Female chimpanzees that forge strong, grooming-rich friendships with other females dramatically boost their infants’ odds of ...

In a recent article, researchers explored behavioral contagion of grooming and play in chimpanzees, highlighting the influence of social bonds and developmental factors on affiliative behaviors.

Grooming decisions under structural despotism: the impact of social rank and bystanders among wild male chimpanzees. Animal Behaviour , 2017; 128: 153 DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.04.012 Cite This ...

Female chimps are often the ones who leave their birth group. That means most do not live near their mothers or sisters.

Chimpanzees learn certain grooming behaviors from their mothers, and once they've learned them, they continue to show these behaviors long after their mothers have died.

Chimpanzee grooming habits are influenced more by where they live than by genetic or ecological influences. That is the conclusion of a study in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, external.

Group of chimpanzees including mothers, juveniles, subadults, and infants grooming and playing at the Budongo Conservation Field Station in Uganda. (Photo by Catherine Hobaiter) ...

Wild chimpanzees were observed sharing an object with one another just for the sake of sharing that experience, a trait once believed to be only found in humans, according to a new study.