As Diana mentioned, we swapped Gordo and Terry in the reintro group yesterday to try to get a better idea of what might trigger Willy B’s antisocial behavior. The reunion between Terry and Honey B was easy – after a brief, half-hearted display, Terry approached the mesh and the two began to play, at which point we simply opened the door between them.
We knew that Gordo would be nervous reentering a group with Willy B so we tried to ensure that Cy, the group’s alpha, would be the first to greet him when the door was opened. We could have introduced Gordo to a subset of the reintro group initially but since they all know each other so well we thought we’d just get right to it.
There are several interesting things to watch here. First, you can see how Cy polices the behavior of his subordinates and protects the vulnerableāyou can see his “feets of fury” (thank you, Sabrina) in action in the playroom scene as he tells Willy B to step down. He’s a good guy. Second, you can see how the females attempt to modulate the behaviors of the males through distractions and grooming. Rayne is particularly adept at this and very in tune with the needs of her group, always watching for moments when the boys might need a little help getting along. And finally, you can see clearly how chimpanzees express trust in one anotherāwhich is, of course, by putting sensitive body parts in each other’s mouths.
This interaction between Gordo and Willy B may seem at first glance like two best friends rejoicing in being reunited but this is actually what is looks like when chimps don’t trust each other. These lengthy, exaggerated displays of vulnerability (e.g., putting your fingers, backside, or scrotum in between another chimps’ gigantic canine teeth) are more common when there isn’t already a solid basis of trust. It’s also common for males to display erections in these circumstances, which may be another evolved display of vulnerability (chimp penises are usually fully retracted into the body for protection). I imagine some of our own greeting gestures such as shaking hands and bowing aren’t that far removed from these same behaviors, though obviously a bit more PG-rated according to our sensibilities.
It will be interesting to see how Gordo’s presence (and Terry’s absence) in the group changes Willy’s behavior, if at all.
Thanks, JB, I was hoping you’d be the one on blog duty today to explain that last bit. The laughter did seem prolonged, to the point where I was going to feel silly for asking “is there such a thing as nervous laughter among chimps?”
I love Cy putting his foot down!
And I did notice good old Raynie putting herself in the middle to deflect tension.
Looks like Willy B has been scrapping even before this. still.
Heads up, the video on YT still has comments enabled.
Wow. Thanks for the informative and frank description of what’s really going on. I certainly hope all of you are successful in calming things down in this troop and applaud your efforts. I really feel for Gordo who already seems from previous desciptions to be one of the more traumatized and socially inept chimps. He just seems to be doing his best to show deference to Willy B.
Go Cy! it’s all that reading that makes him a good leader!
:book::newspaper::monkey:
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If only Gordo and Willy B could coexist comfortably somehow. Iām holding my breath for a positive outcome. Thank you for our lesson today! Cyās foot slaps spoke volumes. After Gordo and Cyās 2 minutes + 2 more minutes + now what do we do bonding moment, how do you feel about them being together moving forward? Was this reaction what you expected? Or do you feel it might be a good starting point because even though their interaction was awkward, both were trying. And Cy made his position and feelings clear to Willy B right from the start. Could this help Willy B now that this reintroduction time has established Cy is the on āin chargeā? I know itās all up to them, and even with all your hard work and strategizing there are delicate personalities involved. Just curious if you have any insight at this early juncture. (Do you feel like youāre sitting on pins and needles as you wait?!)
I wish I could say that I was hopeful but Willy B is notoriouslty capricious. It’s probably foolish to think that his behavior one minute is predictive of anything he will do in the future. In the case of him and Gordo, neither shows any submission, even though both make themselves vulnerable. There is no pant-grunting or other formal acknowledgment of status. And even if there were, we know from Willy’s behavior with Terry that it won’t necesarily make a difference to Willy B. It’s all very interesting but I don’t think we’ve seen anything yet that would indicate a big breakthrough in making this group of nine more stable, unfortunately. But we’re not done trying yet!
There’s only so much you can do.
It’s only Day 2.
Patiently hoping for the best.:fingers_crossed:
Are Willy B and Gordo (and Terry?) vying for the #2 position? And doing it in their own, maybe awkward, way? Is this a power struggle and if so, do other sanctuaries experience similar situations? Iām curious since many chimpanzees coming from labs, entertainment, and roadside zoos must struggle with group dynamics, all in their own way (like Jamie and Negra). Sadly, all these āreleased retireesā never had mothers or a family group members to teach them.
Or, does your current situation all come down to the fact that you have three boys who are simply struggling to figure out and make sense of how chimpanzees should behave together since their pasts didnāt give them much to work with. Itās not as much about a power struggle, itās just a struggle of communication, compatibility, and a little touch of political coexistence?
No need to answer my meanderings now. I look forward to future posts on your progress. I appreciate your openness in explaining the process in way that helps us to better understand each individuals inner struggles, and for presenting the ongoing challenges you all have to focus on to ensure all the chimpanzees in your care receive the support needed to live their best life.
Maybe I’m reading this wrong, but this is what I’ve gleaned so far. Terry, Gordo, and Cy all lived together peacefully before. so the new element in this mix is Willy B and Honey B’s attitude.
It seems that Cy has decided Willy will be number two, which makes sense because of Williy’s size, but also, if Cy can be accused of making good political moves, is a good political move. So the issue is Terry ceding the space for number two. I don’t see any scenario where Gordo has an opportunity to be anybody’s number two, God bless his cute little heart. I think it’s more an issue of Willy B’s insecurity that causes him to pick on the two lower ranking males, just because he can.
Kathleen – I would chalk it up to a Willy B problem, with a number of other factors that prevent the problem from being resolved. Terry does everything right, as far as I can tell. He generally doesn’t care about his position relative to the other boys and pant-grunts appropriately toward Willy B. Gordo is certainly awkward and stubborn and I don’t see him pant-grunt toward anyone, including Cy, but he also doesn’t seem to feel the need to express dominance over other males. So from what I can see, Willy causes a lot of trouble for no good reason, as his position seems pretty secure – that said, I am not a chimp so what do I know. Chimps certainly vie for rank order within the group, but they are also messy, probably self-conscious, insecure, and often unskilled so I think they often just get stuck in maladaptive coping patterns – just like us!
Thank you for the explanation, it’s been interesting both to read and to watch what’s going on.
I so appriciate when you explain their behaviours!
Thank you guys&gals!
:monkey_face::sparkling_heart::monkey_face:
:slight_smile:?:love_letter::100::sparkling_heart:
Wow they must reeeeaally distrust each other!
:laughing: