Observational approaches to chimpanzee behavior in an African sanctuary: Implications for research, welfare, and capacity-building

Abstract

Research in African ape sanctuaries has emerged as an important context for our understanding of comparative cognition and behavior. While much of this work has focused on experimental studies of cognition, these animals semi-free-range in forest habitats and therefore can also provide important information about the behavior of primates in socioecologically-relevant naturalistic contexts. In this "New Approaches" article, we describe a project where we implemented a synthetic program of observational data collection at Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Uganda, directly modeled after long-term data collection protocols at the Kibale Chimpanzee Project in Uganda, a wild chimpanzee field site. The foundation for this project was a strong partnership between sanctuary staff, field site staff, and external researchers. We describe how we developed a data-collection protocol through discussion and collaboration among these groups, and trained sanctuary caregivers to collect novel observational data using these protocols. We use these data as a case study to examine: (1) how behavioral observations in sanctuaries can inform primate welfare and care practices, such as by understanding aggression within the group; (2) how matched observational protocols across sites can inform our understanding of primate behavior across different contexts, including sex differences in social relationships; and (3) how more robust collaborations between foreign researchers and local partners can support capacity-building in primate range countries, along with mentoring and training students more broadly.

Keywords: behavior; capacity-building; observations; sanctuaries; welfare.

Figure 1:. The chimpanzee group in the forest at Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary.

Our collaborative project adapted focal observational methods from a wild chimpanzee field site to the sanctuary population. Photo by Innocent Ampeire.

Figure 2:. Composite example of observational data sheets.

We recorded (a) the activity of the focal every two minutes, along with the identities of any individuals in 1m distance of the focal; (b) all grooming given or received by the focal, including identity of partner, direction of grooming, and duration of bout; (c) all instances of aggression given or received by the focal, including type of aggression, victim response, presence of coalition, and context; (d) all pant grunts or pant barks given or received by the focal; (e) all object manipulation or tool use by the focal; and (f) all occurrences of aberrant behavior seen for any individual in the group.

Figure 3:. Behavioral patterns in a sanctuary chimpanzee population.

(a) Aggression rates per hour during provisioning (morning, midday, and afternoon) versus non-provisioning (evening) observation periods. Model estimates also account for individual’s identity, age, and sex. Error bars are 95% confidence estimates. (b) Individual variation in overall grooming rates between adults, by sex. (c) Distribution of tool-use and object manipulation behaviors across the group.