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Bonobos and chimpanzees diverged from each other around 2 million years ago and differ in morphology, behavior, and perhaps even emotions and cognition in important ways.
The
Bonobo
Bonobos are female dominant, with females forming tight bonds against males through same-sex socio-sexual contact that is thought to limit aggression. In the wild, they have not been seen to cooperatively hunt, use tools, or exhibit lethal aggression.
The Chimpanzee
Chimpanzees are male dominant, with intense aggression between different groups that can be lethal. Chimpanzees use tools, cooperatively hunt monkeys, and will even eat the infants of other chimpanzee groups.
Bonobos and Chimpanzees share close to 99% of their genome in common with humans, meaning that their genomes are more similar to that of humans than they are to that of gorillas. However, it may be that Bonobos, whose psychology is virtually unstudied relative to that of chimpanzees, are more similar to humans than are chimpanzees in how they solve various social problems (e.g. Hare, Melis, Woods, Hastings, & Wrangham, 2007). Such similarities may even be partly the result of shared and heritable neurophysiology that potentially regulates the social emotions of humans and Bonobos in similar ways (Hammock & Young, 2005). |
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Bonobos (Pan paniscus) |
Chimps (Pan troglodytes) |
physiology |
slender build, bright pink lips, black face
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obust build, facecolour changes with age, dark lips |
ecological environment |
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- South of the Congo river
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Across West- and Central Africa, remaining populations distributed over
several countries. |
sexual dimorphism |
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social organization
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- Fission-fusion-societies
- larger parties that chimps
- live in 'communities' of multiple males and females and their offspring
- mother-son- and female-female-bonds very important
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- Fission-fusion-societies
- live in 'communities' of multiple males and females and their offspring
- Different group-composition than in Bonobos
- male-male-bonds very important
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vocalization |
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- Hoot, scream, grunt,
- Drum on hollow trees
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dominance hierarchy
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- females form strong bonds and
- exert social dominance over the males
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- Linear set of relationships among all males
- Includes a clear alpha-male
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group hunting |
not observed yet |
cooperative hunting of monkeys |
territoriality
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- groups occupy specific territories,
- territories can overlap
- mating across community lines observed
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- specific territories,
- aggressive patrolling of boundaries,
- avoidance of neighbors
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tool use
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only frequently seen in captivity
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- nut cracking
- ant dipping/ fishing
- leaf clipping
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sexual behaviour
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- used for social bondage
- pairs can include all age and sex combinations
- reduction of tension
- elicit social or food benefits
- frequent homosexual interactions esp. in females
- Used as greeting, conflict resolution
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- High ranking males monopolize and guard females in estrus
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threats
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hunting
snares
habitat destruction
infectious diseases |
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