Most chimpanzees that have been raised by humans have trouble negotiating the chimpanzee social world. Jamie is lucky; she somehow managed to escape a decade in entertainment and two decades in research with a pretty good understanding of how to be a chimpanzee. That understanding, combined with her cleverness and strength, has helped her become the most dominant chimpanzee in her group.
But she has not left behind the human world that she grew up in. Jamie craves human attention. Usually this is positive, such as when she plays or grooms with her caregivers. Other times its negative, like when she “hazes” new volunteers to be sure they know their place. But sometimes she simply wants to be near people. Today, while I played with Foxie, Jamie came down the stairs and into the front rooms with some sheets. She quietly made a nest next to me and fell asleep.
QUESTIONS
1) What do the raspberries mean? I noticed ya’ll did that when Burrito came out to enjoy the apple cider treat.
2) I don’t think I’ve ever read Jamie making a nest. I remember, early on, that Burrito, Negra & Foxie didn’t makes nests. Any advancement in that area for those three?
3) I don’t know if your video camera has a flip out screen but have you ever turned the video camera around so Jamie could see you recording something? I also think she was wondering how she could get her hands on the video camera.
J.B. thanks for the close-up of Jamie’s face, I love that face. She has such a wonderfully inquisitive face.
One other questions, how does Jamie “haze” the new volunteers?
ANSWERS 🙂
1. Raspberries are used to get someone’s attention, usually someone you can’t get to physically. In this case, it was Foxie blowing raspberries at me, because her troll was on my side of the caging and she wanted it back.
2. Negra makes small nests every night. Burrito still doesn’t make nests very often, but he will steal someone else’s. Foxie will make pseudo-nests with hard toys and fire hose, and she has been seen using blankets on a few occasions. She’s making progress!
3. That camera doesn’t have a flip-out screen, but we often show Jamie and the others what we’ve recorded after the fact. Jamie is especially interested.
4. Jamie “hazes” the new volunteers by threat barking, poking, and spitting copious amounts of water. She knows when volunteers move to a different level, so she might have no problem with someone cleaning near her (Level 2 volunteers), but when they start to hand out food (Level 3), she gives them a hard time. Then one day she decides to accept the new person, and the hazing is over. She’s just making sure they know how things work at the chimp house 🙂
Jamie is even fashionable when she naps! I love the story of her “hazing” the volunteers. She is just making sure they know they are in “her” home….LOL
Are there appropriate things for volunteers to do, ways to behave, that show Jamie respect for her dominance in the chimpanzee world without encouraging “bad” behavior?
And LOL – the first time i watched this, I watched with the sound off (I’m at work). The second time … chimp raspberries?! So cute!! 🙂
Anna – Yes! Two things:
1. We have a general “etiquette” that we follow here. All staff, volunteers and visitors are expected to behave in a way that ensures the chimps never feel threatened in their own home. The etiquette includes things like posture, tone of voice, using chimp gestures when appropriate, and so on.
2. When staff and volunteers are interacting with the chimps, whether it be playing or serving meals, we are careful to respect the chimps’ hierarchy. Usually you worry most about the most dominant and the least dominant individuals. For example, we usually serve Jamie first, especially if its a preferred food. That’s what she expects. And we would generally not serve Annie before the other chimps (particularly Missy), because that could get Annie in trouble. The chimps in the middle of the hierarchy don’t really care who gets served first, as long as they get served.
Great Video along with great info…. Thank you!
Great video JB, thanks. And thank you for all the information.
Candace, I was having a visit with the chimps several months ago when Jamie wanted to see our shoes. She then asked for them but we said no. Jamie got up and motioned as if to say “Hold that thought.” She filled her mouth up with water and tried to nonchalantly move back toward us. She zigzagged and the last couple feet she ran toward the bars and drenched us with water. As cold as it was and as much as I wanted to laugh I made no expression and kept my eyes diverted so Jamie wouldn’t get a reaction. If we react she will do it over again to see us squirm! (I actually felt I had made it at the sanctuary since Jamie got me.) 🙂
I have a question about the Burrito. Jamie is the most dominant chimp but in “reality” Burrito should be dominant since he’s male. Do the females treat Burrito as an alpha male, or is his this whirling dervish of testosterone that they don’t know what to do with?
It’s sweet that after all those years of being exploited by humans that Jamie trusts you enough to come and lie down and fall asleep right next to you. Very touching. I’m sure it must feel like a huge honor — and well deserved by you and everyone there that’s caring for the chimps!
MS – No, the girls don’t treat Burrito as the alpha. Its a good example of how it takes more than brute strength and testosterone to reach that status. It also takes a certain amount of what primatologists refer to as “Machiavellian intelligence”, meaning the ability to make calculated decisions and form strategic relationships in order to achieve dominance. It’s all politics, basically, and Burrito is a bad politician. Things might have been different for him if he grew up in a more natural chimp environment, or it may be that just doesn’t have the innate skills required. Chimp groups are never static though, so this may all change.
Thanks for all of the insight and information JB. It’s so interesting!
“It’s all politics, basically, and Burrito is a bad politician.”
This really made me giggle. Which probably doesn’t say very nice things about ME, but … still, it made me giggle.
Thanks, JB. It’s been a fun and informative discussion.
It seems in captive chimp communities females can be dominant as well as males. This made me think of when the Native Americans were confined to reservations and the men had a much harder time of it than the women. The traditional male hunting and dominance patterns were rendered nonexistant. The women still had their social structure and companionships and fared somewhat better. I wonder if this can be correlated to chimps in captivity?