Culture in Chimpanzee Troops

Culture, even in non-human species such as chimpanzees, can be defined as the alteration over time of learned behaviors. One such learned behavior is the chimpanzee’s hoot. The hoot is a call made by chimps in order to identify one another. This identification is possible because of the fact that this behavior is learned, meaning it can differ from population to population. In other words, one troop of chimps will have a different hoot than another troop. As it turns out, chimpanzees are both very aggressive and very territory when it comes to chimps outside of their troop. Because of this, they will often engage in wars between troops. These wars are possible because one population can locate another via the unfamiliar sound of their hoot. Scientists have been able to confirm this through the cultivation of artificial chimpanzee troops in enclosed sanctuaries. Injured or orphaned chimps rescued from labs or the wild will start with their own unique, learned hoot before being assimilated into the sanctuary. Once successfully assimilated, the chimps will converge on one identical hoot that they may use to communicate with one another. This convergence is a perfect example of culture within a non-human species.