Chimpanzee

The history of research into the lives of wild chimpanzees now spans more than a half-century since Jane Goodall began it all. The past 20 years have seen tremendous advances in our understanding of our closest kin. These include revelations about our very similar genomes, but also many new discoveries about social behavior and ecology. New cultural traditions and forms of tool use, new evidence for the causes of violence, new evidence of patterns of hunting and meat-eating, and much more. Chimpanzees are new and different apes than they were at the close of the last century. The New Chimpanzee synthesizes the findings of the past 20 years and offers new insights and interpretations of what researchers have learned. The New Chimpanzee draws from results of the 7 longest term (25-55 years) research projects from which we've learned the most about the species, augmented by other shorter field projects conducted in recent years, including my own.--

British naturalist Jane Goodall provides an intimate portrait of a group of chimpanzees in the jungles of Africa which she has studied for many years.

"Precise but eminently readable and indeed exciting... This excellent book achieves the dual goal which eludes so many writers about animal behavior -- it will both fascinate the non-specialist and be seen as an important contribution to science." -- Times Literary Supplement

The complete guide to our closest living relative, drawing on thirty years of primate observation.

The Development of an Extraordinary Species We human beings share 98 percent of our genes with chimpanzees. Yet humans are the dominant species on the planet -- having founded civilizations and religions, developed intricate and diverse forms of communication, learned science, built cities, and created breathtaking works of art -- while chimps remain animals concerned primarily with the basic necessities of survival. What is it about that two percent difference in DNA that has created such a divergence between evolutionary cousins? In this fascinating, provocative, passionate, funny, endlessly entertaining work, renowned Pulitzer Prize–winning author and scientist Jared Diamond explores how the extraordinary human animal, in a remarkably short time, developed the capacity to rule the world . . . and the means to irrevocably destroy it.

Where We Stand Field workers—scientists of animal (including human!) behavior in nature—have long been fascinated by wild chimpanzees. A person who once has studied wild chimpanzees will be eager to observe them again. A person who has studied them twice will make every effort to continue the study, unless prevented from doing so. In short, behavioral primatology is addictive! Many people, among them Jane Goodall, Richard Wrangham, and I, do not regret that they have dedicated their whole lives to the study of wild chimpanzees. This is because the apes’ behavior is always challenging: chimpanzees are cheerful, charming, playful, curious, beautiful, easygoing, generous, tolerant, and trustw- thy most of the time, but also are cautious, cunning, ugly, violent, ferocious, blo- thirsty, greedy, and disloyal at other times. We human beings share both the light and dark sides with our closest living relatives. For decades, we have documented huge across-population variation in behavior, as well as within-population variation. Cultural biology (now called cultural pri- tology), as proposed 60 years ago by Kinji Imanishi, recently has flourished.

The Cat learns about primates—from marmoset monkeys to silverback gorillas—in this latest addition to the Cat in the Hat's Learning Library series! Traveling in his open-air Chimpmobile, the Cat takes Nick and Sally to Africa, Asia, and Madagascar, where they meet a barrel full of "monkeys," including mandrills, marmosets, gorillas, gibbons, gallagos, tarsiers, tamarin, pottos, bonobos—you name it! Along the way they learn the basic characteristics of primates (among them hands that can grasp and forward-facing eyes); how to tell the difference between an ape and a monkey (most monkeys have tails; apes don't); and most amazingly—that people are primates, too! Fans of the hit PBS Kids show The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That! (which is based on the Cat in the Hat's Learning Library) will go bananas over this latest addition to the series!

Chimpanzees fascinate people for many reasons. We are struck by the apes’ resemblance to humanity, as seen in their use of tools and their complex social lives, and we are moved by the threats that human activity poses to them. Our awareness of our closest living relatives testifies to the efforts of the remarkable people who study these creatures and work to protect them. What motivates someone to dedicate their lives to chimpanzees? How does that reflect on our own species? This book brings together a range of chimpanzee experts who tell powerful personal stories about their lives and careers. It features some of the world’s preeminent primatologists—including Jane Goodall and Frans de Waal—as well as representatives of a new generation from varied backgrounds. In addition to field scientists, the book features anthropologists, biologists, psychologists, veterinarians, conservationists, and the director of a chimpanzee sanctuary. Some grew up in the English countryside, others in villages in Congo; some first encountered chimpanzees in a zoo, others in the forests surrounding their homes. All are united by a common purpose: to study and understand chimpanzees in order to protect them in the wild and care for them in zoos and sanctuaries. Contributors share what inspired them, what shaped their career choices, and what motivates them to strive for solutions to the many challenges that chimpanzees face today.