George, our newest chimpanzee resident, has been settling in quite nicely. Every day, he seems more comfortable and more trusting of us caregivers. He is still in quarantine, although we are hoping that will be over shortly.
George has experienced the outdoor chute a few times already. The first chute video we posted received a lot of comments about his facial expressions. Commonly confused as a smile, chimpanzees fear grimace when they are scared, nervous, anxious, or overstimulated. Unsurprisingly, George was fear grimacing when he explored the chute for the first time because it was a new environment. However, he also sat with a droopy lip shortly after, which told us he is relaxed and content. These are all normal behaviors of a chimpanzee, especially one that is now living at a new place for the first time in 11 years. George is doing exceptionally well! ☺️
If you’re interested to learn about more chimpanzee facial expressions, you can check out this blog of ours here.
George:
