Chimps Are Violent And Its Not Because Of Humans

For decades anthropologists have observed wild chimpanzees go crazy and attack one another through a series of coordinated assaults. Scientists did not know until very recently whether the violent behaviour in chimps was as a result of their interaction with human beings or whether it was part of their basic nature. A study conducted over 54 years suggests that chimpanzees are innately aggressive and the behaviour is not linked to human interference. Michael Wilson, the lead researcher in the study says that violence is a natural part of chimpanzee life and there was no requirement for them to be fed bananas to kill one another. Dr. Wilson is an associate professor of anthropology as the University of Minnesota.

Chimp Violence Explains Warfare In Humans ?

Violence in chimpanzees has had an important effect in how we think about the origin of warfare in humans Dr. Wilson said. Some have long argued that human warfare is a cultural invention and the product of a recent development such as agriculture. Jane Goodall a legendary primatologist however challenged the concept that warfare in particular is a modern development arguing that chimpanzees and humans are the only two species in the world that are known to conduct organised attacks on one another. Dr Wilson thinks the behaviour may have come from a common ancestor that lived between 5 to 7 million years ago.

Violence The Product of Human Interaction

Dr. Wilson’s ideas are themselves being challenged with other researchers claiming that the violent behaviour of chimps is the product of human intrusions. As African populations are increasing, they are infringing on habitats of chimpanzees. Hunters kill chimps, farmers clear land for farming and loggers cut down forests and this has put pressure on chimpanzee populations producing increased violence. Dr. Wilson and his colleagues looked at both bonobos and chimpanzees, which are both species that share a common ancestor with humans. The researchers observed 4 bonobo groups and 18 chimpanzee groups that lived in Africa.

Lots of Killings

There were a total of 152 chimpanzee killings of which 41 were inferred, 58 were directly observed and 53 suspected in 15 out of the 18 communities. There was a single killing amongst all the bonobos groups the researchers said and the different acts of violence were not dependent on human impact. The attacks tended to happen at sites where there were lots of males and the population densities were high. It was also found that East African chimpanzees killed more often than chimps living in West Africa according to the results of the study. The bonobos displayed very little violence and the researchers could not find a definitive case of killing, though there was one case where one member of a troop was severely attacked by other members of his group and never heard from again.

Does Evolution Favour Violence?

Because bonobos and chimps do not display the same levels of lethal violence, it is not possible to tell how the common ancestor behaved the researchers say. However it is possible to learn a little about the kind of circumstances where nature may favour the evolution of this kind of aggression.

“Overall, aggression makes [up] a small percentage of their daily lives,” Wilson said, adding that, “our behaviour affects them, but it’s not affecting them as people have suggested in the past, resulting in aggression.”