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THE RESOCIALIZATION OF CHIMPANZEES, Pan troglodytes By CAROLE NOON A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 1996 Copyright 1996 by Carole Noon . Acknowledgments I am grateful to Linda Wolfe, Jane Goodall, and Shirley McGreal for their support and encouragement since the earliest stages this project. Sheila and Dave Siddle have my deepest respect for responding to Pal and the others with the imagination and determination that made this research possible. Special thanks are due Tess Lemmon. To all the chimpanzees I have known, not just those in this project, I extend my appreciation. I have eavesdropped on every little detail of their lives and they have been my teachers TABLE OF CONTENTS page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iii ABSTRACT vi CHAPTERS 1 INTRODUCTION 1 Current Threats 3 Lifestyle 5 Socialization 17 Growth and Development 23 Conclusion 34 2 RESOCIALIZATION 35 Introduction 35 Resocialization 37 Relevance of Resocialization 39 Current Status of Chimpanzees 47 3 CHIMFUNSHI WILDLIFE ORPHANAGE 48 4 ESTABLISHMENT OF A SEVEN-ACRE WALLED ENCLOSURE 58 Introduction 58 Methods 58 Results 63 Discussion 71 5 THE BEHAVIOR OF A GROUP OF INFANT CHIMPANZEES. 76 Methods 76 Results 78 Discussion 83 6 RESOCIALIZATION OF A GROUP OF CHIMPANZEES 91 Introduction 91 Methods 92 Results 98 Discussion 99 IV 7 CONCLUSION 114 Resocialization 115 Chimfunshi Revisited 121 Captive Chimpanzees 124 Chimpanzee Politics 127 BIBLIOGRAPHY 139 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 155 v Abstract of Dissertation Presented to the Graduate School of the University of Florida in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy THE RESOCIALIZATION OF CHIMPANZEES, Pan troglodytes By Carole Noon May 1996 , Chair: Linda D. Wolfe Major Department: Anthropology The Chimfunshi Wildlife Orphanage is home to over 50 chimpanzees that have been confiscated from smugglers or from people who were keeping them as pets. What the chimpanzees have in common is that they have been denied the opportunity for normal socialization. Resocialization refers to process by which a previously isolated chimpanzee, or one with limited social experience, is gradually exposed to a series of increasingly complex social situations. Three behavioral research projects were conducted at Chimfunshi on chimpanzees in varying stages of the resocialization process. The first project documented the behavior of a group of chimpanzees after their release into a seven and one half acre outdoor woodland enclosure and their behavior two years after release. The results of this study showed that the chimpanzees used the enclosure differentially and exhibited natural behaviors such as building tree nests. The association patterns of the chimpanzees changed from same age groups after release to mixed ages groups two years later. vi The purpose of the second research project was to determine the behavioral repertoire of six infant chimpanzees who had been orphaned under the age of one year. The results of this research yielded an activity budget that showed the infants spent most of their time involved in play, feeding and travel. In addition, it was revealed that these infants engaged in reassuring behaviors and possessed rudimentary tool use and nest building skills. The third project was conducted during the formation of a social group of chimpanzees in a fourteen acre enclosure. The purpose of this study was to determine if the behavior of two chimpanzees in adjacent cages could be used to predict their behavior upon meeting. The results suggest that preintroduction relationships may be reliable in predicting the outcome of introductions. However, the research presented in this dissertation indicate that resocialization is an interplay of intelligence, individual and observational learning, inherent capabilities, experience and the influence of other members of the social group. Vll CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Historically, chimpanzees. Pan troglodytes, lived throughout equatorial Africa from southern Senegal through central Africa to western Tanzania (Yerkes and Yerkes, 1929; Hill, 1969). This is an area almost the size of the United States and includes 25 countries (Lemmon, 1994). Today chimpanzees are extinct in four of those 25 countries and are down to such low numbers (100—200) in five other countries that extermination can be expected soon (Committee for Conservation and Care of Chimpanzees, 1987). In an additional five countries resident populations are so small and fragmented that they are severely at risk (Teleki, 1989). Only ten of the original 25 countries have chimpanzee populations that exceed 1000 (Committee for Conservation and Care of Chimpanzees, 1987). There may be as few as 150,000 chimpanzees surviving in Africa today (Teleki, 1989). Figure 1 2 1-1 shows the historical and current range of chimpanzees in Africa. Historic range Present Range Figure 1-1. Historical and present range of chimpanzees. Source: Lemmon, 1994. In 1976, the United States upgraded the chimpanzee from Vulnerable to Threatened status in its domestic Endangered Species Act in order to regulate exploitation that might be detrimental to chimpanzee survival (Oates, 1985). By 1977, the chimpanzee appeared on Appendix 1 of the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) (Peterson and Goodall, 1993). CITES distinguishes Appendix 1 species as in imminent danger of extinction (Kavanagh and Bennett, 1984). The International Union for the Convention of Nature (IUCN) then classified chimpanzees as Vulnerable on the IUCN . 3 Mammal Red Data List. This IUCN listing recognized that chimpanzees would become more endangered in the near future if the factors of population decline continued to operate (Teleki, 1989) In 1985, the IUCN Primate Specialist Group published their Action Plan for African Primates (Oates, 1985). The Action Plan rated chimpanzees in a High Priority category due to their vulnerability. In 1988, the United States Department of Interior reclassified the status of wild chimpanzees from Threatened to Endangered on the Endangered Species List reinforcing the Appendix 1 classification by CITES (Peterson and Goodall, 1993). Current Threats In spite of international legislation and their status as an endangered species chimpanzee numbers continue to decline rapidly in those countries where wild populations still occur. The primary threats to chimpanzee populations are habitat loss and hunting (Teleki, 1989). As the human population increases the need for wood, the major source of energy in Africa, increases (Peterson and Goodall, 1993). To meet the growing demand for firewood, gathering trips penetrate deeper and deeper into previously undisturbed habitat. Likewise, increasing local agricultural activities