First observation of tool use in wild gorillas.
Descriptions of novel tool use by great apes in response to different circumstances aids us in understanding the factors favoring the evolution of tool use in humans. This paper documents what we believe to be the first two observations of tool use in wild western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla). We firs...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2005-11-01
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| Series: | PLoS Biology |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0030380 |
| _version_ | 1818578194759942144 |
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| author | Thomas Breuer Mireille Ndoundou-Hockemba Vicki Fishlock |
| author_facet | Thomas Breuer Mireille Ndoundou-Hockemba Vicki Fishlock |
| author_sort | Thomas Breuer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Descriptions of novel tool use by great apes in response to different circumstances aids us in understanding the factors favoring the evolution of tool use in humans. This paper documents what we believe to be the first two observations of tool use in wild western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla). We first observed an adult female gorilla using a branch as a walking stick to test water deepness and to aid in her attempt to cross a pool of water at Mbeli Bai, a swampy forest clearing in northern Congo. In the second case we saw another adult female using a detached trunk from a small shrub as a stabilizer during food processing. She then used the trunk as a self-made bridge to cross a deep patch of swamp. In contrast to information from other great apes, which mostly show tool use in the context of food extraction, our observations show that in gorillas other factors such as habitat type can stimulate the use of tools. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-16T06:41:56Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1ae24553d43841ddbcb37f6b3825d4b8 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1544-9173 1545-7885 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-16T06:41:56Z |
| publishDate | 2005-11-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-1ae24553d43841ddbcb37f6b3825d4b82022-12-21T22:40:39ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS Biology1544-91731545-78852005-11-01311e38010.1371/journal.pbio.0030380First observation of tool use in wild gorillas.Thomas BreuerMireille Ndoundou-HockembaVicki FishlockDescriptions of novel tool use by great apes in response to different circumstances aids us in understanding the factors favoring the evolution of tool use in humans. This paper documents what we believe to be the first two observations of tool use in wild western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla). We first observed an adult female gorilla using a branch as a walking stick to test water deepness and to aid in her attempt to cross a pool of water at Mbeli Bai, a swampy forest clearing in northern Congo. In the second case we saw another adult female using a detached trunk from a small shrub as a stabilizer during food processing. She then used the trunk as a self-made bridge to cross a deep patch of swamp. In contrast to information from other great apes, which mostly show tool use in the context of food extraction, our observations show that in gorillas other factors such as habitat type can stimulate the use of tools.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0030380 |
| spellingShingle | Thomas Breuer Mireille Ndoundou-Hockemba Vicki Fishlock First observation of tool use in wild gorillas. PLoS Biology |
| title | First observation of tool use in wild gorillas. |
| title_full | First observation of tool use in wild gorillas. |
| title_fullStr | First observation of tool use in wild gorillas. |
| title_full_unstemmed | First observation of tool use in wild gorillas. |
| title_short | First observation of tool use in wild gorillas. |
| title_sort | first observation of tool use in wild gorillas |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0030380 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT thomasbreuer firstobservationoftooluseinwildgorillas AT mireillendoundouhockemba firstobservationoftooluseinwildgorillas AT vickifishlock firstobservationoftooluseinwildgorillas |