Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Raphaela Heesen, Adrian Bangerter, Klaus Zuberbuhler, Katia Iglesias, Christof Neumann, Aude Pajot, Laura Perrenoud, Jean-Pascal Guery, Federico Rossano, Emilie Genty
Summary: Research shows that chimpanzees and bonobos exhibit entry and exit phases similar to humans in joint activities, demonstrating a process of joint commitment. Bonobos' phases are more influenced by friendship, reflecting patterns akin to human face management more than chimpanzees do. This suggests that the process of joint commitment was already present in our common ancestor with Pan.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hanna Marno, Christoph J. Volter, Brandon Tinklenberg, Dan Sperber, Josep Call
Summary: When human infants are addressed intentionally, they interpret the information as relevant and valuable. Similarly, great apes are sensitive to communicative cues, but in this study, they failed to prioritize efficiency when the ineffective method was demonstrated in a communicative way. This suggests that the communicative demonstration elicited an expectation of relevance and modified apes' interpretation of the situation.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Biology
Loic Pougnault, Florence Levrero, Mael Leroux, Julien Paulet, Pablo Bombani, Fabrice Dentressangle, Laure Deruti, Baptiste Mulot, Alban Lemasson
Summary: Two hypotheses related to the evolution of animal vocal communication have gained ground in the last decade: one suggesting that complexity of communication co-evolved with social complexity, and another proposing that primitive conversational rules exist in primates. Comparative studies on great apes such as chimpanzees, bonobos, gorillas, and orang-utans reveal that vocal interaction patterns are influenced by societal factors, with species showing different patterns based on social structure, diversity of social bonds, and interaction types. This suggests that studying vocal turn-taking in non-human great apes could provide insights into the socially driven evolution of communication.
BIOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2022)
Review
Ethics
Bernardo Aguilera, Javiera Perez Gomez, David DeGrazia
Summary: This study systematically reviewed the reasons for and against restricting the use of great apes in invasive research, showing that there is a trend towards greater restrictions in both academic debate and worldwide policy changes. The reasons were mostly in favor of restrictions, particularly in domains like moral standing and respect and rights, while there was significant engagement between opposing positions in domains such as science and welfare. Additionally, the study found low diversity and independence among authors, including frequent conflicts of interests in articles defending strong positions.
BMC MEDICAL ETHICS
(2021)
Article
Biology
Cathal O'Madagain, Katharina A. Helming, Marco F. H. Schmidt, Eli Shupe, Josep Call, Michael Tomasello
Summary: Research has shown that great apes and 5-year-old children have the ability to keep track of the reasons for their decisions, while 3-year-old children do not. Additionally, apes are only sensitive to conflicting physical evidence, whereas 3-year-old children are more sensitive to peer disagreement.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Ana Nuno, Chloe Chesney, Maia Wellbelove, Elena Bersacola, Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, Fabian Leendertz, Amanda D. Webber, Kimberley J. Hockings
Summary: The emergence of infectious diseases, such as COVID-19, has a significant impact on livelihood strategies and conservation tools reliant on human-wildlife interactions. Understanding visitor compliance with disease mitigation measures is essential for effectively implementing these measures at great ape tourism sites, and can contribute to a more sustainable visitor experience.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Natalie D. L. York, Rose Pritchard, Laura Aileen Sauls, Charis Enns, Timothy Foster
Summary: Advancements in remote sensing technology have brought significant changes to biodiversity conservation research and practices, but also raise important issues regarding ethics and social justice. A scoping review was conducted to examine the current level and discussions of ethics and justice in the use of remote sensing in conservation. The findings reveal a limited number of peer-reviewed papers addressing justice and ethics in this context. The reviewed literature highlights themes such as the surveillance implications of remote sensing, its militarized associations, power asymmetry disruptions caused by these technologies, and the ethical considerations for different species. Drawing from the recommendations in the review, this article reflects on how conservation can learn from data ethics research in other fields, and discusses potential mechanisms to promote socially just conservation using remote sensing technologies and data. Research priorities are identified, including more comparative case studies, investigations into the political economy and geopolitics of conservation remote sensing, and exploration of ethical and philosophical perspectives in biodiversity conservation.
BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION
(2023)
Review
Genetics & Heredity
Aisha Yousaf, Junfeng Liu, Sicheng Ye, Hua Chen
Summary: The availability of high-quality genome sequences of great ape species has provided unprecedented opportunities for genomic analyses. This review summarizes recent progress in evolutionary comparative genomic studies of human, chimpanzee, bonobo, gorilla, and orangutan, focusing on evolutionary history, natural selection, structural variations, and new genes, offering insights into the origin of human-specific phenotypes.
FRONTIERS IN GENETICS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Johan Lind, Vera Vinken, Markus Jonsson, Stefano Ghirlanda, Magnus Enquist
Summary: Identifying cognitive capacities underlying the human evolutionary transition is challenging. Recent studies suggest key differences in how humans and other animals recognize and remember information. This study tests the memory for stimulus sequences and finds that bonobos' working memory decays rapidly and they fail to learn the order of two stimuli, while humans solve the same sequence discrimination almost immediately. This indicates that non-human animals lack a memory for stimulus sequences, which may be one reason behind the origin of human culture.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Daniela Tejada-Martinez, Roberto A. Avelar, Ines Lopes, Bruce Zhang, Guy Novoa, Joao Pedro de Magalhaes, Marco Trizzino
Summary: In this study, the authors used an integrated approach to investigate the molecular bases underlying lifespan and body size in primates. They analyzed dN/dS rates, positive selection, gene expression, and gene regulation. Through their analysis, they identified several genes associated with longevity and identified evolutionary forces that have contributed to the evolution of lifespan and body size in primates.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Biology
Michael Tomasello
Summary: Great apes can discern and direct others' attention in flexible ways, but they seemingly lack the ability to recursively coordinate attention and action with others, as well as regulate collaboration via intentional communication, in the same way as young human children.
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Raphaela Heesen, Klaus Zuberbuhler, Adrian Bangerter, Katia Iglesias, Federico Rossano, Aude Pajot, Jean-Pascal Guery, Emilie Genty
Summary: Research on human and non-human great apes has shown that both species, similar to humans, frequently resume interrupted joint actions with previous partners and in the same location, suggesting that great apes may experience something akin to joint commitment. The probability of resumption attempts was not affected by social bonds or rank, indicating a potential evolutionary origin for this behavior.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Alejandro Sanchez-Amaro, Federico Rossano
Summary: Humans are curious creatures, but it is unclear to what extent our innate curiosity is shared with our closest relatives. In order to investigate this question, researchers conducted experiments with great apes and young children, presenting them with choices between different cups containing visible or invisible rewards. The results showed that while great apes only became curious about uncertain options after being presented with better alternatives, children showed a higher degree of curiosity and explored the uncertain options before the alternatives were presented. The differences between children and apes are believed to lie in their motivational dispositions to explore the unknown.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Anita Frisch-Niggemeyer, Philipp Weihs, Michael Revesz, Stefan F. Schreier, Andreas Richter
Summary: This study develops and tests new algorithms for estimating aerosol amounts using digital photography. The algorithms are compared with ground-based aerosol optical depth (AOD) and in-situ particulate matter (PM10) measurements, showing promising results with coefficients of determination (R2) up to 0.86 and 0.73 for horizontal line GCF with PM10 and vertical line B/R with AOD, respectively.
ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Michael Tomasello
Summary: This paper reviews the research on great ape social cognition and metacognition in the past 25 years, finding that great apes have the ability to understand the intentions of others and monitor uncertainty, and proposes a theory about their evolutionary relationship.
Article
Anthropology
Jill D. Pruetz
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
(2018)
Article
Anthropology
Erin G. Wessling, Hjalmar S. Kuehl, Roger Mundry, Tobias Deschner, Jill D. Pruetz
JOURNAL OF HUMAN EVOLUTION
(2018)
Article
Ecology
Papa Ibnou Ndiaye, Stacy M. Lindshield, Landing Badji, Liliana Pacheco, Erin G. Wessling, Kelly M. Boyer, Jill D. Pruetz
AFRICAN JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE RESEARCH
(2018)
Article
Anthropology
Erin G. Wessling, Vicky M. Oelze, Henk Eshuis, Jill D. Pruetz, Hjalmar S. Kuehl
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
(2019)
Article
Zoology
Stacy Lindshield, Jessica M. Rothman, Sylvia Ortmann, Jill D. Pruetz
Summary: This study evaluated the potential nutritional determinants of two unusual foraging behaviors, fruit cracking with anvils and seed reingestion, by adult male western chimpanzees at Fongoli, Senegal during the baobab fruit season. The baobab fruit was found to be a high quality food source at Fongoli due to its nutritional balance, high energy content, and relative abundance in the environment, which may partly explain why chimpanzees use anvils and reingestion to access this mechanically challenging food.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Zoology
J. D. Pruetz, C. Greenlaw
Summary: A recent exchange between Pareja et al. and Urbani and Youlatos disputed the re-interpretation of primate species depicted in a Bronze Age fresco, ultimately showing stronger support for an African link. Despite the proposal of an Asian link, the historical context still favors the depiction of a primate species from the region.
