Raw material procurement for termite fishing tools by wild chimpanzees in the Issa valley, Western Tanzania

Bibliographic Data

ID8317508
AuthorsKatarina Almeida‐warren (0000-0002-7634-9466, Department of Anthropology University College London London WC1 E6BT United Kingdom, corresponding author), Volker Sommer (0000-0002-9235-8493, Department of Anthropology University College London London WC1 E6BT United Kingdom), Alex K Piel (0000-0002-4674-537X, School of Natural Sciences and Psychology Liverpool John Moores University Liverpool L3 3AF United Kingdom), A Pascual-Garrido (0000-0002-1903-6236, Leverhulme Trust), Alejandra Pascual‐Garrido (RLAHA, School of Archaeology, Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellow University of Oxford Oxford OX1 3QY United Kingdom)
Year2017
Volume164
Issue2
Pages292-304
Publication date2017-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Journal of Physical Anthropology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-9483 • E-ISSN: 1096-8644
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/ajpa.23269
PMID28621823
OpenAlexW2625537232
LanguageEN
Citations received13
References cited64

OBJECTIVES: Chimpanzee termite fishing has been studied for decades, yet the selective processes preceding the manufacture of fishing tools remain largely unexplored. We investigate raw material selection and potential evidence of forward planning in the chimpanzees of Issa valley, western Tanzania. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using traditional archaeological methods, we surveyed the location of plants from where chimpanzees sourced raw material to manufacture termite fishing tools, relative to targeted mounds. We measured raw material abundance to test for availability and selection. Statistics included Chi-Squared, two-tailed Wilcoxon, and Kruskall-Wallace tests. RESULTS: Issa chimpanzees manufactured extraction tools only from bark, despite availability of other suitable materials (e.g., twigs), and selected particular plant species as raw material sources, which they often also exploit for food. Most plants were sourced 1-16 m away from the mound, with a maximum of 33 m. The line of sight from the targeted mound was obscured for a quarter of these plants. DISCUSSION: The exclusive use of bark tools despite availability of other suitable materials indicates a possible cultural preference. The fact that Issa chimpanzees select specific plant species and travel some distance to source them suggests some degree of selectivity and, potentially, forward planning. Our results have implications for the reconstruction of early hominin behaviors, particularly with regard to the use of perishable tools, which remain archaeologically invisible

Biology · Business · Commercial fishing · Environmental planning · Fishery · Fishing · Geography · Procurement · Tanzania · Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology · Primate Behavior and Ecology

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