The influence of ecology on chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) cultural behavior: A case study of five Ugandan chimpanzee communities.

Abstract

The influence of ecology on the development of behavioral traditions in animals is controversial, particularly for chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), for which it is difficult to rule out environmental influences as a cause of widely observed community-specific behavioral differences. Here, we investigated 3 potential scenarios that could explain the natural variation in a key extractive tool behavior, "fluid-dip," among several communities of chimpanzees of the Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii subspecies in Uganda. We compared data from previous behavioral ecological studies, field experiments, and long-term records of chimpanzee tool-using behavior. We focused on the quality of the available food, dietary preferences, and tool sets of 5 different communities, and carried out a standardized field experiment to test systematically for the presence of fluid-dip in 4 of these communities. Our results revealed major differences in habitat, available diet, and tool use behavior between geographically close communities. However, these differences in ecology and feeding behavior failed to explain the differences in tool use across communities. We conclude that ecological variables may lead both to innovation and loss of behavioral traditions, while contributing little to their transmission within the community. Instead, as soon as a behavioral tradition is established, sociocognitive factors likely play a key maintenance role as long as the ecological conditions do not change sufficiently for the tradition to be abandoned.

Ecological and social correlates of chimpanzee tool use

“…In these foraging contexts, chimpanzees have overcome the constraints of their environment through technological innovations that served to increase their tool using opportunities and in some cases, tool modifications that enhance the profitability of tool-assisted foraging [62]. Although certain aspects of opportunity may trigger tool use, mere ecological opportunity may not be sufficient to support a tool using tradition [12,55]. Rather, emergence of a particular tool behaviour may require a certain threshold of abundance: (i) to provide repeated exposure to the target resource; (ii) to make the foraging for this food resource energetically profitable; (iii) to allow the tool user to gain sufficient experience with the tool using task; and/or (iv) to provide exposure to socially transmitted information.…”

“…Palaeoecological analysis has shown that the floristic composition of the Goualougo and neighbouring forests has varied considerably over the past 2580 years [10,11]. In their examination of the patterns of tool use among East African chimpanzee populations, Gruber et al [12] suggested that ancestral chimpanzee populations in the region may have been coping with harsher environments during the last Ice Age which prompted various behavioural innovations, such as extractive tool use.…”

The effects of tradition on problem solving by two wild populations of bearded capuchin monkeys in a probing task

“…12: 20160604 white-faced [14] and black [15] capuchins, and chimpanzees [4]. Foraging behaviour in non-human primates, particularly for generalist species, is influenced by ecological features and previous experience with problems in the environment, which may differ between populations [5,7,16]. Regarding probe use, the overall performance of our subjects in the task Table 1.…”

“…Comparative studies on behavioural differences between ape populations suggest potential traditions as explanations for their distinct toolkits [3]. Wild chimpanzee populations differ in the techniques they employ to solve a foraging task and how they perceive objects as potential tools in accordance with their respective traditions, suggesting that cultural knowledge channels how apes approach new foraging problems [4,5]. Here, we examine how different traditions can affect the performance of wild bearded capuchin monkeys in tool-aided problem solving.…”

‘Culturas de Chimpanzés’: uma revisão contemporânea das definições em uso

“…Às vezes, elas aparecem juntas e relacionadas; em outras, são tidas como fenômenos distintos ou diferenciados em termos de impacto e importância. À medida que as 'culturas de chimpanzés' foram identificadas como fenômenos "não genéticos", considerados parcialmente independentes (Laland, 2008b) ou complementares aos fatores ambientais (Gruber et al, 2012), mais pesquisadores têm enfocado seus mecanismos de transmissão e suas dinâmicas sociais.…”