Today, Jamie built herself yet another nest using a blanket and a box. This sparked a conversation between Diana and I about the similarities and differences of nesting behavior of captive vs. free-living chimpanzees. We couldn’t find many videos on the internet of free-living chimpanzees nesting, however, Jane Goodall’s Discover Chimpanzees Website has a behavior glossary, complete with video footage of the chimpanzees in Gombe engaging in a variety of behaviors, including this clip of nesting. If you compare the following video clips of Jody, Missy and Jamie (in order of appearance) to the video clip from the Discover Chimpanzees Website, you can see many similarities. Notice how the free-living chimpanzee (named Fifi) pulls the branches into her nest and pushes them down to make her bed more comfortable. It truly is an exact science.
chimp enrichment
Snow in the sandbox
Cle Elum got a little snow overnight, so this morning after cleaning the playroom Jackie and I gathered some from outside and filled the chimps’ sandbox. We buried some cranberries in there for good measure (you can see Jamie searching for them in this video). The chimps love (to eat) the snow, but aren’t crazy about the chilly temperatures, so they seemed to enjoy having a bit of the outdoors brought inside for them.
Party in the evening
A few photos of the dinner fun. The Tofurky dinner was a big hit, and of course, everyone loves cranberry sauce. Oh! And shots of punch (see Negra in the third photo below). A day full of food grunting!
Gearing up to party
Packages from good friends of the Cle Elum Seven chimpanzees have begun to arrive and volunteers are busy getting ready for the big celebration on the 25th. The chimps? Well, Negra is doing her thing.
Volunteer Denice wrapping gifts that Robbi sent and getting into the spirit of the  holidays. (Beware when Diana and a camera are in the chimp house 😉
Volunteer Deb making treats from wrapped tubes and supplies sent by Candy
Negra doing her blanket thing in front of a window in the playroom (soon – no bars on the window!) Photos taken by Sarah earlier today
Caregivers’ Use of Chimpanzee Behaviors
Having recently finished my master’s thesis, I thought this would be an appropriate venue for talking about my thesis topic: the use of chimpanzee behaviors and vocalizations by caregivers. At CSNW, the caregivers incorporate chimpanzee behaviors when interacting with the chimps. For example, during play, we exhibit chimpanzee playfaces, laughter and other playful behaviors. In addition, we use submissive behaviors when the chimpanzees display aggressive behaviors. Chimpanzees are excellent readers of nonverbal behavior. Some natural human behaviors, such as walking upright, swinging our arms, and smiling, are all aggressive/territorial behaviors to chimpanzees. Therefore, although they understand human behavior, to prevent a possible miscommunication, we use behaviors to let the chimpanzees know we are their friends, rather than trying to dominate them. Playing this submissive role has produced relationships that are centered around cooperation and friendship. In my thesis research, when caregivers used chimpanzee behaviors, the chimps spent more time interacting with the caregivers and used more playful and friendly behaviors. I see the effects of this everyday, and feel this simple thing has greatly improved these chimpanzees’ psychological wellbeing. So, next time you see a chimpanzee, whether it be at a zoo or a sanctuary, try giving them a chimpanzee head nod or a playface (you’ll see these behaviors in the video). They will be elated to know someone out there speaks chimpanzee! And being submissive when the chimpanzees are displaying (as seen in THIS video), lets them know that we aren’t threatening them and that we are their friends. It can make a world of difference.
Through The Looking Glass
Today was a really nice day, so I was able to give the chimps access to their Outdoor Enclosure and their Front Rooms while Elizabeth and I cleaned the Playroom. Almost everyone was playing outside at some point, and they were very interested in playing with us through the new glass window. This has been such a wonderful addition to the sanctuary. It must be SO nice to look out and not see bars! And they’ve created a very fun (and distracting!) new game to boot!
Thanksgiving Field Roast Dinner
As Elizabeth mentioned in yesterday’s blog post, the good people at Field Roast Grain Meat, Co. generously donated some vegan grain meat for the chimp’s Thanksgiving Dinner. Thanks so much Field Roast Grain Meat, Co.! The chimps really enjoyed it!
