Rockstars of the Rainforest with Dr Cat Hobaiter | S2E26

Talking Apes

We often hear about how we humans are 98% chimpanzee. In fact, biologically, humans are more closely related to chimpanzees than chimps are to gorillas!
But when we look past the biological similarities, do we still see ourselves in our closest living relatives, the chimps and bonobos?
Dr Catherine Hobaiter and her team have spent almost two decades deep in the rainforests of Africa, studying wild chimpanzees and attempting to read between the lines when it comes to their diverse behaviour - especially the nuances of chimp communication.
When chimps shake hands, point, hold out their palms, or beckon, these gestures look familiar to us - but do they have the same meanings as they do for humans? Are chimps always violent? Do chimpanzee communities always have an alpha male? Why do chimpanzees drum on tree roots!?
Cat shares some of her team's incredible breakthrough scientific discoveries, and some of her favourite personal anecdotes about her time spent with apes like us.

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Talking Apes is an initiative of the nonprofit GLOBIO.
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