Sharing
March 1, 2011 by J.B. -
Chimpanzees can be very aggressive, but it’s easy to focus too much on this aspect of their behavior. What’s truly remarkable is how often they are able to resolve a conflict, or avoid a potential conflict, through such simple things as reassuring touches and gestures.
While not exactly the same, I often tell people that you can begin to understand chimpanzee dominance by watching The Godfather. In the following video, Negra plays the part of Don Corleone.
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brilliant footage thank you x
as always super interesting … love watching the fur folks exhibiting some of the best part of us …
As Marie posted, brilliant, just brilliant, JB, including your explanatory notes!
I LOVE learning about their behavior……thanks, J.B.!!
“Godmother” Neggie gives Marlon Brando good competition. I get the feeling, when all is said and done, she’s kinder than the “Don”!! Great video JB!
How wonderful. I love seeing these small but important things they do. The kisses are so sweet and so natural.
Thank you for this lovely video. Your daily pictures, comments and videos are very much appreciated.
J.B., you outdid yourself on this video, it helps, though, that you have great subjects to film. I’m at work going “aah”, this video’s a keeper. I love the fact that you all take the time to explain to us what’s going on, your videos are a useful and educational tool, in learning about chimpanzees. If anyone wants to learn about chimpanzees this is the site to come to, well-done.
P.S. Tell us about your videoing the 7. Do you always have the video camera in a handy place? You always seem to get great shots, do you have to wait until you get something to show us?
VIDEO REQUESTS
–I know we’ve seen part of a display, but I’d love to see a video, from beginning to end, of a display.
–I’d love to see a video of how you maneuver the chimps into the other rooms, saw a little bit when Jody got the blankets, I know you probably ask and cajole the chimps, but I’d like to see that.
–A day in the life of the CSNW management team.
Hi Candy – I try to keep the small camera in my pocket all day if I am the Lead Caregiver (the LC is responsible for posting to the blog). We also keep the SLR camera close by so we can catch any interesting behavior. On the days where we don’t post anything, it’s usually because we either a) didn’t have time to put it on the blog, or b) didn’t manage to catch anything interesting.
We’ll keep your requests in mind and hopefully we can get them on the blog someday soon!
Aww, the kiss at the end was so sweet 🙂
Thank you so much for posting this. I so much enjoyed this. It was so cute to see the kisses of reassurance that she could take some of her snow. I am only around dogs and when one of my dogs has something the others don’t even look at him cause they know they are going to hear a growl of don’t you even think of coming near me. The chimps are so loving to each other. How great to see them. I love them all and I appreciate all you guys do to help them be happy. God bless all of you.
Fascinating! I always was under the impression that Negra was in the middle of the pack or the lower end of the hierarchy. This shows that she has great respect from members of her group.
Yes, that’s why dominance hierarchies can be so difficult to explain. In some contexts Negra is dominant and in others she is not. We always say, as you noticed, that Negra is well respected. If CSNW were a constitutional monarchy, Negra would be the Queen, whereas Jamie would be the ruthless politician that fought her way to the position of Prime Minister (not a great analogy but that’s all I’ve got).
Negra is the wise old woman of the group. I love watching chimp behavior. It’s ever fascinating and we could learn so much from them. If only humans could be as forgiving and benevolent. Thanks for the wonderful footage, J.B.