Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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Burrito

Good Morning Cardio

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Over the course of the years, you may have seen some of the videos posted by other caregivers of them greeting the chimpanzees in the morning. Most of those videos include head nodding, breathy panting, kisses, grooming, etc. Nice slow and calm morning greeting one could expect. But not all caregivers are greeted in the morning the same way. My mornings usually consist of some kind of cardio activity.

Note: The video has been sped up as to not allow the video to stay in it’s nearly 20 minute length it was. I was going to add some music to accompany the video, but I think it’s better with the pitter patters and chimpmunk (see what I did there) voices. And if you’re looking at the time stamps of the footage, the time stamps are different by an hour. This is because there are two security camera systems. From time to time they have to be calibrated so the times can sync up. It was when find this footage I realize I had forgotten to calibrate them after Daylight Savings Time. (They’re sync’d now.)

 

Pokey Joe Burrito

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Let me start by acknowledging that Pokey Joe generally means that someone is moving slowly.  And we know that one would almost never describe our beloved Burrito in that way.  Slow?  Please!

When I call Burrito Pokey Joe, it’s because he’s being especially pokey, as in poking me, poking food that’s being served, or poking my phone/camera.  I recently got some video footage of Burrito in an especially pokey mood.  And to top it off, I got some fun footage of Burrito and his good friend Foxie, playing and laughing their heads off!

I’ve titled this blog “Pokey Joe Burrito”, but it could also be called “That Time My Phone Ended Up In the Drain”!

Enjoy!

Chimpanzee Dynamics – It’s Complicated

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As I was putting together videos for today’s blog, some playful moments between Foxie, Jamie, Burrito and Negra, I realized they presented a nice moment to highlight the complicated intricacies of chimpanzee politics and friendships. We have observed a lot of complicated and sometimes downright confusing moments as we have undergone the reintroduction process with the group of 9, constantly looking to understand their relationships and dynamics to determine next steps, but “it’s complicated” can be applied even in long-standing groups of chimpanzees like Jamie’s group.

Chimpanzees can be brutal. They fight and injure each other, and being low ranking within the group hierarchy can be a tough role to fill. Lower ranking individuals endure more stealing of things like food from higher ranking individuals, usually don’t get first access to the most exciting items (like more novel or high-value foods or enrichment), and can become the recipient of redirected aggression during conflicts within their group even when they weren’t initially involved because they are an “easy” target. Maintaining status as a high-ranking individual isn’t easy either, and depending on the individual and their strategy for maintaining status in their group, they may put themself in harm’s way more frequently in attempts to maintain or improve their rank. An example of this in action could be Willy B displaying and hitting Lucky as part of a dominance display, which then results in many chimps chasing and hitting at Willy B.

Chimpanzees are also capable of remarkable forgiveness and reconciliation, and form meaningful relationships that shape not only their own lives but greatly impact the lives of those around them as well. While the moments of fighting, aggression, and tension can feel very big for us as the humans caring for them, the chimpanzees are often quick to overlook another’s transgressions, and spend time grooming and playing to ease tension and build relationships. Being high-ranking is often not as simple as who is the biggest, strongest, or fastest. Relationships with the other chimpanzees can highly influence where an individual falls in the hierarchy, as friendships can translate to having support during conflicts (or a lack of support), and can limit or expand an individual’s aspirations for higher rank.

I say all that to say, witnessing moments of play between high-ranking and often imposing Jamie and low-ranking Foxie is all the sweeter when you recognize the complexities of their relationship. While Jamie can be intimidating and domineering, they can still find common ground and enjoy moments of play. Burrito and Negra too have a complicated relationship – they have a standing play time each day as they wait for us to finish cleaning their playroom, but Negra is also often a target for Burrito when he feels the need to display. While there are moments of tension, they enjoy many more moments of play and companionship. Being a chimp is just plain complicated!