack nuts in 1871, tool use has been documented in various species, including monkeys and apes. However, the behavior seems to have evolved more frequently among chimpanzees and other primates.
- In 2012, a captive cockatoo named Figaro was observed using multiple steps to process a tool, a behavior that has never been seen in this species in the wild. This suggests that the cognitive capabilities of birds have been underestimated by scientists.
- Adult chimpanzees first demonstrate tool use, then hand over the implements to their infants, who copy the behavior. The research team captured 33 instances of tool transfer behavior and three attempts, where a tool was either offered and rejected, or another chimp attempted to take a tool and failed.
- In the wild, observed tool use by birds has been limited to the corvids (crows and jays), which show various other complex behaviors—they’ll remember your face and recognize the passing of their dead. Dolphins can toss objects as a form of play, which some scientists consider to be a type of tool use, particularly when it involves another member of the same species.
What's still developing
- “Receiving food and tools from experienced individuals, which we call food or tool transfer, may help chimpanzees learn to use technology to extract foods that are difficult to access,” said co-author Andreu Sánchez-Megías, a graduate student at the University of Barcelona and the Jane Goodall Institute Spain in Senegal.
- Since then, chimps have been observed making sponges out of leaves to soak up liquids, shaping sticks to collect algae, and sharpening rudimentary spears for hunting.
- They also captured four instances of baobab fruit transfers; the chimps use stone or hard pieces of wood to crack open the fruit, an example of proto-tool use.
- There were a couple of cases where a chimp simply stole the tool or fruit, prompting a retaliatory strike from the original holder or said holder grabbing back the tool.
- Chimpanzees are known to use rudimentary tools when foraging for food.
- Specifically, adult chimps deliberately model the behavior, then turn their tools over to the youngsters so they can mimic the same motions.
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