Review
Anthropology
Stacy Lindshield, R. Adriana Hernandez-Aguilar, Amanda H. Korstjens, Linda F. Marchant, Victor Narat, Papa Ibnou Ndiaye, Hideshi Ogawa, Alex K. Piel, Jill D. Pruetz, Fiona A. Stewart, Kelly L. van Leeuwen, Erin G. Wessling, Midori Yoshikawa
Summary: The savanna environment presents challenges for chimpanzees, such as food and water scarcity, leading to behavioral adaptations like thermoregulatory behaviors. Savannas are generally associated with lower chimpanzee population densities and larger home ranges. The observed responses in chimpanzees to savanna landscapes offer pathways for future research on evolutionary processes and mechanisms.
EVOLUTIONARY ANTHROPOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Katie F. Gerstner, Jill D. Pruetz
Summary: Adequate nutrition is crucial for the well-being, survival, and reproductive fitness of individuals. Evaluating nutrition and health in wild animals, including great apes like chimpanzees, poses challenges. This study aims to review nutritional data on wild chimpanzee foods to better understand their diet, and to highlight key findings on nutrition and welfare related to their diet, shedding light on the importance of discussing welfare issues in wild chimpanzees for conservation and human-chimpanzee interaction settings.
News Item
Anthropology
Debra R. Bolter, Noel Cameron, John Hawks, Steven E. Churchill, Lee Berger, Robin Bernstein, Julia C. Boughner, Sarah Elton, A. B. Leece, Patrick Mahoney, Keneiloe Molopyane, Tesla A. Monson, Jill Pruetz, Lawrence Schell, Kyra E. Stull, Christopher A. Wolfe
Summary: Lack of coherent methodology in studying ontogeny in extinct hominins. Increased recovery of immature hominin remains spanning multiple genera has prompted a better definition of this subfield within human evolution over the past two decades.
EVOLUTIONARY ANTHROPOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Anthropology
Angela Achorn, Stacy Lindshield, Papa Ibnou Ndiaye, Jeffrey Winking, Jill D. Pruetz
Summary: Through studying meat sharing among Fongoli chimpanzees in southeastern Senegal, we found that sibling relationships, direct reciprocity, and meat-for-mating opportunities are important factors influencing sharing behaviors.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence
Haoyu Chen, Stacy Lindshield, Papa Ibnou Ndiaye, Yaya Hamady Ndiaye, Jill D. Pruetz, Amy R. Reibman
Summary: This paper explores the effectiveness of few-shot learning in a real-world problem where labels are hard to obtain. By training an FSL network using large public datasets and only labeling a few images per new species, the paper achieves the classification of various animal species in the wild. The paper also discusses the challenges and constraints posed by uncurated data and evaluates the potential real-world usefulness of different FSL networks.
Article
Ecology
S. F. Sylla, P. Ndiaye, S. M. Lindshield, S. L. Bogart, J. D. Pruetz
Summary: The western chimpanzee is critically endangered due to population decline and habitat degradation. Niokolo Koba National Park is an important area for western chimpanzee conservation, but it has been listed as endangered since 2007. Previous studies on the park's chimpanzees have been sporadic, so this study focused on their nesting ecology and identified other mammals using camera traps.
APPLIED ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Erin G. Wessling, Tobias Deschner, Roger Mundry, Jill D. Pruetz, Roman M. Wittig, Hjalmar S. Kuehl
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2018)
Meeting Abstract
Anthropology
Kelly Boyer Ontl, Jill D. Pruetz
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
(2018)