Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary

chimpanzee

Fingerprints

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Chimpanzee hands are remarkably similar to our own, from their ability to grasp and use tools to their unique fingerprints. While the exact function of a fingerprint’s various whirls, loops, and arches is still unclear, it’s thought that they might increase grip on some surfaces or improve tactile perception. Scientists have yet to specifically examine the grooming-with-a-chopstick origin theory. As far as I know, koalas are the only animals other than primates to have them – a cool example of convergent evolution.

 

 

Happy Birthday, Tobin!

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Rebecca Babcock sponsors today in honor of one of our long-time supporters, Tobin!

“Today marks the day that I received 98.76% of the chimpanzee that I had requested of my mother and our local physician, Dr. Fred. I love you, Tobin. I have long since forgiven the non-chimp 1.24% By your gracious introduction of 10 new friends and 4 beautiful bovines out in Washington, you have totally redeemed yourself. Happiest Of Birthday Wishes to you.”

Thank you for making a difference in the lives of the chimpanzees and cattle in honor of Tobin! What a lovely thing to do.

Tobin, we so appreciate your presence, heart and support of the chimpanzees, bovines (and humans!) here and all of us wish you the happiest of days! Thank you for being part of our chimp family! Happy Birthday!

Dear, beloved Jody. Whatever Jody does, she does fully present, with her whole heart. Whether she’s foraging for her beloved wild greens, relaxing in her nest, or making sure that her family members are safe and looked after, she makes all our lives and hearts so much fuller. She inspires us every single day. Thank you so very much for being her pal, Tobin. We wish you a Jody kind of day.

Do You Want To Play A Game?

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Chimpanzee communication is a fascinating field of study. I only consider myself lucky I somehow ended up studying chimpanzee gestures. Though I study chimpanzee non-vocal communication. The vocal and auditory side of communication is still highly interesting. The food grunt in particular amazes me, mostly because I too make similar noises when I come across my favorite foods. So let’s play a game! Can you guess whose food grunts are in this video? The answers are at the end of video. No peeking!

In other news, the chimpanzees were also treated to some freshly harvested cattails from Diana today. With one of their favorites bounties harvested, Anthony and I decided to make a lunch forage on Young’s Hill.

Negra raced to the closest and largest of the cattails and made her way back to the Greenhouse.

Jody also grabbed her first cattail of the afternoon, with some sides of carrots and sweet potatoes and a Burrito right behind her.

Annie was also one of the first to snag a cattail and raced every which way collecting some of the other food before making her way back to the Greenhouse to escape some sudden wind.

The drowsy days of summer

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It’s warmed up again today and the wind is blowing enough that it has a furnace like quality. All the chimpanzees have been active today, but once lunch and late afternoon rolled around, I began seeing everyone start to grow drowsy in the heat.

Honey B and Mave were grooming while Willy B napped outside in the chute:

Eventually Honey B grew sleepy:

Jody dozing off in the greenhouse:

Jamie was quietly grooming herself with her boot tucked away in her pelvic pocket (naturally) when even she nodded off:

Of course you know who was not sleepy today? Yep, this guy, flailing about like a wild thing in the playroom while he plays with Chad on the outside of the window:

I’m telling you just looking at these photos is making me sleepy. The chimp house is completely quiet right now, the only sounds are the wind, the neighboring swallow kids who are starting to fledge the nest and (!!!) much to my astonishment and thrill, a cicada!!

Now I realize if you live somewhere cicadas are a common sight and sound, you may not feel the same level of excitement about this as I do. But I love cicadas and they hold a special place in my heart where I hold a lot of love for the south and my time there. I’ve spent most of my life in the Pacific Northwest and until two days ago had no idea we had cicadas here! Someone local posted a photo on Facebook recently asking what they were and I couldn’t believe my eyes. I was Elphaba green with envy they’d seen them! But the cicadas must have heard my lament because lo and behold who should perch on the fence outside the chimp house and even land on me today?! Our regional orchard cicada! Their loud, steady stridulation is only adding to the spell cast by this summer day, lulling us all to sleep.

We’re minutes away from dinner being served though and the chimp house is due to erupt with hoots and hollers any minute so I better snap to!…And right on cue, the first hoots are happening! Dinner time! Have a lovely evening everyone!

The Mystery of the Disappearing Jersey Cows

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It was a chilly morning, smothered by gray clouds and filled with incessant wind.

