Aggression toward Large Carnivores by Wild Chimpanzees of Mahale Mountains National Park, Tanzania

Abstract

In the Mahale Mountains National Park of Tanzania, a group of about 33 chimpanzees were observed to surround a leopard den containing a mother and at least one cub and to drag out and kill the cub. This is the first report of chimpanzees or any other primate species killing their potential predator’s offspring. The incident suggests that chimpanzees, without any weapons, can manage to defend themselves against a carnivore of at least up to leopard size, and implicates how the early hominids may have reacted against their potential predators.

Conflict and Cooperation in Wild Chimpanzees

“…Although direct observations are few, chimpanzees do sometimes cooperate to mob predators such as pythons or leopards (Goodall, 1986;Hiraiwa-Hasegawa et al, 1986). And, as discussed previously, male hunting provides a potential, yet ambiguous, example of cooperation in the context of resource acquisition.…”

<Note> Exploratory-threat behaviors in wild chimpanzees encountering a porcupine

“…Aggressive behaviors of chimpanzees toward another species have been observed during hunting 1 , counterattack against a predator 2,3 , and cross-species play or playful teasing 2,4 . The threat-like displays observed in this study were not considered hunting attempts, since there is no record of chimpanzees hunting porcupines 1 and the displays were not as vigorous or the chimpanzees as excited as during genuine hunting.…”

Human Origins and Environmental Backgrounds

“…Mobbing calls are used to attract attention to a predator or intimidate it. Chimpanzees and humans give alarm and mobbing calls (Corbett, 1954;Goodall, 1986;Hiraiwa-Hasegawa et al, 1986;Boesch, 1991;Tsukahara, 1993). Hominins would presumably have done the same.…”

“…Chimpanzees have pursued and even killed cornered leopards (Boesch & Boesch, 1981;Hiraiwa-Hasegawa et al, 1986). Chimpanzees have attacked stuffed leopard models with sticks and stones (Kortlandt, 1980(Kortlandt, , 1989.…”