Negra’s To Do List – Friday, February 19
- Take a nap
- Take a nap ✅
Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary
by J.B.
by J.B.
Each chimpanzee makes a nest in their own unique way. In fact, I bet most chimpanzee caregivers could name the chimp if someone simply described how they make a nest at night. Here at CSNW, we’ve got Jody, who gathers up as many blankets as possible, throws them over her shoulder and drops half of them in a doorway as she searches for the right bench to sleep on. And Burrito, who throws a single blanket over his shoulder on his way to bed like he is carrying a towel to the swimming pool. And Honey B, who wraps herself up like a to-go burrito. All ten of of the chimps here have a particular style and a ritual when it comes to nest-making. As do most humans, I would assume.
Here are a few bonus photos of Foxie from this morning.
by J.B.
At the end of each day, free-living chimpanzees build elaborate nests and go to sleep for the night. These night nests, typically built high up in the crown of a tree, are thought to serve a number of functions including thermoregulation, protection from predators and parasites, and shelter from the elements. According to one researcher who spent time sleeping both on the ground and in chimpanzee nests, they may also simply provide a more comfortable night’s rest. Chimpanzees spend considerable time selecting the proper trees and branches on which to build their nests and then weaving smaller branches and leaves together to form a mattress or basket. This investment of time and energy makes sense; after all, once they are asleep, it is only the quality of their nest keeping them from falling to the ground below.
Day nests, by contrast, are hastily constructed and typically far less structurally complex. They are also more likely to be made on or near the ground. Day nests are simply a place to relax for a moment before the group moves on to another spot.
The chimps at CSNW tend to follow a similar pattern when it comes to the elevation of their nests. Jamie and Foxie in particular regularly make their day nests on the floor of the playroom or front rooms but will make their night nests almost exclusively on elevated benches or catwalks (while Foxie doesn’t build elaborate nests like the others, she does engage in rudimentary nesting behavior). The biggest difference between the nests of the Cle Elum Seven and those of their wild counterparts is that the Seven’s day and night nests are equally complex. Perhaps this can be explained by the fact the the Cle Elum Seven don’t travel very far during the day, and thus they are free to spend as much time in their days nests as they’d like or even return to them throughout the day if they so choose.
In fact, it’s possible that Jamie’s day nests are even more complex than her night nests. This afternoon I watched her make a nest on the playroom floor. With her new favorite boots tucked into her “pelvic pocket,” she twirled fleece blankets in circles around her for several minutes, pushing and pulling each one to form the perfect shape. Then she carefully wove the ends of those blankets through nearby caging, as if to anchor the otherwise unstable nest to something sturdy. She pulled two of her new books close by, one on tractors and another on the chimpanzee children of Gombe, so that she could flip through them as she drifted off to sleep. To top things off, she pulled the last blanket over herself. With each step of this elaborate process she let out a low moan – a sign of contentment.
by Diana
Today was the kind of day to kick your feet up…
take in the wonder of your surroundings…
share a moment with a friend in the sun…
enjoy what nature has to offer…
settle in with a good book…
and take some trolls for a walk.
Happy Saturday from the chimpanzees!
by J.B.
It’s been very quiet here today. Freezing rain has left everything coated in a thick layer of ice, making it nearly impossible to travel to or from the sanctuary.
Jamie didn’t seem too upset by the fact that her two-acre habitat had frozen over. In fact, she seemed to relish the opportunity to stay inside, make a cozy nest with blankets, giant stuffed animals, and her favorite boots, and leisurely flip through a new book about primates.
by J.B.
We give out over 70 fleece blankets each day so that the chimps can sleep in clean, comfortable nests. Night nests are usually built up off the ground on the catwalks in the playroom or on benches in the smaller front rooms. Sometimes the chimps sleep near each other, other times they seek privacy.
Annie often gathers blankets from the playroom and front rooms to build her nest on a front room bench. Its takes a lot of work to get the nest just right.
by J.B.
Humans aren’t the only ones that like to curl up with a good book on a rainy morning.
The chimps spent the early part of the day on Young’s Hill, but before long the rain had them retreating back inside to the cozy greenhouse and playroom. Jamie returned to find a new book, one of many sent in recently by a generous supporter, and she immediately gathered all of her favorite things so that she could flip through her book from the comfort of a good nest.
The only problem – the nest was too comfortable.
Her eyelids grew heavier and heavier until she couldn’t fight it anymore, and she drifted off to sleep.
Her new book would have to wait.
PO Box 952
Cle Elum, WA 98922
[email protected]
509-699-0728
501c3 registered charity
EIN: 68-0552915
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