The chimps did not seem excited when I opened the gateway to Young’s Hill, and they sneered as the wind lashed their faces and caused the prairie grasses to whip around them. Soon, they had all retreated back to the warm security of the Greenhouse. Inside, they used blankets and other enrichment items to make elaborate nests.

Jamie
Annie
Jody
Negra

All seemed to be subdued by the weather. The exception, of course, was Burrito. As Diana demonstrated in yesterday’s blog and video, Bubba’s appetite for play has been insatiable. This morning, he stomped around the Playroom and Greenhouse while clutching a decapitated doll.

The clouds eventually dissipated and the landscape began to feel warmer around midday. As we normally do on Sunday afternoons, I stayed in the building to write the blog while Chad hopped on the Gator and took care of the cattle. When he came back to the Chimp House about thirty minutes later, he appeared frazzled. Although I was hesitant to ask, I inquired “How are the cows today?”

Chad caught his breath and recounted his tale. Apparently, after mucking the barn and refilling the water troughs, he had trouble locating the cattle to give them their daily fly treatment. He drove all over the property with the Gator, growing more frantic with each empty pasture, until he was on the verge of sending a radio transmission for backup. He began to fear that the cattle had escaped (which wouldn’t be the first time one of us had that thought).

Just as he was about to call Katelyn and I to join him in the search for four missing Jerseys, he saw movement down in the wetlands. Sure enough, hidden in the thick vegetation that grows along a seasonal creek bed between the pastures, Chad found Betsy, Honey, Meredith and Nutmeg. The cattle had not escaped, but they were remarkably camouflaged.

I found this story amusing, but was also obviously relieved to know that the cattle were safe. A few minutes later, I grabbed the sanctuary’s camera and trudged up the hill to take some photographs of the intrepid bovines. Honey had climbed out of the ravine and appeared to be on high alert as she watched me approach. (Honey is the ultimate skeptic.) Betsy and Meredith were grazing together in the shady areas beneath the Ponderosa pines, and Nutmeg was still browsing in the muddy creek.

Going into the vegetation to forage is nothing new (e.g., J.B.’s photo of Nutmeg from Friday), but we’re still constantly amazed by how wild the cattle have become despite their commercialized past.

Honey
Honey
Betsy and Meredith
Honey
Meredith and Betsy
Nutmeg (down in the creek)
One of the ponds (located below the creek)

Burrito will play with you now

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If you are not already a big fan of Burrito, you should be after watching today’s video. Seriously, he has been non-stop playful lately. He’s definitely a bright light during these difficult times!

The Doll Days of Summer

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We start each day with a walk around the perimeter of Young’s Hill. This is done as a precaution to ensure that the fence wasn’t somehow compromised overnight, but it is also a great time to check on the cows. While they are constantly on the move, on summer mornings they can often be found just above the chimp enclosure where they like to sleep. As I walked by this morning, the girls were in the middle of a grooming session.

Honey grooms Betsy.
Betsy grooms Meredith.
Meredith grooms Honey.

Nutmeg didn’t get any of the love this time, but don’t worry – his mom always takes care of him. I did got photo of him the other day as he drank from the spring-fed stream that bisects that sanctuary property.

Willy B was feeling pretty adventurous again today. He’s getting pretty comfortable sitting on the grass if he is close to the structure.

If he ventures any further, he brings a chair with him for a sense of security, or perhaps so that he can get his feet off of the ground at a moment’s notice.

At one point, I saw him rolling the big white barrel away from the boardwalk. What on earth is he doing? Diana even called me on the radio to inquire as she watched from the mezzanine inside.

After pushing the barrel out into the courtyard, he pulled up a chair and sat down to enjoy the view.

After lunch, Diana was weeding the garden by the Greenhouse and gave out some of the prickly lettuce that she had pulled. This is one of the chimps’ favorite weeds. They can pick as much as they want from Young’s Hill but I think it tastes better when someone else does all the work.

Missy wasn’t in the mood for prickly lettuce, though – she wanted goat’s beard – so she took off to Young’s Hill to find some.

I know we’ve mentioned this before, but the salt and pepper hair on Foxie’s arms is really starting to lose its pepper.

Thankfully, age has not slowed her down yet.

While Foxie’s love of dolls is unmatched, others in the group can be seen carrying dolls from time to time, particularly in the summer. Just like the waistbands, it’s a seasonal thing. You know who really likes Dora the Explorer lately? This guy.