Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

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fight

Trust

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It takes a lot of trust for two chimpanzees to play together. Many play behaviors are variations on fighting behaviors – chasing, wrestling, stealing, slapping, hitting, etc. – and as play gets more aggressive, it’s easy to misunderstand your partner’s intentions. When the chimps first arrived at the sanctuary, Foxie and Annie would occasionally attempt to play, and it almost always ended up as a fight. They just didn’t have enough trust in one another.

Things sure have changed.

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I wouldn’t say that Foxie and Annie are best friends now, but they certainly have come to understand each other more and they even engage in rough and tumble play from time to time without it erupting into a conflict. This morning, Foxie even allowed Annie to playfully steal (and dismember!) one of her Dora dolls. That’s when you know you are a member of Foxie’s inner circle.

Reconciliation

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Every once and a while, there’s a little more tension in the group than usual. Fights break out more often, and when they do, they result in more injuries. But chimps have a mechanism for dealing with this tension.

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After a big conflict last weekend, they’ve been working hard to reestablish their relationships through grooming.

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Chances are, some of the wounds they are grooming on each other are wounds they themselves inflicted.

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But that’s life for a chimp. You fight, and you make up. Then, maybe, you fight again.

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But you always make up.

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Hierarchy

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Yesterday, during the party, Negra and Jody found themselves eating from the same pinata.

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Negra, being dominant to Jody, decides that she’d rather not share. As Negra pulls the pinata away from Jody, Jody gets upset and begins to just slightly bare her teeth out of fear. Negra then displays a facial expression known as a full open grin. As you can see, her upper and lower lips are drawn all the way back, exposing all of her large and powerful teeth. This is a sign of fear or excitement, and is often seen when social conflict breaks out.

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Jody responds with a full closed grin. Her lips are drawn back like Negra’s, but her jaw is closed. She is upset that Negra has pulled rank, so she goes to Burrito and Foxie for reassurance.

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After being reassured by Burrito and receiving a kiss and a hug from Foxie, Jody returns to Negra, who offers her an extended arm in reconciliation. Jody accepts.

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And the Queen gets the pinata.

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As it should be.

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This is all very similar to the conflict we showed a couple of weeks ago, but in this case all of the behavior was ritualized and no one was harmed in the process. As aggressive as they may be, chimpanzees are also very good at negotiating peaceful settlements to their disagreements. Part of this is due to their dominance hierarchies, which can help predetermine the outcome of smaller skirmishes without the need for fighting.

We mentioned before on this blog how difficult it can be to describe the dominance hierarchy at CSNW. One reason is that these seven chimpanzees had little social experience before coming to the sanctuary. They had to start figuring out how to be chimpanzees when they were already well into adulthood, with no role models to emulate and no culture to absorb – just seven misfits trying to figure things out as they went along.

But another explanation is that the majority of the Cle Elum Seven are female, and in the wild, the hierarchy amongst females is often less linear than it is for males. In some communities, the females seem to be ranked in broad groups rather than by the individual.

I would say that is true for the Cle Elum Seven. It’s clear that Jamie, Negra, Jody, and Burrito are dominant individuals, but among them, it’s not always clear how they are ranked. The hierarchy is complex, fluid, and context-dependent. For example, Burrito’s dominance displays are respected and tolerated by all of the females, but Jamie can steal his lunch with impunity. Jamie gets upset when Jody gets a hold of prized food, but she is not always successful in her attempts to steal it away. Negra always submits to Burrito, but she steals from Jamie and Jody. Honestly, it can get confusing.

Nevertheless, we refer to Jamie as the alpha of the group because she regularly fights for dominance and usually gets her way. Negra, on the other hand, seems to earn respect without trying.

All she wants is her night bags, a quiet nap, and occasionally, someone else’s pinata.

Conflict and Reconciliation

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Last week, a squabble broke out during dinner. Since we’re always talking about how we never capture conflicts on video, I decided to sit quietly and record the whole thing on my phone.

I’m always amazed at how much is going on during a fight. Alliances are being forged, tested, and sometimes broken. Old grudges are being dug up and rehashed. Some subordinate chimps are engaged in proxy fights on behalf their superiors, others are playing mediator and trying not to harm the alliances they’ve worked so hard to build, and some, like Burrito, are doing all they can just to stay out of the way. And that’s just the fight – as soon as it’s over, it’s on to reconciliation phase.

It’s easy to miss all of these things amidst all the screaming, so what follows is my attempt at a play-by-play.

When the going gets tough

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There’s always been a lot of tension between Jamie and Jody. Though Jamie is the alpha of the Cle Elum Seven, she’s never been secure in her leadership. She views everyone as a potential threat to her status as leader, and every action they take as a potential sign of disrespect. Jody, however, is strong willed and independent, and she refuses to submit to Jamie’s incessant demands for obedience.

Most of the mealtime conflicts here at CSNW follow the same script: Jody takes food that is rightfully hers. Jamie is upset that Jody took food. Jamie screams for ten minutes straight while following Jody around and demanding the food.

In their first few years at the sanctuary, Jody would break down and acquiesce. But over time she discovered that Jamie was more bark than bite, so she learned to hang onto the food in contention. And just the other day, when Jamie began her screaming routine over a piece of celery, Jody decided that she’d had enough, and she chased Jamie out onto Young’s Hill. Jamie was forced to take refuge on a climbing structure while Jody returned to the greenhouse to enjoy her celery in peace.

This one interaction doesn’t mean that Jody has taken over the alpha position in the group. She just doesn’t seem to have the drive or the backing to follow through with it. But it’s a good example of why the two might not always enjoy each others company.

Unless, that is, there is trouble afoot.

This morning, Jody was spooked by something out on the hill.

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The others sensed her alarm and began to gather around.

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But Jody wasn’t looking for their help. She knew exactly who she needed on her side in a situation like this.

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She walked down the hill to meet Jamie, who was just coming out to check on the commotion. As soon as they met, Jody offered Jamie a kiss and embraced her in a request for reassurance.

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Together, they joined up with Foxie and Burrito to patrol the area.

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Jody may not always consider Jamie her best friend, but when the going gets tough, who are you going to turn to? The guy who hides behind a tree?

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Or the boss?

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A different perspective

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Our blog is biased. When you watch our videos, you are likely to see the chimps eating, playing, making nests, or using enrichment. Our blog posts are based on impromptu recordings of the daily goings on here, and these are the things that tend to catch our eye.

You are less likely to see the chimps spitting at us, poking us, or fighting with each other. These things do happen (on a daily basis), but they are much harder to capture on film. So here’s a look at the other (healthy and perfectly normal) side of chimps. It’s not always easy to be a caregiver, but it’s always interesting!

Laughter

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The chimps were in such playful moods yesterday! I could hear laughter coming from the playroom, so I grabbed the camera and caught Foxie and Jamie in a 10-minute long game of “steal the troll”. Thankfully, Foxie won in the end and the troll was returned to its rightful owner.

What a difference a day makes…when we came in this morning, the group had clearly been fighting and they had that look that says We can’t wait to take our frustration out on you, J.B., when you serve us breakfast!. Needless to say, I got drenched. But that’s what I’m here for!