Tool use for corpse cleaning in chimpanzees

Leeuwen, Edwin J. C. van; Cronin, Katherine A.; Haun, Daniel B. M.

doi:10.1038/srep44091

Cited by 31 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Interactions may also include objects which are employed in different contexts. One report described a chimpanzee engaging in ‘corpse cleaning’, and suggested that this was both a socially meaningful way of handling the corpse and an attempt to learn about its state (van Leeuwen, Cronin & Haun, ; see also ‘investigatory probing’ in McGrew, , p. 124). After the death of a female lowland gorilla, King () describes the male placing celery (her favourite food) on her hands.…”

Section: Primate Thanatology: Contemporary Reportsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Death among primates: a critical review of non‐human primate interactions towards their dead and dying

2019

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For the past two centuries, non-human primates have been reported to inspect, protect, retrieve, carry or drag the dead bodies of their conspecifics and, for nearly the same amount of time, sparse scientific attention has been paid to such behaviours. Given that there exists a considerable gap in the fossil and archaeological record concerning how early hominins might have interacted with their dead, extant primates may provide valuable insight into how and in which contexts thanatological behaviours would have occurred. First, we outline a comprehensive history of comparative thanatology in non-human primates, from the earliest accounts to the present, uncovering the interpretations of previous researchers and their contributions to the field of primate thanatology. Many of the typical behavioural patterns towards the dead seen in the past are consistent with those observed today. Second, we review recent evidence of thanatological responses and organise it into distinct terminologies: direct interactions (physical contact with the corpse) and secondary interactions (guarding the corpse, vigils and visitations). Third, we provide a critical evaluation regarding the form and function of the behavioural and emotional aspects of these responses towards infants and adults, also comparing them with non-conspecifics. We suggest that thanatological interactions: promote a faster re-categorisation from living to dead, decrease costly vigilant/caregiving behaviours, are crucial to the management of grieving responses, update position in the group's hierarchy, and accelerate the formation of new social bonds. Fourth, we propose an integrated model of Life-Death Awareness, whereupon neural circuitry dedicated towards detecting life, i.e. the agency system (animate agency, intentional agency, mentalistic agency) works with a corresponding system that interacts with it on a decision-making level (animate/inanimate distinction, living/dead discrimination, death awareness). Theoretically, both systems are governed by specific cognitive mechanisms (perceptual categories, associative concepts and high-order reasoning, respectively). Fifth, we present an evolutionary timeline from rudimentary thanatological responses likely occurring in earlier non-human primates during the Eocene to the more elaborate mortuary practices attributed to genus Homo throughout the Pleistocene. Finally, we discuss the importance of detailed reports on primate thanatology and propose several empirical avenues to shed further light on this topic. This review expands and builds upon previous attempts to evaluate the body of knowledge on this subject, providing an integrative perspective and bringing together different fields of research to detail the evolutionary, sensory/cognitive, developmental and historical/archaeological aspects of primate thanatology. Considering all these findings and given their cognitive abilities, we argue that non-human primates are capable of an implicit awareness of death.

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Section: Primate Thanatology: Contemporary Reportsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Death among primates: a critical review of non‐human primate interactions towards their dead and dying

2019

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“…Studies of the ways in which sanctuary-housed primates, primarily chimpanzees, make decisions and solve problems have yielded numerous publications over the previous two decades. Cognitive development [41,125,146,151,152], decision-making [153][154][155][156][157] and tool-use [94,[158][159][160][161][162][163] are some of the most commonly studied topics involving great apes. However, researchers have also investigated several more specific topics with sanctuary-housed chimpanzees, such as the influence of both social presence [164] and early rearing history [165] on problem-solving.…”

Section: (B) Cognitionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A review of research in primate sanctuaries

Ross

Leinwand

2020

Biol. Lett.

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While non-human primate studies have long been conducted in laboratories, and more recently at zoological parks, sanctuaries are increasingly considered a viable setting for research. Accredited sanctuaries in non-range countries house thousands of primates formerly used as subjects of medical research, trained performers or personal pets. In range countries, however, sanctuaries typically house orphaned primates confiscated from illegal poaching and the bushmeat and pet trafficking trades. Although the primary mission of these sanctuaries is to rescue and rehabilitate residents, many of these organizations are increasingly willing to participate in non-invasive research. Notably, from a scientific standpoint, most sanctuaries provide potential advantages over traditional settings, such as large, naturalistic physical and social environments which may result in more relevant models of primates' free-ranging wild counterparts than other captive settings. As a result, an impressive scope of research in the fields of primate behaviour, cognition, veterinary science, genetics and physiology have been studied in sanctuaries. In this review, we examine the range and form of research that has been conducted at accredited sanctuaries around the world. We also describe the potential challenges of sanctuary-based work and the considerations that external researchers may face when deciding to collaborate with primate sanctuaries on their research projects.

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“…Therefore, there is a great deal of behavioural complexity surrounding the Neanderthal treatment of the dead in both time and space. At the time of writing, the only other species that seems to have an equally diverse range of motivations and post‐mortem treatment of human bodies is our own (but see van Leeuwen et al ., for an example of chimpanzee practice).…”

Section: Updating Neanderthal Behaviourmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aspects of human physical and behavioural evolution during the last 1 million years

Galway‐Witham

Cole

Stringer

2019

J Quaternary Science

106

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This paper reviews some of the main advances in our understanding of human evolution over the last 1 million years, presenting a holistic overview of a field defined by interdisciplinary approaches to studying the origins of our species. We begin by briefly summarizing the climatic context across the Old World for the last 1 million years before directly addressing the fossil and archaeological records. The main themes in this work explore (i) recent discoveries in the fossil record over the last 15 years, such as Homo naledi and Homo floresiensis; (ii) the implications of palaeogenetics for understanding the evolutionary history of, and relationships between, Neanderthals, Denisovans and Homo sapiens; (iii) the interplay between physiology and metabolic demand, landscape use, and behavioural adaptations in the evolution of morphological and behavioural innovation; and (iv) recent advances in archaeological understanding for the behavioural record, in particular that of the Neanderthals. This paper seeks to provide a broad‐scale, holistic perspective of our current understanding of human evolution for the last 1 Ma, providing a reference point for researchers that can be built upon as new discoveries continue to develop the landscapes of human evolution. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of Quaternary Science Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Tool use for corpse cleaning in chimpanzees

Cited by 31 publications

References 22 publications

Death among primates: a critical review of non‐human primate interactions towards their dead and dying

Death among primates: a critical review of non‐human primate interactions towards their dead and dying

A review of research in primate sanctuaries

Aspects of human physical and behavioural evolution during the last 1 million years

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