Abstract
The aim of this study was to assess the ability of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) to cooperate in an instrumental task. A specially constructed fruit distributor was presented to a group of six captive chimpanzees. A cooperative response required two chimpanzees: both had to pull a handle simultaneously to make a fruit fall into the cage. The dominant male of the group and an infant produced most of the operant responses, and the male got nearly all the fruits. Other conspecifics avoided the dominant male at the apparatus. Social influences appear to limit the possibility of co-operation between individuals because a certain level of interindividual tolerance is required. The results revealed a significant increase in the number of pulls each time both chimpanzees were together at the apparatus. Operant chimpanzees learn to coordinate their actions in time and space.
References
Axelrod, R. &W. D. Hamilton, 1981. The evolution of cooperation.Science, 211: 1390–1396.
Beck, B. B., 1973. Cooperative tool use by captiveHamadryas baboons.Science, 182: 594–597.
Bercovitch, F. B., 1988. Coalitions, cooperation and reproductive tactics among adult male baboons.Anim. Behav., 36: 1198–1209.
Boesch, C. &H. Boesch, 1989. Hunting behavior of wild chimpanzees in the Taï national park.Amer. J. Phys. Anthropol., 78: 547–573.
Busse, C. D., 1978. Do chimpanzees hunt cooperatively?Amer. Naturalist, 112: 767–770.
Chalmeau, R. &A. Gallo, 1993. Social constraints determine what is learned in the chimpanzee.Behav. Process., 28: 173–180.
— & —, in press. Social influences on acquisition of a learning task in a captive group of chimpanzees. Proceedings of the 14th Congress of the International Primatological Society, Strasbourg.
Harcourt, A. H., 1987. Cooperation as a competitive strategy in primates and birds. In:Animal Societies: Theories and Facts,Y. Itô,J. L. Brown, &J. Kikkawa (eds.), Japan Sci. Soc. Press, Tokyo, pp. 141–157.
Hikami, K. &T. Matsuzawa, 1991. Lever pressing of two chimpanzees in competitive/cooperative situation.Reichorui Kenkyu, 7: 12–22. (in Japanese with English Summary)
Jegat, R. &R. Chalmeau, 1992. Un dispositif pour réaliser des apprentissages en coopération chez des primates.Sci. Techn. Anim. Lab., 17: 121–125.
Maynard Smith, J., 1982.Evolution and the Theory of Games. Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge.
Menzel, E. W., 1972. Spontaneous invention of ladders in a group of young chimpanzees.Folia Primatol., 17: 87–106.
Petit, O., C. Desportes, &B. Thierry, 1992. Differential probability of “coproduction” in two species of macaque (Macaca tonkeana, M. mulatta).Ethology, 90: 107–120.
Savage-Rumbaugh, E. S., D. M. Rumbaugh, &S. Boysen, 1978. Symbolic communication between two chimpanzees.Science, 201: 641–644.
Schell, D. &C. Packer, 1991. Group hunting behaviour of lions: a search for cooperation.Anim. Behav., 41: 697–709.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
About this article
Cite this article
Chalmeau, R. Do chimpanzees cooperate in a learning task?. Primates 35, 385–392 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02382735
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02382735