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.
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!
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.
So much packed into such a short time! Thanks for the excellent commentary!
Also, very interesting video of a lower ranking member of the group greeting a higher ranking member.
lol, I must be slow, I had to watch it 4 times to catch everything 🙂
Thank you, Debbie, for the education!
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! 😀
I am not as sweet as Annie!
Hello Audrey, i loved your post.I had a lot of laughter reading it. Thank you, Lynne
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 🙂
She’s happy and excited to see her friend return…
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! 🙂