Archives for June 2014

Jamie – Keeping it Interesting

June 30, 2014 by Lisa

If there is one thing that we have written about more frequently than anything else I think it must be Jamie’s multifaceted personality. Jamie is the boss but she’s also good friend. She takes things seriously but she can also be quite silly when the mood strikes. Sometimes she shares her things and other times she’ll take what she wants from others. She’s a complicated individual. She likes boots, enrichment projects that challenge the mind, and doing things her own way.

Being friends with Jamie Chimpanzee is an intense ride but there is never a dull moment. Jamie keeps everyone on their toes and keeps life at the sanctuary stimulating. I simply can’t imagine the diamond of her mind trapped in the confines of her previous environment and I take every chance I get to provide her with a project. Yesterday that meant that I found more challenging places to hide the playroom lettuce forage. I filled the square building blocks you see in the pictures with lettuce, closed them up tight, and hid them in the playroom. Rather than foraging for the lettuce easily available on the ground Jamie made a beeline for the greater challenge of the blocks.

Today we gave her cleaning supplies so that she could participate in her version of the front room cleaning. I was pleased to see her complete that task with vigor. Although I was unable to get a picture of Jamie cleaning up after us today you can watch video of Jamie’s cleaning style here.

But it’s not always necessary to be on the move with Jamie. Sometimes she appreciates quiet down time with friends too! Grooming is a great social outlet for chimpanzees and, on occasion, the chimpanzees will ask to be groomed by their human caregivers. We are, of course, always happy to oblige a grooming request.

Serenity

June 29, 2014 by Elizabeth

Annie has come a long way since arriving at the sanctuary six years ago. Early on, Annie was nervous and on edge almost all of the time. She lacked confidence and didn’t interact much with the other chimpanzees (except for BFF Missy, of course) or with her caregivers. Fast forward six years and we have a totally different Annie on our hands. She is secure, social, and happy. Even so, being at the bottom of the dominance hierarchy is a stressful situation for anyone, and Annie still has moments of anxiety. So it’s always a pleasure to see her completely relaxed and content, as she was this morning at breakfast.

Chimpanzee Feet

June 28, 2014 by Diana

Because a few people commented that they liked the photo of Annie’s hand posted on the blog a couple of weeks ago, I thought I’d post some chimpanzee feet photos I took recently. Like many of you, I really love chimp feet, in part because of their opposable big toe (obviously).

Missy has very petite feet. I often ask to see her feet and she sticks her toes through the caging to tickle my hand:

Annie frequently holds her feet together when she’s relaxing:

Foxie sometimes sits with her legs wide apart and her feet pointed in. Of course she has a troll nearbyf. Her right foot looks like it’s missing the small toe, but it’s just tucked underneath her foot.

Here’s one of Annie’s hand (she has long, slender fingers), and Jamie’s sturdy feet.

Close ups

June 27, 2014 by Debbie

Elizabeth caught some great close ups of the chimps recently. Wouldn’t you agree?

Burrito:

Jamie:

Jody:

Negra:

Perspective

June 26, 2014 by Debbie

It’s hard to get photos of several chimps in one frame out on the hill. Typically they are foraging or exploring on their own or in pairs, but getting four, five, or six chimps in one frame is pretty rare. It seems this morning, JB was able to capture these rare moments when all but Negra were out on the hill checking out a helicopter flying overhead. They had a good perspective from where they were, I think. And since these aren’t close ups of the chimps, it gives you a new perspective as well.

Annie, Missy, Jody, and Foxie:

Foxie, Jamie, Missy, Annie, Jody, and Burrito:

I like this series a lot because both Jamie on ground and Missy (just above Jamie) are climbing up posts simultaneously. (Foxie is up top and Annie is on the bridge).

How does our garden grow?

June 25, 2014 by Katelyn

The chimpanzees are ready to harvest their garden! The garden, however, is still growing. But try telling that to the chimpanzees. Thanks to the hard work of volunteer caregiver, Denice, it’s really starting to take off!

And Jamie is keeping a close watch on it. Every single day:

This is what Jamie has her eye on from atop her barrel at the barn doors:

Every day Jamie and Missy in particular look out the windows and emphatically gesture toward something they would like to taste. So far we’ve been able to oblige the chimpanzees’ requests with chives, strawberries and today, onions! Jamie takes in the view of the garden, sliding from window to window on top of her barrel by pulling herself along the walls:

Or if you’re Missy, you balance on a tire while checking out the garden:

The garden not only helps us supplement the chimps’ diet and adds beauty to their home, but as you can see, it also provides great enrichment for them. It’s a wonderful thing for them to be able to ask for something they see and for us to be able to harvest it for them.

Much to the chimpanzees’ delight, volunteer caregiver, Erin, was able to serve them onions from the garden today at lunch. You should have heard the never-ending happy foot grunts from Jamie:

Jody was so excited she was a little pilo (hair standing on end) and reaching out to get Erin’s attention for more:

Having a more dominant position in the hierarchy, Jody thought she would also help herself to Negra’s onion. You can see Negra (left) with a fear grimace reaching out in a submissive manner to touch Jody, asking permission to keep her onion. While this is a normal part of chimpanzee society, it’s actually pretty rare that anyone decides to take anything from Negra. She seems to fall outside the hierarchy and maintains a level of respect from the other chimps overall. It must be her role as queen! But the garden onions elicited quite a bit of excitement and Jody was unswayed by Negra’s royal status.

But of course, there was enough to go around and Negra was able to enjoy some onions along with everyone else:

After all that excitement, Annie cuddled up with a blanket for a peaceful afternoon nap in the warm breeze:

Missy Makes a Nest

June 24, 2014 by Elizabeth

Nestmaking is one of my favorite chimpanzee behaviors to watch. Although each chimp has his or her own style, the basics are the same. A chimp will add one blanket at a time to the nest, arranging it so that it’s perfectly placed before continuing. Precision and focus are the name of the game.

Typically, the purpose of building a nest is to have a comfortable place to rest. But sometimes, it seems that the object is the process rather than the result. Missy spent several minutes building this nest in the greenhouse this afternoon, and just a moment after she had placed the last blanket, she leaped out of it and ran off to her next adventure.