Wild bearded capuchin monkeys (Cebus libidinosus) place nuts in anvils selectively
Are wild bearded capuchin monkeys selective about where they place nuts on anvils, specifically the anvil pits, during nut cracking? In the present study, we examined (1) whether capuchins’ preferences for particular pits are influenced by the effectiveness of the pit in cracking the nut and/or by the stability of the nut during striking, (2) […]
Coated nuts as an enrichment device to elicit tool use in tufted capuchins (Cebus apella)
Abstract 10.1002/zoo.1430090108.abs The present paper describes a simple technique that hardens the shell of nuts and makes the use of a tool to crack them open more compelling. Walnuts were coated with a dough of sawdust and nontoxic white glue in different combinations; they were tested for hardness by using machines normally used to test […]
Social Learning of Nut-Cracking Behavior in East African Sanctuary-Living Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii)
Nut cracking is restricted to communities of wild chimpanzees living in West Africa, suggesting it is an example of a socially transmitted tradition. Detailed study of the acquisition of nut cracking in wild chimpanzees is consistent with this conclusion. However, only 2, small-scale experiments have been carried out in captivity to explore the role of […]
Stone tool use in wild bearded capuchin monkeys, Cebus libidinosus. Is it a strategy to overcome food scarcity?
To determine whether tool use varied in relation to food availability in bearded capuchin monkeys, we recorded anvil and stone hammer use in two sympatric wild groups, one of which was provisioned daily, and assessed climatic variables and availability of fruits, invertebrates and palm nuts. Capuchins used tools to crack open encased fruits, mostly palm […]
Ecology of culture: do environmental factors influence foraging tool use in wild chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes verus?
Geographical variation in behaviour may be best explained in terms of culture if ecological and genetic explanations can be excluded. However, ecological conditions and genetic predispositions may in turn also affect cultural processes. We examined the influence of environmental factors on foraging tool use among chimpanzees at the Seringbara study site in the Nimba Mountains, […]