To follow up on Elizabeth’s post yesterday, here’s a good example of Burrito’s other side – the testosterone-filled Tasmanian Devil side that leaves a path of destruction and screaming girls in its wake. This is the side we usually see when we arrive to work in the morning.
As you’ll see in the video, Annie was the victim of one of Burrito’s drive-by displays this morning. Being a chimpanzee is stressful, but they have some pretty good ways of dealing with that stress. Like hugs, for example.
One thing you might notice in the video is that Annie also seeks reassurance from me and I don’t offer it to her. As hard as it may be to resist in these instances, we make a conscious decision to avoid inserting ourselves into their social conflicts. If Annie was startled by a loud noise, we would gladly offer her a touch with the back of a wrist to help comfort her. But when she’s involved in a social conflict, we risk upsetting the delicate balance in the group if we inject ourselves, even if it’s just to offer reassurance. At these times, the chimps aren’t just looking for emotional support – they may also be looking for political allies or even backup for an ensuing retaliatory fight. So we try to limit our involvement to a polite acknowledgement in the hope that they will work things out amongst each other. And they usually do.
Besides, no one can comfort a chimpanzee better than another chimpanzee.
Great capture, JB! Question: When Missy comes back down, she appears to have a fear grimace as well. Is she mirroring Annie’s fear grimace and, if so, is this to calm Annie, or is there another reason why Missy is also grimacing?
That’s a good question, Patti. My best guess is that it is a sympathetic fear grimace – not so much a conscious reaction as an automatic response to Annie’s heightened emotional state. But since Burrito was crashing about, it could also be that Missy was fearful of stirring him up again.
I have many questions that swirl around my little brain regarding chimp displays, politics, personalities, and poor Burrito being the only male. And since I am finishing “Chimpanzee Politics”, the subject of “politics” is from and center!
I see Annie shaking her hand/fingers frantically when she first comes close to you. Is that a “communication” for an urgency for you to reassure her — like “hurry” or something similar? You say Burrito does this most mornings, is it more of a habit/ritual than a power play (if that’s the right word!) and is it connected to your entering the building at all?
I have to admit it, I am fascinated by chimpanzee behavior. Can’t read enough about it! Never hesitate to offer us your “Favorite Books” reading list from staff and caregivers!
I’ll end by saying how beautiful it is to see Burrito displaying and behaving like a chimpanzee should. Something he would have never had the room or freedom to do in his past. Maybe seeing him free to do as he pleases is what makes him so Adorable. ; )
I am just finishing A Beautiful Truth, and the timing of this post couldn’t be better for me. Do you have to worry about the chimps safety, from each other? What would you do (or have you done) if there was an upset in power/balance, and one chimp outcast, or in danger of others? Just curious…. so many things you have to worry about when having these amazing animals in your care…… I can’t even imagine….. Thanks for this glimpse into the complicated matter of chimpanzee society/politics/balance of power……
Hi Regina – Yes, their safety is certainly a concern. We’ve seen our fair share of bites and scratches in the Cle Elum Seven, and it’s not uncommon for one of the chimps to be on antibiotics from a wound incurred during a fight. Jody even had one of her toes bitten completely off a couple years ago. But we try to differentiate between this type of fighting, which can be normal part of chimp life, and the type of fighting that can be life-threatening.
In the wild, serious fighting is *usually* reserved for attacks on other communities or the overthrow of the alpha male. So in captivity, we see this type of fighting most during social introductions. And, sadly, there are some chimps in sanctuaries that can’t be introduced to other chimps because they fight too violently. This is one reason why we are reluctant to take in more adult chimps at CSNW until we can build more enclosures – there’s always a chance the intro won’t work out.
In stable groups, we usually see relatively stable patterns of wounding. But things can change. We keep track of wounding through our electronic medical records, and we observe their social interactions every day. If we ever felt someone’s safety was in jeopardy, we would remove them from the group or split the group into smaller, more stable subgroups.
Thankfully, the number of fights in this group is matched by an equal or greater number of hugs and other affiliative behaviors, so I don’t see any problems in the Seven anytime soon!
Hello Regina, I read A Beautiful Truth, it is one of my favorite books. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. If you were someone totally unfamiliar with chimpanzees it might be confusing at times. It is a deeply moving story, brutal at times but oh so moving. I found myself sobbing at times, and since I would read it before bed, at times I would have to leave the room for fear my sobs would wake my husband up! Perhaps the most beautiful work of fiction I have read in long time. I recommend it.
Hi Kathleen – Yes, I think you’re spot on with your understanding of Annie’s gesture. As for Burrito…there is definitely a correlation between high-arousal behavior and human activity. One study that I remember looked at wounding rates in a laboratory colony and found higher wounding rates on weekdays compared to weekends when there was less human activity. There is probably a hormonal explanation for the diurnal pattern as well. In humans, at least, testosterone peaks in the early morning, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this is true for chimps too.
Sometimes you can see obvious triggers for a display – the presence of visitors or a display from a nearby community of chimps, for example. But other times the behavior seems to just spring up out of nowhere. It’s tempting to look for a proximate cause for every display, but sometimes I think it comes down to this: it benefits some males to prove their dominance, so they are endowed with an urge to display. We sometimes like to think of it like a sneeze – sneezes serve a purpose, but you’re not thinking of that purpose when you feel a sneeze coming. You’ve just got to get it out 🙂
Thanks J.B. for your explanation!
Another great post J.B. Thank you for teaching us so much about chimpanzees, and for letting us in on the lives of the seven.
I have learned a lot from this post. Thank you J.B and the reponses you give to the great questions. The caregivers at CSNW consistenly amaze me in your diligence to do what is right for the 7’s society (like ‘not’ reassuring Annie when she comes to you. At first I thought ‘how hard’ that would be – but then I realize that your love and respect for the sanctuary residents supercedes your ‘desires’ – for lack of a better word. It is precisely ‘how’ you care for these amazing beings that keeps me coming to your website daily, learning, staying open to learning and wishing I could donate MORE. Thank you for ALL that you do.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of the chimps with such a pronounced fear grimace. Very interesting post. Thank you for the detailed explanations of their political, social and emotional interactions – I too am fascinated by what might be going on in a mind built so similarly as ours but with such diverse behaviors.
I’m sure we’ve all felt like acting like Burrito at times. (I guess some humans do…).