Mastodawn

"Evidence for representation of pretend objects by Kanzi, a language-trained bonobo

Classic childhood activities like tea parties and sword fights with sticks demonstrate the human ability to generate secondary representations, conditions we know aren’t 'real' but that we nonetheless engage with. Whether nonhuman animals are capable of these types of representations has been difficult to test. Bastos and Krupenye studied a language-trained bonobo, Kanzi, to see whether he could understand and engage with pretend conditions. Across three different experiments, Kanzi was able to identify pretend objects, demonstrating that he could create a secondary representation and showing that humans are not alone in this ability.

Secondary representations enable our minds to depart from the here-and-now and generate imaginary, hypothetical, or alternate possibilities that are decoupled from reality, supporting many of our richest cognitive capacities such as mental-state attribution, simulation of possible futures, and pretense. We present experimental evidence that a nonhuman primate can represent pretend objects. Kanzi, a lexigram-trained bonobo, correctly identified the location of pretend objects (e.g., ‘juice' poured between empty containers), in response to verbal prompts in scaffolded pretense interactions. Across three experiments, we conceptually replicated this finding and excluded key alternative explanations. Our findings suggest that the capacity to form secondary representations of pretend objects is within the cognitive potential of, at least, an enculturated ape and likely dates back 6 to 9 million years, to our common evolutionary ancestors."

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adz0743

Levka 14h ago

#bonobos #chimpanzees #gender #aggression

"Despite their contrasting reputations, bonobos and chimpanzees show similar levels of aggression in zoos.

Chimpanzees have a reputation for being aggressive, while bonobos are often seen as their peaceful counterparts. This contrast has frequently been used to explain different sides of human nature. However, a new study by Utrecht University behavioural biologists Emile Bryon, Edwin van Leeuwen, Tom Roth and international colleagues shows that, in zoos, chimpanzees are not more aggressive than bonobos. The study was published today in the scientific journal *Science Advances*.

The team of researchers compared the occurrence of aggressive behaviours in 22 zoo-housed groups of chimpanzees and bonobos. While no difference was found in overall aggression, the team did find that the two sister species differ in how the aggression is distributed. Bryon: 'In chimpanzees, aggression mainly comes from males and is directed at everyone. In bonobos, aggression comes from everyone but is mostly directed at males.'”

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1119513

SloggerVlogger Mar 27

First view of the UK’s only bonobo troop in their new home at Twycross Zoo before the grand opening
The first time the public got to see the bonobos outdoors in their new home

#bonobos #TwycrossZoo #BabyBiso
#TwycrossZoo #bonobo https://t.co/Rm7q0zmpmR via @FacebookWatch

— SloggerVlogger (@SloggerVlogger)
Mar 27, 2026

March 27, 2026 at 03:07PM

via Twitter https://twitter.com/SloggerVlogger

SloggerVlogger Mar 27

🌿 FINALLY the bonobos are out in their new habitat @SloggerVloggerFIRST VIEW of baby Biso on this channel in their new home. Long video on @SloggerVlogger the main channel. Make sure to visit!
#bonobos #babyanimals #primates
🌿
Full-length videos - vi… https://t.co/fP4CTWM6te https://t.co/sGZSKaWZzU

— SloggerVlogger (@SloggerVlogger)
Mar 27, 2026

March 27, 2026 at 02:25PM

via Twitter https://twitter.com/SloggerVlogger

SloggerVloggerShorts

Welcome to SV Shorts - the official home for bite-sized moments of the world’s most incredible primates. I’m SV, and on my main channel, SloggerVlogger, I share deep dives into the daily lives of great apes. Here on SV Shorts, I’m bringing you the quick, raw, and often hilarious clips that happen in a heartbeat. From Gorilla displays and Orangutan mischief to the high-energy world of Chimpanzees and Bonobos What you’ll find here: 🦍 Gorilla Moments: Power, play, and personality. 🦧 Orangutan Antics: The world’s smartest tree-dwellers in action. 🐵 Chimp & Bonobo Life: The wild social world of our closest relatives. Every shorts is filmed and edited by me. Don’t forget to check out the main viral channel @SloggerVlogger channel for the full videos! 🌿🦍🦧 Don't forget to visit the links🔗 🔊Some sounds are adjusted for better viewing; I aim to keep natural sound. Don’t forget to subscribe & turn on notifications to see all uploads! Translations are AI-generated or via Translator.

