• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary for primates.

  • Our Family
    • The Chimpanzees
    • The Cattle
  • Blog
  • About Us
    • Visiting the Sanctuary
    • Philosophy
      • FAQs
      • Mission, Vision & Goals
      • Privacy Policy
    • The Humans
      • Staff
      • Board of Directors
      • Founder
    • Annual Reports
    • The Future of CSNW
    • CSNW In The News
  • You can help
    • Donate
      • Become a Chimpanzee Pal
      • Sponsor A Day
      • Transfer Stock
      • Crypto Donations and NFTs
      • Be A Produce Patron
      • Become a Bovine Buddy
      • Give from your IRA
      • Personalized Stones
      • Bring Them Home Campaign
    • Leave A Legacy
    • Employment Opportunities
    • Volunteer
    • See Our Wish List
    • Events
  • Resources
    • About Chimpanzees
    • Enrichment Database
    • Advocacy
      • Apes in Entertainment
        • Trainers
        • Role of the AHA
        • Greeting Cards
      • Chimpanzees as Pets
      • Roadside Zoos
      • Chimpanzees in Biomedical Research
      • Conservation
        • African Apes
        • Orangutans
  • Shop
    • Merchandise Store
    • Bookstore
  • Contact
  • Donate

Greeting

October 24, 2011 by Debbie

Chimpanzees give each other really sweet greetings after they’ve been separated for some amount of time. Jody spent all afternoon on the hill yesterday by herself, and when she started heading back Annie was getting pretty excited. I didn’t catch a very long video, but I did get a quick snippet of Annie’s sweet greeting with Jody. I wanted to include some explanations of Annie’s greeting behaviors, so you may have to watch the video twice!

Typically less-dominant individuals greet more-dominant members of a group. Although Jody isn’t the leader, she is more dominant than Annie (although Annie is definitely asserting herself and has much more confidence these days than she did when they first arrived). In the video, you’ll see Annie bipedally (up on her feet) swagger with her hair standing on end (pilo erect). These behaviors are indicative of a high arousal state, basically meaning she’s excited. Then you’ll see her crouch down and run toward Jody. The crouching down is a sign of submission, and it shows Annie’s respect for Jody. When she contacts Jody she gives her a hug and simultaneously offers an open mouth kiss (it’s hard to see, but that is what she’s doing!) And finally as they head back into the greenhouse together, Annie dabs Jody’s back.

Even though this all occurred in just 15 seconds or so, there’s a lot of communication going on! Chimpanzees are really amazing and complex beings.

Share
Tweet
Share
Pin
AnnieChimpanzee BehaviorJodySanctuaryYoung's Hill

Share

Share
Tweet
Share
Pin

Subscribe To Blog Via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. MS says

    October 24, 2011 at 3:00 pm

    It must be nice for some chimps to go outside if they need some alone time.

    Are you surprised that not all chimps are spending maximum time outside? It seems like Burrito and Negra are content to stay inside for the most part.

    Are you disappointed that some chimps show a lack of interest in going out for longer periods of time?

    I hope all chimps can enjoy the outdoors. Winter is coming so they’ll be cooped up soon enough!

    • Debbie says

      October 24, 2011 at 4:12 pm

      We’re not too surprised that some chimps are not as comfortable with spending tons of time out there—it’s actually what we expected. I wouldn’t say that we’re disappointed in their lack of interest, but I would say the weather is a tad disappointing! It’ll be really great to see how next summer goes and how long the chimps will choose to stay out when the weather is nicer. The sun’s been out lately but it’s still pretty chilly, especially when the wind blows.

  2. Amy M says

    October 24, 2011 at 3:02 pm

    So much packed into such a short time! Thanks for the excellent commentary!

  3. MS says

    October 24, 2011 at 3:12 pm

    Also, very interesting video of a lower ranking member of the group greeting a higher ranking member.

  4. Teresa in TN says

    October 24, 2011 at 4:31 pm

    lol, I must be slow, I had to watch it 4 times to catch everything 🙂

  5. Julie says

    October 24, 2011 at 6:26 pm

    Thank you, Debbie, for the education!

  6. Audrey Spencer says

    October 24, 2011 at 8:01 pm

    Great video and explanation, Debbie!! I love learning about the chimps’ behaviors! Jim thinks I should greet him like that every day when he comes home from work… um, I just don’t know what to say to that! 😀

    • Audrey Spencer says

      October 24, 2011 at 8:14 pm

      I am not as sweet as Annie!

      • Lynne says

        October 24, 2011 at 11:56 pm

        Hello Audrey, i loved your post.I had a lot of laughter reading it. Thank you, Lynne

  7. Naomi says

    October 25, 2011 at 4:48 am

    Thank you for this glimpse into Chimp behavior and relationships! I love any snippet that you guys post, it’s awesome to be able to peak a little bit into their daily lives 🙂

  8. Lorraine says

    October 25, 2011 at 10:05 am

    She’s happy and excited to see her friend return…

  9. Jeani Goodrich says

    October 26, 2011 at 3:45 pm

    Thanks for the wonderful explanation Debbie. It is great to see the excitement of the returning chimps. I too had to watch it quite a few times to catch everything. If only the post wasn’t in the way for the kiss I think I would have gotten it after one try! 🙂

Previous Post
Peek-a-boo
Next Post
Happy Birthday Pam Lehnert!

Primary Sidebar

Archives

Calendar of Blog Posts

October 2011
M T W T F S S
 12
3456789
10111213141516
17181920212223
24252627282930
31  
« Sep   Nov »

Categories

SUBSCRIBE TO BLOG VIA EMAIL

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER

Footer

PO Box 952
Cle Elum, WA 98922
[email protected]
509-699-0728
501c3 registered charity
EIN: 68-0552915

Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest Nonprofit Overview and Reviews on GreatNonprofits
Official DDAF Grantee

Menu

  • The Chimpanzees
  • Blog
  • About Us
  • You can help
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Donate

Proud Member of

Connect With Us

Search

Copyright © 2023 Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest. All Rights Reserved. Site by Vegan Web Design