There are a few foods that a lot of caregivers mildly dread serving to the chimpanzees. One of these foods is corn on the cob. Corn is a hot commodity for the chimps and with its distinguished deliciousness, comes a wave of competitive desire from a few of the dominant individuals (namely Jamie and Jody) to try and steal as many pieces of corn as possible from the other chimps. This as you might imagine, is not seen as a popular tactic and can cause chaos and screams to ring through the sanctuary. We rarely serve whole pieces of corn any more because it causes so much drama, and instead will break the cobs in half, or cut them into many tiny pieces for play room forages. Today however, we decided to spread whole corn far and wide out on Young’s Hill. There is something about having all that extra space for foraging out on the hill that the chimps seem genuinely satisfied and lose a little bit of that competitive tension.
Of course there are some chimps that are a bit more successful…
Jody:
Negra seemed so pleased with her one large corn that she headed right back inside with it to enjoy:
Burrito needed a lot of reassurance from Foxie because he was so thrilled (note how “fluffy” he looks with his hair standing on end). Foxie was perfectly happy to pick up a bunch of primate chow that we also scattered with the corn.
Jamie and Missy were moving and eating quickly, but I promise they got lots of lunch too!
Annie ate all of her corn while she was outside:
Well, who doesn’t fight over fresh corn on the cob? We only get it once a year! LOL!
Just look at Jody with armfuls and fistfuls of corn and a mouthful of who knows what — she seems very pleased with herself! Equally delightful is dear Negra with just one big ol’ ear of corn and the happiness she must be feeling as she dashes inside to enjoy her find. It is true, the window for summer corn is so small, who doesn’t get excited (like Burrito!) when it is served. Annie sure looks happy with her cob!
This one prompts me to say that all postings from you are just delightfully written. Such a pleasure, always. Thank you, Anna, and others!