Research Confirms Bonobo Hunt Other Primates
Endangered Great Apes Seen Killing and Eating Monkey Species
Jan 5, 2009
The bonobo (Pan paniscus) has been thought to eat mainly ground dwelling species such as squirrels, rodents and small antelope. But, like its close relative the chimpanzee (Pan troglodygtes) this primate does hunt other primates.
The Bonobo Hunting Study
In the DRC’s Salonga National Park, the Max Planck research center at LuiKotale was the site of the study. Finding the bones of another primate in the feces of study bonobos lead to further investigation as it was not clear whether those bones were scavenged from a dead animal. It was shown that bonobos hunt mangabey and colobus monkeys. They may hunt other primate species opportunistically.
Most primatologists were not surprised. Since Jane Goodall’s pioneering work with chimpanzees showed them to be aggressive it has been thought that the closely related bonobo was unlikely to be as gentle as initial research indicated.
But the female dominated bonobo society does hunt differently. Female chimpanzees rarely hunt whereas female bonobo are active and skilled hunters. This may reflect the dominant position of females in bonobo society.
Bonobos Do Not Hunt Chimpanzees
Early media coverage of the release of the study stated that bonobo were seen hunting chimpanzee. But this is not possible. Chimpanzees and bonobos do not live in the same territory. They do not come into contact with one another, making it impossible for either species to hunt the other.
The problem arose because the study compares chimpanzee behavior with bonobo behavior. While primatologists clearly distinguish between monkey and great ape species, journalists writing for popular media did not review the information carefully enough to realize that the species being hunted were monkeys not chimpanzees, which belong to the great ape family.
More Research Needed to Understand Bonobos Better
This study underscores the limited information available regarding the most recently discovered primate. Another ongoing study of bonobo in the Democratic Republic of Congo, lead by Drs. Terese and John Hart is centered on 25,00 square miles of forest intersected by three rivers- the Tshuapa, the Lomami and the Lualaba.
These researchers are trying to determine how many bonobo are in this isolated area and where they are concentrated. The group has already found a new species of monkey and several new plant species. Okapi (Okapia johnstoni), sometimes called forest giraffe, are known to exist in nearby areas and the team is also attempting to find out if any live within the study range. Finding multiple new and/or at risk species will help in gaining support for protecting the area.
Learning as much as possible about the endangered bonobo and how it lives will be necessary if this primate species is to be saved. The new findings add to that body of knowledge.
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