ALTRUISTIC BEHAVIOR AMOUNG CAPTIVE CHIMPANZEES

Altruism plays an essential role in maintaining cooperative societies. From September 2021 to January 2022, I studied a group of seven chimpanzees (two males and five females) living in Lion Country Safari, recording acts of altruism related to grooming, food and water sharing, and border patrol. I found males on average both gave and received more grooming sessions. Among the few food and water sharing events I observed, males-males sharing was the most common. The two males performed almost all the border patrol. Altruistic behaviors among chimpanzees help bind their social groups in ways analogous to the human behaviors.