Tool Use by Chimpanzees at Ngogo Kibale National

Authors: David P Watts

Publish Date: 2007/12/15

Volume: 29, Issue: 1, Pages: 83-94

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Abstract

Chimpanzees make and use a wide variety of tools in the wild The size and composition of their toolkits vary considerably among populations and at least to some extent within them Chimpanzees at several well documented sites mostly use tools in extractive foraging and extractive tool use can substantially increase their foraging efficiency They also use tools for hygiene and for several other purposes including attracting the attention of conspecifics as in leafclipping Some of the interpopulation variation in toolkits results from ecological variation but differences in the efficiency of social transmission perhaps related to differences in social tolerance presumably also contribute I describe tool use by chimpanzees in an unusually large community at Ngogo in Kibale National Park Uganda Researchers have described some tool use for the community previously but this is the most extensive report and is based on observations over 11 yr The Ngogo chimpanzees have a small toolkit and use tools rarely except in leafclipping displays and to clean body surfaces notably males often use leaf napkins to wipe their penes after copulation Extractive tool use is rare and is limited mostly to leafsponging and less often honeyfishing Social tolerance is not low at Ngogo but use of tools for extractive foraging in ways documented at other field sites may have little potential to increase foraging efficiency Future research will undoubtedly show more tool use by females which were underrepresented in my observations but will probably not document much increase in the toolkit or in the use of extractive toolsI thank the Uganda Wildlife Authority The Ugandan Council for Science and Technology and Makerere University for permission to do research at Ngogo Gil Isibirye Basuta and John Kasenene provided invaluable support for research efforts at Ngogo My research on the chimpanzees there depends crucially on the collaboration of Jeremiah Lwanga and John Mitani and the expert field assistance of Adolph Magoba Godfrey Mbabazi Lawrence Ndagezi and Alfred Tumusiime The L S B Leakey Foundation The National Geographic Society Primate Conservation Inc and Yale University have supported my fieldwork Earlier versions of the manuscript benefited from the constructive criticism of Ben Beck and 1 anonymous reviewer

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