YouTube

SloggerVlogger Mar 27

🌿 FINALLY the bonobos are out in their new habitat @SloggerVloggerFIRST VIEW of baby Biso on this channel in their new home. Long video on @SloggerVlogger the main channel. Make sure to visit!
#bonobos #babyanimals #primates
🌿
Full-length videos - vi… https://t.co/fP4CTWM6te https://t.co/sGZSKaWZzU

— SloggerVlogger (@SloggerVlogger)
Mar 27, 2026

March 27, 2026 at 02:25PM

via Twitter https://twitter.com/SloggerVlogger

SloggerVloggerShorts

Welcome to SV Shorts - the official home for bite-sized moments of the world’s most incredible primates. I’m SV, and on my main channel, SloggerVlogger, I share deep dives into the daily lives of great apes. Here on SV Shorts, I’m bringing you the quick, raw, and often hilarious clips that happen in a heartbeat. From Gorilla displays and Orangutan mischief to the high-energy world of Chimpanzees and Bonobos What you’ll find here: 🦍 Gorilla Moments: Power, play, and personality. 🦧 Orangutan Antics: The world’s smartest tree-dwellers in action. 🐵 Chimp & Bonobo Life: The wild social world of our closest relatives. Every shorts is filmed and edited by me. Don’t forget to check out the main viral channel @SloggerVlogger channel for the full videos! 🌿🦍🦧 Don't forget to visit the links🔗 🔊Some sounds are adjusted for better viewing; I aim to keep natural sound. Don’t forget to subscribe & turn on notifications to see all uploads! Translations are AI-generated or via Translator.

YouTube

Radical Anthropology Mar 26

This will be a brilliant paper on the evolution of cooperation between groups as exemplified by #bonobos and bottle nose #dolphins (they are not always nice, don't be kidded, selfish genes in action!)

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rspb/article/293/2067/20252812/481093/What-can-we-learn-from-bonobos-and-bottlenose?guestAccessKey=4db4780c-5b65-4e9b-94d7-66c08622dd74

Nikolas Kozloff has moved Mar 14

So much for #hippie #bonobos beware #fearsome #females

https://www.livescience.com/animals/primates/bonobos-are-just-as-aggressive-as-chimps-but-theres-a-key-difference-the-female-bonobos

Bonobos are just as aggressive as chimps, but there's a key difference — the female bonobos

A new study of chimpanzee and bonobo groups at zoos reveals similar levels of aggression. However, scientists found stark sex-based differences between the species.

Live Science

Radical Anthropology Mar 13

Yup. #Chimpanzees not more aggressive than #bonobos

"aggression patterns diverge by sex: Bonobos exhibit higher female-to-male aggression, while chimpanzees show the reverse."

#greatapes #violence

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adz2433?utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ScienceAdviser&utm_content=distillation&et_rid=34814771&et_cid=5900653

michael Feb 19

17-Feb-2026
#Rhythm during sex in #bonobos provides new insights into the #evolution of #communication

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1116776

#science #primates #behaviour

Rhythm during sex in bonobos provides new insights into the evolution of communication

An international research team, including VUB data scientist Yannick Jadoul, has shed new light on the rhythmic nature of sexual behavior in bonobos. By precisely analyzing the tempo of movements during sex, researchers aim to better understand which building blocks of rhythm and communication are present in other species—and what this implies for the evolution of uniquely human traits such as speech and music.

EurekAlert!

Palm Oil Detectives Feb 13

Today it's #ValentinesDay and #WorldBonoboDay. #Bonobos resolve conflicts thru #peace ☮️ and #love 💕 wisdom #humans could learn from. They're critically endangered due to #poaching #palmoil #deforestation 😿 Help them! #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife https://palmoildetectives.com/2023/08/13/bonobo-pan-paniscus/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=Palm+Oil+Detectives&utm_campaign=publer